| “It’s
almost as if they (the mothers) have given up on their sons growing
to a ripe old age.
“It seems as though they have accepted that their children,
especially their sons, will eventually get killed because of their
lifestyles.
“If they are not murdered in gang warfare, they are being
slain by the police.”
He added: “So, in truth and in fact, the insurance policy
is like a hustle for them; at least when they cash it in, they will
get something to keep them going for a while and it may even improve
their lifestyles.”
Although young, many of the targeted sons are already fathers.
And in most cases, the insured youths who lead criminal lifestyles
live like “dons” in these depressed communities.
Confirmed reports to Mirror are that a Laventille mother, whose
son was recently killed in a shootout with a rival gang, now stands
to benefit from the large policy left behind.
“It might be close to one million dollars,” one source
in the know revealed.
Mirror’s source further revealed that the Unemployed Relief
Programme (URP) “10 days” worker has also insured the
lives of her three remaining sons.
The young man who was murdered always “packed” a gun
and has been blamed for several murders in the community.
In fact, sources revealed that he was well-known for boasting that
he had “dropped many bodies” in the community.
Another young man from the Laventille area, said to be in his 20s,
who was gunned down mid-last year, left behind a million-dollar
estate, which included properties, luxury cars and insurance policies.
“It’s reality,” stated one mother who spoke to
Mirror.
“We might as well insure them because in the ghetto youth
men not living ’til they old.
“The system putting guns in their hands and have them killing
out one another.
“They live each day knowing that today could be their last;
that’s why we taking out big insurance policies on them now.
“Is not only rich people who have sense.”
Outing her cigarette in the dirt as she spoke, she added: “At
least they could leave something to take care of us who they leave
behind.”
Sources, however, disclosed that it was not only in Laventille that
insurance policies were being sold.
In other ghetto areas like Morvant, Beetham, Maloney and La Horquetta,
the trend is said to be steadily growing.
Last year, TnT’s murder toll stood at a record breaking 385,
which included many young men from the so-called ghetto areas. And
already for 2006, 34 persons have been murdered, again including
a number of youths from the ghettos.
In fact, the official statistics show that those gunned down violently
were largely young men, a large percentage well below the age of
25.
“The young men are dying so swiftly that even the public cemeteries
have come under pressure,” one elder noted.
Recent reports state that the San Juan Public cemetery is facing
possible closure because of the escalating murder rate. |
