KINGSTOWN, St. Vincent – Police here will pull the plug on any Carnival event where violence breaks out, police spokesperson ASP Jonathan Nichols said Tuesday, citing a directive from the Commissioner of Police.
Nichols made an unscheduled appearance at a Carnival Development Corporation’s (CDC) media briefing Tuesday morning where he made the announcement.
“This morning, my presence here mainly is to send a word of warning to the Vincentians public. As the [CDC] Chairman [Dennis Ambrose] mentioned, we had a couple [of] incidents over the weekend that were very troubling to the police and caused concerns,” he said.
Reports reaching I-Witness News indicate that one person was killed when a fracas broke out a rural Carnival event.
“Now, the police force, we are very cognisant of our role [in] securing Vincy Mas, whether in the rural areas or in the capital, Kingstown,” Nichols said.
“We also are aware that while we have to secure and protect and ensure that the events go well, we have to look out for the safety of persons who are not Carnival inclined and other members of the general public,” he further stated.
“Over the weekend, we had to stop one of the functions that was scheduled because of some violence earlier in the day and … the message is that we want people to enjoy Vincy Mas, we want you to enjoy yourself, we want you to enjoy the shows but there are some persons, they are just geared toward causing trouble,” Nichols said.
“You have to police those persons. You have to help us police the Carnival and the activities and any show that is marred by violence, that show will be cancelled. That’s the word from the Commissioner’s Office; we are taking a stance on that. We want you to enjoy yourself but leave the violence out,” he further stated.
Nichols said that this country has become known for having violence-free Carnivals. Other Caribbean countries, including Trinidad and Tobago, have adopted some of the strategies used here, including the No-Bottle Policy, Nichols said.
He added that the police chief in Port-of-Spain has visited this country during Carnival to observe the policing strategies employed here.
“Again, I want to encourage the public to have fun and respect the authorities. You can have fun without violence. You can have fun without getting into trouble,” he said.
Nichols urged persons to pay attention to friends who might be consuming too much alcohol.
“If you are in a group and you realise there is an individual or two who may be consuming a little too much alcohol and becoming too aggressive, you have to learn to speak to that individual and assist them in staying in control. When that happens, we know that we will have no incidence and a peaceful Carnival.”
He further encouraged residents of this country to be security conscious generally. He said that when leaving their homes, people should ensure that the premises are properly secured and well lit and that minors are left in the care of responsible people.
Vehicles, Nichols said, should be parked in well-lit areas and he also encouraged Carnival-goers to respect the No-Bottle Policy, which mandates that all drinks should be served in disposable cups rather than the glass bottles in which they are packaged.
Glass bottles are often used as projectiles when fights break out at Carnival and other events, sometimes inflicting injuries on innocent bystanders.
Meanwhile, Culture Minister Cecil “Ces” McKie, speaking at the same media briefing, said:
“We have to ensure that we don’t have the belief that it’s just the police that is responsible for having a safe Vincy Mas. The responsibility lies with every single individual to do their part to ensure that our Carnival remains as the safest Carnival in the Caribbean.
“So, let us be reminded of that responsibility and ensure that we enforce the No-Bottle Policy, that we work along with the police to safeguard all of our citizens and the visitors to St. Vincent and the Grenadines.”
He noted that this country has this year received several travel awards and added that Vincy Mas contributed to the recognition.
“So therefore, Carnival is going to be central to the visit that would be done in 2012 by a lot of persons coming into St. Vincent and the Grenadines,” McKie said.
Vincy Mas 2012 begins in earnest on Friday with the Miss SVG Pageant.
While I can understand the enormous difficulty to police every nook and cranny and every tom dick and jane during carnival celebrations…ah must say, this policy is a load of crap. Are you telling me I pay my hard earn money to go to a show, and due to some arse#@!& I will have to suffer the consequences of being deprived of my entertainment? Isn’t this carry things too far?
So what exactly constitutes violence for a show to be shut down?…what if a man gets his head bust? Is this level of violence enough to shut down a show? What about if I see Vincypowa at a show and I walk up to him a bust a haaard slap on him?…we know, Vincypowa, will not react, cause he is a punk…will the police shut down a show for that? What if the performer is crap and the patrons start to stone him or her…will the police shut down the show?
