Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley has warned that her country will not be held hostage to a few criminal elements involved in a turf war.
The warning was issued Saturday night as she announced that just under 100 soldiers will be joining their police counterparts in a major fightback effort which requires “all hands on deck,” Barbados Today reported.
Mottley said that police have sacrificed two off days a month and additional vehicles offered by the Barbados Defence Force have been placed at the immediate disposal of all law and order forces.
She stated that it was all in an effort to address the crime situation in Barbados, which she said was “nowhere as bad” as in other countries of the region.
“We are not prepared under any circumstances to admit that it is business as usual when eight people can lose their lives in this country in the month of January,” the prime minister said. “We are not prepared under any circumstances for people to believe that they can use or walk around with guns as if they are toys, as if they are badges of honor.”
Noting that the crime situation was endemic to the region and not a peculiar problem to Barbados, Mottley acknowledged that since taking office in May, her efforts have primarily been focused on the repair of the nation’s economy.