Illegal guns top agenda as CARICOM security ministers meet in Suriname

PARAMARIBO, Suriname. The spread of illegal weapons across the Caribbean emerged as a security priority as ministers and senior law enforcement officials met in Suriname for the 29th meeting of the CARICOM Council for National Security and Law Enforcement (CONSLE) on 10 and 11 November.

The council's chair, Suriname's minister of justice and security, Harish Monorath, told the opening session that illegal firearms continue to fuel violent crime and entrench gang activity across the Community.

He said criminal networks were exploiting borders, ports and maritime routes with increasing sophistication to move weapons, drugs and other illicit goods.

"Across the Caribbean, firearms remain a significant enabler of violent crime and gang activity. Criminal groups are becoming more organised, more sophisticated and increasingly transnational," Monorath said.

Call for regional action

The minister said member states could not tackle the problem alone. He called for stronger regional cooperation to trace the movement of illegal firearms, identify their sources, disrupt trafficking networks and improve intelligence sharing among law enforcement agencies.

He also urged faster implementation of the Caribbean Firearms Roadmap, describing it as a critical framework for reducing gun violence and strengthening public safety.

Monorath said advancing the regional firearms agenda would be one of three priorities during Suriname's chairmanship of CONSLE. The focus will be on firearms tracing, intelligence sharing between member states and closer cooperation among police, customs, immigration, coast guard and prosecutors.

Suriname launched a digital firearms register earlier this year with support from CARICOM IMPACS. The system is designed to improve the monitoring and tracing of firearms and give law enforcement agencies better tools against gun crime.

"Above all, we need the political will to treat these issues as closely linked elements of one collective Caribbean security challenge," Monorath said.

The meeting brought together CARICOM ministers responsible for national security and law enforcement, who discussed practical responses to shared security challenges.