I think the police is asking for more trouble with such policy…can you imagine a ram-pack Victoria and SKINNY TEARING THE PLACE UP…and then all of a sudden the show is shut down because of some arse#@!*? Really? ARE THE POLICE PREPARE FOR 10,000 RABID DIE-HARD SKINNY FANS GOING BALLISTIC? I am just saying.
I can appreciate the efforts of the police in trying to curb violence during the Carnival…but you can’t penalize the masses for the dotishness of a few. In the instance of someone getting KILLED AT A SHOW or some THREAT THAT WILL PUT PEOPLE LIVES IN DANGER…I can understand the need to shut down a show for such tragedy. But ah can’t support the shutting down of a show, because of a few Vincypowas.
SAADISS, again, where do you LIVE, MARS or in a FIRST WORLD COUNTRY called the UNITED STATES of AMERICA?
I have to ask that QUESTION because it seems like you’re DUMBFOUNDED by the FACT that if an EVENT is marred by VIOLENCE in the so-called FIRST WORLD NATION that is AMERICA, which you live, it is HIGHLY LIKELY that LAW ENFORCEMENT is going to SHUT that event down.
All this MOUTH that you have on this BLOG, you would not have said a WORD to LAW ENFORCEMENT in AMERICA, if you had gone to one of those events where VIOLENCE caused the event to close.
Well guess what, instead of trying to criticize the LAW ENFORCEMENT in SVG for DOING the RIGHT THING, by CLOSING DOWN the EVENT, I SUGGEST that you BLAME the PROMOTERS for not HIRING PROPER SECURITY to DEAL with INDIVIDUALS who come to these EVENTS to CAUSE PROBLEMS.
As for slapping me and I won’t do anything, I SUGGEST that you GET your HEAD out of FANTASY LAND.
That said; you sorta REMIND me of a VIDEO I saw on YOUTUBE of a PUNK typing away at his COMPUTER on a SOCIAL NETWORK SITE, as if he is an INTERNET THUG, but when he MET one of the persons in REAL LIFE that he was badgering, the INTERNET BADMAN turned out to be nothing more than a PUNK, as he got a BEAT DOWN without RESISTANCE.
Yes, that is EXACTLY what will happen to you as well. However, I won’t waste my time on U. I might let another SENIOR CITIZEN do my BIDDING, because I do not want to TAKE ADVANTAGE of U.
LOL@OLD ASS SAADISS talking about SLAPPING ME…HILARIOUS, because he is PROBABLY about 60 years old.
YEA, LIKE THE PIX AH HAVE BEFORE ME OF THE MAN ‘GUNNY. He looks over forty years OLDER THAN Eustace, and sadly SHAKIER, TOO. And, the SUBVERTER used to tell us, so often over the past several years, about how old Arnhim Eustace was – – – of course WITHOUT MENTIONING HIS OWN AGE, duplicitously.
I began to ask about this, HIS OWN OLD AGE, why he NOT MENTIONING his own OLD age, and always distractingly, PROPAGANDISTICALLY attempting to draw negative attention to Mr. Eustace’ s.
AN OLD COMMUNIST PROPAGANDA TRICK AND STRATEGEM BY THE RED WOLF OF THE CARIBBEAN who has been at it FOR OVER FORTY FOUR YEARS of communist dissemination of FALSE PROPAGANDA.
I forcing myself to look at this sickly picture, and simply can’t believe my eyes. Once again a muling infant. Pathetic. Utterly pathetic. Why do they always seek to give us pictures of him from the high chest, or neck, UP. Please give us up-to-date pictures, with the WHOLE PICTURE SCENE. Then we can intelligently know the actual, real, state of the DISSEMBLER’S health – – – and NOT just THE LYING PROPAGANDA.
LEY WE SEE THE SUPER-SIZED GUT. COMPLETE, TOTAL, UTTER, LACK OF DISCIPLINE. Ah shame.
wah happen? he shame ah how he look?
THE DUPLICITY IN TRYING TO CYNICALLY DISCRIMINATE AGAINST AND STEREOTYPE OTHERS when HE LOOKS OVER FORTY TIMES OLDER THAN HE criticized RIVAL.
