Hundreds of government and community leaders will gather at the Bliss Center for the Performing Arts tomorrow for the first national neighborhood watch summit.
Under the theme: "Neighbors working for a safer Belize" the participants ranging from village Alcaldes to police officials will come up with a plan to formalize neighborhood watches. Why? Well one of the coordinators for the conference Errol Gentle says it is to bring back that lost sense of community.
Errol Gentle, Summit Coordinator
“Basically we need to get back to the old time ways where neighbors look for our for neighbors. That is basically what we are trying to accomplish getting people to be more neighborly and look out for each other.”
Nacia Carillo, Summit Coordinator
“We’re going to bring together all the leaders countrywide from the Mayors, the National Assembly, the Alcaldes, village council chairmen, and the public. Also we have invited NGOs, civil societies, and the Council of Churches. It is an opportunity for all the people of Belize to voice their opinion on how we can be a part of fighting against crime. The wider picture for this conference is living in a safe society and all of us can do our part to live in a safe society so that’s the main thrust of this conference.”
Errol Gentle,
“Neighborhood watch does not only involve reporting crime. Neighborhood watch is looking after your neighborhood, your community and as I mentioned earlier it is neighbors looking out and looking after each other. So if you are going out for a vacation or you leaving your house just for the weekend your neighbor can look after the safety and security of your house. And then if a crime is committed within the neighborhood and someone in the area know exactly what is going on they can take it as their responsibility and work with the police and give them as much information. So it is basically neighbors looking after each other not only when it comes to crime but the entire safety and security of that neighborhood.”
Tomorrow's all day summit starts at 8:30 and it will include a performance by Punta Rock Star ‘Supa G’ who has recorded a new song for the event.