Anti-gang legislation is back on the drawing board, says National Security Minister Wayne Perinchief.But its resurrection has been derided as a “reversal of a reversal’ by opposition MP Kim Swan.And Mr Swan is backing calls by Mr Perinchief for private sector assistance in tackling the problem of gang violence.Mr Swan told this newspaper that he, and others were surprised when Minister Perinchief dropped the concept back in September because he was able to get buy-in at the time. He said he believed that reversal was “politically influenced”.But the Minister then resurrected the idea on a television talk show last week.“This announcement can be deemed ‘the reversal of the reversal’ and unfortunately comes on the heels of yet another murder, sadly the first for 2012,” said Mr Swan last week.“My colleagues and I are deeply saddened by the news of yet another tragic death in Bermuda.“Notwithstanding, we are also concerned that this latest announcement by the Minister, of another possible reversal, demonstrates how politics can interfere with important decisions needed for the provision of national security.”Minister Perinchief acknowledged that he had gone back to the drawing board on anti-gang legislation.Following a trip to Boston “and looking at some of the definitions of what comprises a gang I’ve now reformulated my strategy vis a vis gang membership,” he said.He said the definition of “gang” was central and that Bermuda’s courts already accepted expert police evidence on gangs here.In September Mr Perinchief said that the proposed legislation was scrapped over concerns about civil liberties.Yesterday he said despite the opposition he was willing to press on.“If there are organisations that are conspiring to commit murder and they are all acting in concert then those gangs should be unlawful,” the Minister said.And he admitted: “Politics always plays a part.” But “I’ve had no alternative legislation to the problem of gang membership. So, it’s a case of ‘if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again’. I haven’t personally changed my attitude to making gang membership unlawful. I have to negotiate the perilous terrain of political and civil rights issues.”And Mr Perinchief noted: “There was buy-in from perhaps his (Kim Swan’s) side. There was not buy-in from my side.”On Mr Perinchief’s call for financial assistance from the private sector, Mr Swan said:“This would undoubtedly include adopting Operation Ceasefire, an initiative long advocated by the Opposition United Bermuda Party.“Today we call on all political parties, independents, churches, community organisations, and activist to join with the Minister of Public Safety and come together in a truly bipartisan public private coalition against the scourge of gang violence and murders. The time to for us to act collectively is now.“We in the United Bermuda Party are prepared to participate in such a bipartisan public private initiative to cause all right thinking people to work together and cooperatively, to eradicate this evil violent scourge from our country.”Solving the problem will require “psychological and sociological resources” as well as financial resources for law enforcement, he said.“This problem will not go away immediately and an underfunded police service needs the necessary financial resources, to stay ahead of the plotting criminal.”