Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-moon, said the Caribbean is beset by ills such as drug trafficking and violent crime despite its natural assets.
Ban, in an address to the opening of the fifth general meeting of the United Nations and the Caribbean Community and its associated institutions in New York Monday, said while he was struck by the beauty of the islands and the warmth of the people when visiting the Caribbean two years ago, `these natural assets stand in stark contrast to some of the region’s ills.`
`You know all too well that geopolitical realities leave the region vulnerable to destructive forces,` Ban said, adding that the Caribbean is the midway point between illicit drug producers in the South and consumers in the North, whose profits from the drug trade often dwarf the legal economies of CARICOM countries.
`With that trade comes violent crime,` the Secretary-General pointed out. The region is said to have the highest per capita murder rates in the world and drug trafficking also undermines the rule of law and democratic governance.
`We must address this scourge while paying special attention to those who are vulnerable to getting caught in the web of drug crimes,` he said, adding that collaboration between CARICOM and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) will be crucial.
Source: CaribWorldNews.com
