Police defend department’s work
With controversy over both crime and the police department’s often brutal reaction to it, running near an all time high, last night’s “One on One with Dickie Bradley” offered some special drama. Guests Assistant Commissioner Hugh Cain and Superintendent Crispin Jeffries came across as no nonsense cops whose attitude toward those arrested was tough but fair. Host Dickie Bradley was not convinced that all was well in the world of Belizean law enforcement and kept returning to the point of what he felt was special treatment for Chinese merchants at the expense of disadvantaged youths from the inner city.
Crispin Jeffries, Senior Superintendent
“Look at what happened three weeks ago, what we did and what has happened. Well we had a lot of robberies, they were targeting particular business places and that has stopped.”
Dickie Bradley
“And it is due to the efforts of the police?”
Crispin Jeffries
“Well, I wouldn’t say it is only the effort of the police, the people they were talking. Obviously the police had an impact.”
Dickie Bradley
“You mean targeting Chinese?”
Crispin Jeffries
“Well yes.”
Dickie Bradley
“Can I take issue with that, I would want to suggest that…”
Hugh Cain, Assistant Commissioner
“They were not only targeting Chinese either Cris because when you look at the other cases, whether it is a little baby girl that they are grabbing her earrings out of her ears or opportunity, I call it opportunity targets.”
Crispin Jeffries
“But I would still argue that they were targeting particular people for money and the public outcry came because they were killing and maiming the Chinese community. I am not saying and don’t take me wrong my comment here is not to defend anybody or damage anybody, but the reality was that was happening and that is what we came out to address because it was getting extremely violent.”
Dickie Bradley
“I would start by saying that…the Chinese kind of own you all. When they were robbing and do us things it was cool. Rob three or four Chinese and you get very jumpy. You do all kind of things, pick up people from Friday night till Monday morning. How do you respond? When the Chinese call you, you get very jumpy.”
Hugh Cain
“Well we won’t respond to the business of Chinese owning the Police Department. The government owns us. If anybody own me it is the people of Belize own me, simple as that.”
Dickie Bradley
“Your getting personal now, we are not talking about owning you, not you the police.”
Hugh Cain
“Which I am a part of. I am a part of the department and the department is a part of me, so we will make that quite straight. But we won’t get into the business of the Chinese owning the Police Department or policing. If they own anybody it is the Government of Belize because they are who I belong to and that is who the department belong to.”
Dickie Bradley
“The Chinese own the government?”
Hugh Cain
“No no. I am saying if you want to talk about them owning anybody talk about them owning somebody else, but not the Police Department and we won’t go down that alley at all at all.”
Dickie Bradley
“You are at the Eastern and when the Chinese call you, you’re jumpy.”
Crispin Jeffries
“I don’t necessarily think so. I think the Chinese community have.”
Dickie Bradley
“They have clout.”
Crispin Jeffries
“Have high influence, I can tell you that. You listen to comments and a lot of the talks shows, a lot of people beat up on the Chinese. The Chinese are in control of a lot of things in Belize.”
Dickie Bradley
“For example?”
Crispin Jeffries
“Entertainment, they provide all the food, they provide most of the gambling, illegal lottery and regular sell lottery…”
Dickie Bradley
“Illegal and legal”
Crispin Jeffries
“Yes, and they provide liquor, so the Chinese control. So if they shut down or boycott Belize we are in a problem because we have been cultured to go to the Chinese to buy everything.”
Dickie Bradley
“The pressure you are under, as you are on the street every black man is a criminal, every young man on the base is a criminal. You bruise him up, beat him up ill-treat him and what not. By contrast, every Chinese community, every business is selling illegal lottery and you all are driving pass, walk pass and you can’t touch them. You can’t touch those people?”
Crispin Jeffries
“Very interesting.”
Dickie Bradley
“So you are very defensive but you can’t touch the Chinese.”
Crispin Jeffries
“You know Mr. Cain I would like to take Mr. Bradley to task to look at some of this. You speak about…”
Dickie Bradley
“You are cracking down on illegal lottery.”
Hugh Cain
“We are cracking down on crime general right across the board. We are here to reduce the level of crime in the country.”
Crispin Jeffries
“We have gone from cases where the Chinese were arrested for illegal lottery and fined two hundred dollars.”
Dickie Bradley
“That is one isolated case.”
Crispin Jeffries
“This Sunday, the Chinese…”
Dickie Bradley
“Please, no insult me. Every Chinese is out there selling boledo is selling illegal boledo and you tell me you arrest one person and then every weekend the police station packed right up with the little boys them. No Chinese get packed up the police station. How come? And they are breaking the law everyday so it is an image problem you all have.”
One thing on which the guests, host and callers to the programme all agreed is that police officers are underpaid for the dangerous and stressful job they are asked to perform.
