WASHINGTON, D.C., June 13, 2023 – His Excellency Wendall Jones, Bahamas Ambassador to The United States, the current Chairman of the Caucus of CARICOM Ambassadors in Washington, D.C., today led a committee of Ambassadors to Capitol Hill to discuss gun trafficking in the Caribbean.
During a meeting with Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-Texas), the group called for the United States to join the Caribbean in the War on Guns and to urgently adopt and take action to stop the illegal exportation of firearms and ammunition into the Caribbean.
Ambassador Jones emphasized that crime and violence are public health issues in the region, noting that governments are now using a disproportionate share of their national budgets to address crime, violence and national security. He said hospitals are under pressure, as surgeons, other physicians and health professionals attend to thousands who are maimed as a result of illegal guns.
The ambassador told the Congressman that those involved in the trafficking of weapons contribute significantly to violence in the region, causing death, disabilities and compromising the safety of the region’s citizens.
Rep. Castro and six other Representatives have introduced the Americas Regional Monitoring of Arms Sales (ARMAS) Act legislation that seeks to disrupt firearms trafficking from the United States to Latin America and the Caribbean by implementing stronger transparency, accountability and oversight mechanisms for U.S. small arms exports.
At a recent Symposium on Crime and Violence held in Trinidad and Tobago, CARICOM Heads of Government agreed to undertake a comprehensive overhaul of the criminal justice system to address criminal terrorists; the strengthening of regional forensic capabilities and collaboration among national forensic agencies; ban on assault weapons in the region, except for use by security forces and in sporting competition; support Mexico in its legal action against US gun manufacturers and retailers.
