Speaker of the Anguilla House of Assembly, Tara Carter, has warned that the island appears to be caught in a cycle of violence and inaction.
Her remarks came in the wake of a double homicide in Island Harbour in the early hours of 27 April, which prompted official expressions of sympathy from the governor and premier.
During the latest meeting of the assembly on 28 April, Carter urged both sides to move beyond rhetoric and confront the ongoing issue of gun crime.
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“We’re here every couple months, we repeat the same condolences, we give the same orders of the day, but we haven’t really been able to make much progress with resolving and reconciling,” she said.
She spoke of the commitment in May 2025 to establish a task force on gun crime and violence in Anguilla made up of members of the assembly, civil society and law enforcement officials.
Its aim was to implement the recommendations of the Select Committee on Gun Violence and to “devise, develop and debate” legislation to reduce and halt gun violence.
The joint statement was signed by both Premier Cora Richardson Hodge and opposition leader Ellis Webster. There have been few public updates on its progress.
The speaker reminded the assembly of the task force’s “unfinished work”, adding: “It is incumbent on both sides to really, really drill down and dig deep and figure out, as a nation, where we are going.”
“We really have to dig deep, put all the politics and fights and arguments aside. At the end of the day we all live here, we’re Anguillian and we all want the same thing.”
The speaker offered “deepest condolences to those that hurt, those that are in pain, those that are suffering” from the assembly’s management, members and staff.
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