This week, the issue of crime came home to the Prime Minister in a most direct way as his long time law partner and very close friend Rodwell Williams was targeted in an execution attempt. His condition is still very critical in a Miami Hospital but considering his injury, he is very lucky to be alive and later on you'll hear direct testimony of that from the team of five doctors who worked on him. It was under those most troubling circumstances that the Prime Minister today presented his long awaited programme to offer a solution to break through the smothering atmosphere of crime and violence that has gripped particularly Belize City. It's called Restore Belize and here's what it promises.

Jules Vasquez Reporting
How many angels can dance on the head of a pin - that's a centuries old rhetorical putdown - but this morning we wanted to ask how many excellencies, honourables, CEO's, contract officers, party supporters, and well-wishers could crowd into a conference room. It was shoulder to shoulder seating and standing room only inside the conference hall at the Belize Best Western Biltmore. And perhaps that is because the issue of crime even more than the battle against the Ashcroft Alliance - has become the defining challenge of the Barrow Administration.

Prime Minister Dean Barrow
"The crime and violence problem afflicting our society is in my view the most important task at hand."

And because it is such a large task there is no simple solution; the strategy is broad and the machinery complex - but the PM says the results will be real and immediate:

Hon. Dean Barrow
"The fact is that today we take the first step in a journey that we hope over time will lead to an effective solution to this problem. We naturally cannot expect a complete resolution anytime soon but we do expect that you the public will be able to see measurable results very quickly indeed."

When challenged to define how those results would be measured, the PM had no answers - or none that we could measure, but that we imagine will be left to the bureaucracy which will oversee project Restore Belize - and that stands for Re-Establish Security Through Outreach Rehabilitation And Education.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"The programme anchoring the plan will function in a way that will see the structure operate as a coordinating agency that will pull together all the individual government entities involve in both the enforcement side of things and the social intervention side of things."

That coordination will come from a Restore Belize Council that will be led by a Restore Belize council led by the Prime Minister with membership of five ministers - which will feed down to a steering committee which will supervise and operationalise the plan. That committee will have representation from the business community, NGO's and community based organizations.

That will lead to 6 subcommittees - again with community representation.

All these many moving parts will come under a full time programme coordination unit - which will do the work and be held to account for results:

Hon. Dean Barrow
"That is what will implement the actions, carry out the directives identified by the programme steering committee and the operational sub-committees. That is what will ensure that when the programme steering committee and the operational sub-committees are called to account by the public that they would be able to produce a balance sheet showing that deliverables have in fact been acted upon."

But while all that may sound suspiciously like a labyrinthine bureaucracy, that coordinating unit will start delivering real results and soon with the community safe zones which is already set for two communities.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"Initially we want to start with 2 distressed communities on the Southside of course of Belize City. The idea is to establish partnerships with these designated communities and this community safe zone project is based on models that have been used successfully in various cities from Baltimore to Bogota. The aim is to try to prevent crime in the designated zone while and perhaps because of providing targeting social assistance to the families and residents in the area. We are saying to people in return for requiring this area to be crime free we are going to provide you with the wherewithal to improve your lives. It's not just going to be a matter of moral preaching it is a matter of making the word flesh so to speak."

Implementation can take place by the beginning of August - but before that by the end of June the first initiative will be launched - it's a values restoration effort through public education.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"The consultations have shown that the people to whom we've spoken and because I listed them you know that it's a broad based grouping, those people in fact feel strongly that there is a need for this kind of public campaign to try to restore values such as civic pride, respect for each other. The program will launch the 'I am Belize' public education campaign and this will include public service announcements to be developed and aired on radio and TV to promote the specific social values that I talked about."

And while these programmes are ongoing, there will also be work to crackdown on quality of life crimes.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"Another initiative, another objective is to target aggressively the so called 'Quality of Life Crimes' now this refers to the relatively minor, non-violent illegal type of behavior that can collectively undermine people's sense of well-being and public safety and that contributes to the whole aura of slippage as a society and that to some extent are almost directly related to the larger crimes having to do with gang violence and turf conflict and all that. Let me give you examples of what I mean when I say 'Quality of Life Crimes': traffic offences, public drinking, petty theft, vandalism, littering, noise pollution from bars and night clubs, loitering that sort of thing."

And so you should expect results quickly.

Hon. Dean Barrow
"By the end of June we will have started the public consultations and be ready to launch the 'I am Belize' public education campaign and begin the operations."

Of course, there is the issue of funding - without which all this is just another well meaning song and dance. The prime minister indicated at least twice that international agencies such as the IDB, The CDB and others have been approached and are willing to assist with funds and resources. For starters, IDB has committed to 5 million US dollars for a youth and community transformation project.

Channel 7