‘Stop the slaughter of our community’s young men’
Shootings claim the lives of the community's sons
Over the past three weeks, about four young men have been shot dead from the communities of Newclare, Westbury, and Claremont.
In a recent shooting, a young man was shot dead and another was wounded in the stomach.
Witnesses who requested anonymity said that the young man had been sitting in the park with friends when the shots were fired.
According to residents who witnessed the shooting, four men approached the group and started firing shots. As the group scattered towards a local shop, the young man was then shot.
A witness said: “On Saturday night at about past 10, as I sat in the living room, shots were fired outside, I was frozen because it sounded as if it was happening in my yard, my daughter started screaming from her bedroom window ‘mummy they shooting, people are running everywhere and I can see the fire from the guns’.
“At this point, I got up and ran out and was already on the phone calling the police. As we ran towards the shop where the people were screaming, more shots were fired and people just scattered, we all then ran up towards the shops because of the screaming.”
The witness wanted to call for an ambulance but it was too late as the young man was already dead.
Residents are in fear of their lives following speculation that the bullets were meant for another target. Speculation is rife amongst residents that this latest attack was drug related.
Residents, sickened by the brazen drug pushing activities in the communities, attempt to have patrols in the areas to minimise drug peddling and drug use.
In the face of this defiance and disregard for the young lives destroyed by substance abuse, the community is demanding that dealers and gangsters keep their hands off the youth.
Here are a few Facebook comments from residents in the community on how their lives have been affected by the violence and shootings.
(Names have been withheld for the safety of the residents):
1.
“The shooting is really becoming a situation where people are living in fear especially if you are a mother that have sons because it’s our males and young males that have been targeted.”
2.
“As parents whether your son is involved in crime or not, it affects us because we don’t know what the plans of the shooters are and why they really shooting at our children.”
3.
“We have all being affected by the violence in some way, some of us has lost family members, friends, partners. We’re living in a so called democracy country, supposed to be free but we are not.”
4.
“We don’t have lives, we live according to these idiots because we must live in fear to go to the shop, fear taking your kids to school”.
5.
“I personally am very angry, we have lost too many children, we have been held hostage too long, the police are of no use too, the killers are gaining more and more power because we are shot and hurt , I now believe that our lives and communities, by standing together and just fight back”.
Related story:
