Attorney General, Adriel Brathwaite, is calling on regional governments to use available resources to track firearms coming into the region.

He issued this call while speaking to the media following the opening of a conference on Customs and Border Protection Border Security Professional Exchange at the Hilton Barbados Resort today.

???It seems like we are having challenges with more firearms coming into the region. Sixty per cent of the firearms coming into the region are from North America, particularly from the US, and the other 40 per cent is from Latin and South America,??? he pointed out.

He added that while the region did not manufacture firearms, the majority of deaths and violent crimes were gun-related. Noting that there was a unified cry throughout the region about the use of firearms in the commission of crimes, Mr. Brathwaite said that the issue of border security would be a major focus of the three-day meeting.

???We need to look to see how we can beef up our border security to stop them from coming to the region,??? he stated.??Mr. Brathwaite, who is also Minister of Home Affairs, said that would mean regional Heads of Government looking beyond air transportation to sea transportation.

He explained that while Caribbean countries encouraged yachts and boats for pleasure, there was a need to examine the risks associated with such practices.?????From a national security perspective, the whole issue of yachts and ships going through the region is a risk that we have to look at,??? the Minister emphasised.

julia.rawlins-bentham@barbados.gov.bb

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