SUZANNE MILLS Friday, March 12 2010

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BRIGHT FUTURE: Moruga Secondary School emerged the winners of Scotiabank's ScotiaYES Bright Future School art competition. Prizes were given out at th...

The last time this space was mine to command I was busy boasting of my Third World survival skills. But the truth is I suspect I have gone soft after two years here.

I came home from the supermarket a few days ago and there was my balcony, its doors wide open. I did not worry for a second- I knew there would be no intruder within. The doors were open because when the sun made one of its rare appearances, I flung them apart to let the “breeze” refresh the flat.

Would I have been so cavalier in Trinidad? Not unless I had a death wish. In TT when I stepped out of my house, I had to place it under lock and key, turn on the alarm, let the dogs out and pray. If I had a crack in my putty back home, I´d have it quickly filled less some imps of a thief slipped through.

And on my return to my house after an errand, as I tentatively entered my home, if I´d spotted an open window I would probably have concluded at once that there was a bandit inside.

And I would have surmised that my life was over. In TT had my house come with a balcony and had I left this open, I would have been tossed over it like an old rag doll.

In Madrid I simply never contemplate crime or criminals. And here even if someone attempts to break in to my home I know the police are literally, remarkably a phone call away. A week ago a bit of smoke set off an alarm in a bar up the road, no fire, and suddenly the street was a song of sirens. Not only had the fire trucks arrived in a blink but they were accompanied by six police vehicles.

Spain’s police make no joke. They are larger than life, their numbers having been increased by a whopping 25 percent since 2003.

And knowing that the police have your back is a true comfort. It is probably why only two percent of the population view crime as an issue. Spaniards feel safe most of the time, safe enough to take a chance and leave their homes open, safe enough to go out at any hour.

I often go on midnight walks in summer when the heat is not so oppressive. No one has ever bothered me. I never look over my shoulder. Nor have I been alone in my midnight strolls. Everywhere, people are out and about, children, young couples, the elderly. The streets, thanks to the police, belong to us, not to the bandits.

This week, the Spanish government released some impressive statistics for 2009. Despite the economic crisis, crime was down, the lowest in ten years. Robberies and muggings had decreased, as had murders. In 2009 there were 315 killings, 51 fewer than in 2008. Spain has a population of 40 million.

The only area where there was an increase was domestic violence and this is probably not a true reflection of reality: violence against women is being reported with more frequency than in the past.

When you see these sort of statistics you can´t help but wonder why your country can´t get it right. I don´t think that the Spaniards are particularly more law abiding than we are. And I understand clearly that Spain, in Europe, is not TT with its unique problems. Nevertheless, I often think that the solution cannot be too complex. All things being more or less equal, all you need is a well trained, equipped, respected, visible police force and you have a safe society. Not a police force demoralised and made ineffectual in every which way by politics, economics, corruption and a collapsed criminal justice system.

In TT our police still do not respond as they should. To blue or white collar crime. Most Trinbagonians consider crime a major issue and they have held this view for years. Little over a million people and more murders than Spain with its 40 million. No one dares stroll anywhere at midnight, not in their streets, not in their yards. Everyone wants a gun for no one has the least faith in the police. People are shut-ins.

I know I have gone soft here. Wouldn´t you if you had the opportunity? You know what it is like to throw on a T shirt, track pants and sneakers, leave your balcony door open and go for a walk at midnight? In TT we used to, once, a long time ago.