No sweat, SAADISS, the Leninists credo inspires them toward “LYING, CHEATING, RAPING, AND KILLING” – – – FOR THE SAKE OF THE REVOLUTION. Violence is part of the communist tool kit.
In opposition, the Leninists would fight tooth and nail against this police proscription of violence – – – REMEMBER THE PROVOCATIVE “road block revolution”?
Who tell the guys to surround him to obstruct the POLICE from reaching him while he lay down in the road contrary to lawful police orders? Brave ‘road block revolution’ indeed. He even went and brag to castro how he had ‘revolutionary’ credentials, too, with this infantilic contrived FARCE.
BUT, IN POWER, the LENINIST DOES NOT WANT TO HEAR CRITICISMS – – – and so would delegate the POLICE to SHUT DOWN AND SHUT UP the critical commentary KAISOs – – – AT THE SLIGHTEST PRETEXT.
This is the real game of the COPYCAT communist brigade, the FIFTH-COLUMNISTS in SVG.
SVG CARNIVAL, principally the CALYPSOES, HAS BECOME A BIG PERSONAL HEAD-ACHE FOR THE NARCISSISTIC LENINIST. They are a DISASTROUS FLOOD-TIDE OF CRITICISM and always BITING POLITICO-SOCIO-ECONOMIC COMMENTARY. Communist tolerate NO criticisms from the populace.
AN’ the new self-conceived MAASA – – – NAH LIKE DAT – – – dem dey kaiso criticizing he, of all persons.
Now, the COPYCAT COMMUNIST must KILL KAISO, and CARNIVAL, in order to ‘save’ his SINKING SHIP OF A MIS-GOVERNMENT. So, he orders his minions to do his communistic bidding.
Hudson Tannis did TUN DOWN THE MIKE – – – COMMUNIST RALPHIE WILL BAN THE SHOW.
The Leninists in the region seek to SHUT UP and SILENCE SVG CALYPSONIANS.
Their mercurial GREEN BOOK idol Muammar GADAFFI in LYBIA already cold-blooded murdered VINCY bard, WALTER PORTER, and sought to do the same to TOMMY T, in the BARBARIC BOMBING OF THE AIRPLANE OVER LOCKERBIE, SCOTLAND. Maybe we ought to investigate wey PORTER dem do the Coypcat ??!!
My Vincentian kaisonians: SING, SING, SING. SING ABOUT THE WIDESPREAD STATE-WIDE CORRUPTION OF THIS ILLEGITIMATE, MINORITY, WANNABE MARXIST-LENINIST COMMUNIST REGIME.
CHANT ABOUT THE DISAPPOINTMENT, FAILURE, AND TOPPLING OF THE COPYCAT COMMUNIST REGIME.
Sing about the UGLY LOOK of THE BIG BELLY MAN, LENIN’s ideological spawn.
quite simply put , i believe the aim of implementing such a policy is to prevent violence to begin with…what would be the point of publicizing the fact that a show would be closed down if violence breaks out if they had all these communist, Leninist intentions as a part of their agenda????…..GEEEEESH!…some ppl read too far into things…intelligence may sometimes work against us when we start over thinking everything
To set up a “PRETEXT”. Then dey could self-justify, “Ah be warn yo, tel yo so.”
lmao they’re shutting down all carnival events then l.o.l Violence almost always erupts at events,people are inubriated…they should just ban alcohol for carnival and arrest anyone who dances with someoneelse’s woman..ending the man reasons for violence at carnival.. Shutting down shows whenever violence arises is like calling the fire department when someone lights a match..I’ve seen fights break out at international cricket matches,normally they would deal with the 2 people who were fighting and not shut down the entire match…the ULP is pretty stupid,carnival serves as an outlet of forgetfulness,start banning/shutting down carnival shows and people wouldn’t be able to live in fantasyland for 1 week they’ll still be focused on you thieving vagabonds who try to pass yourselves off as a govt,even moreso…it wuldn’t surprise me if 2 ulp supporters started fighting wnen an Anti Ralph calypsonian comes on simply so they’ll shut down the show
PROFOUND, JAHU, PROFOUND. And, Most Realistic._
STEVE-HUGGINS, your quite right, GONSALVES hands shake a lot, specially early in the morning in the garden.