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This stubborn matter of crime
BY Rev Raulston Nembhard
Saturday, October 13, 2007
THE new administration is faced with the nightmare of crime as it faced the past administration. Prime Minister Bruce Golding and the new minister of national security, Hon Derrick Smith, should know by now that there is no honeymoon period when it comes to crime.
They should also realise that we are facing a national crisis where crime is concerned and that nothing but a focused and concerted effort on the part of the government can suffice at this time. If people are being maimed and killed and have their property destroyed to the extent that we have it here in Jamaica, it ought to be recognised that we are in a full-fledged crisis of gargantuan proportions. The sad fact is that the past administration that was in power for over 18 years and under whose tenure crime increased exponentially, never saw these criminal attacks against the citizenry and the police force as a crisis. This administration must not repeat this mistake.
There can be no doubt that the crime problem in Jamaica is intractable and cannot be solved by the application of any one remedy. I have always argued that it is a multi-faceted problem and has to be approached from a number of angles. One of the angles that has to be addressed is the internal ethical cleansing of the police force. We have all heard of the corruption that is rampant in the force. It is true that every country has rogue cops in its police force but we seem to have more than our fair share in Jamaica.
The new administration has to demonstrate that it means business and that it will have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to ethical breaches of the code of conduct of functionaries in the force. It has to demonstrate in forceful terms that it will not tolerate extra-judicial killings by the police and that such cops will be removed quickly from the force and will be subject to the quick and swift remedy of the law. It does not take a lot of money to do this, but it takes great political will. Does Mr Golding have this will?
Another angle to be addressed is the development of depressed areas, especially inner-city areas, that breed unemployment and criminality. I believe that there is a correlation between poverty and crime, but poverty need not lead to crime. The question is one of opportunity: to work, to take care of one's daily affairs without let or hindrance and the freedom to pursue happiness as a construct of civilised living.
If the government is serious about crime it must spare no effort and resources in seeing to the development of these areas. In the end, crime is a human problem and must be addressed from the standpoint of the development of the person. A theology and psychology of personhood needs to be discovered in the development of the human capital. Brute force tactics will not work. We have tried these in the past and we have seen the sad outgrowth of these tactics. The reckless adventurism of the task force under Reneto Adams is a case in point.
In saying this, it must be acknowledged that hard-core criminality as we have it in Jamaica cannot be contained without force. But we need to shift the accent from force to intelligence gathering. This is where I believe the army at Up Park Camp can play a pivotal role. What are we doing with a sitting army of 4,000 in a population of 2.6 million people covering 4, 411 square miles of real estate? We could easily retire 2,000 soldiers and absorb them in the constabulary force. We could train a cadre of them in intelligence gathering.
Another cadre of about 500 men and women could be trained in paramilitary techniques to deal with hard-core criminals and to cleanse communities of their influence. I would suggest that this cadre be trained in Israel with whom we have ambassadorial relationship. When trained in policing functions they would be placed under a civilian authority and not under the political directorate or the police force. They would be directly answerable to the citizens of this country.
The remaining number of the 2,000 would be retrained in policing functions and be absorbed into the existing police force, thus increasing the number of boots on the ground.
Finally, crime cannot be fought effectively without a clear and decisive collaboration between citizens and the police. At the present time, the public relations between both is at a low ebb. Some way has to be found to increase and enhance the Neighbourhood Watch programmes and to continue the training of the police in community policing. As the relationship between the police and the communities improves, trust and confidence will be enhanced and we will all be the better for it.
Policing in Jamaica cannot be the function of the police alone. While we criticise them, as we must when they step out of line, we must also recognise the hard work they do and the danger they face daily in doing their work. I may not know a great deal about policing and law enforcement, but I am just a little parson trying to find some solution to a grave problem in our country. I invite my fellow Jamaicans to come together and work for common solutions to the problem of crime in our beloved country. Cry, the beloved country, indeed.
stead6655@aol.com
BY Rev Raulston Nembhard
Saturday, October 13, 2007
THE new administration is faced with the nightmare of crime as it faced the past administration. Prime Minister Bruce Golding and the new minister of national security, Hon Derrick Smith, should know by now that there is no honeymoon period when it comes to crime.
They should also realise that we are facing a national crisis where crime is concerned and that nothing but a focused and concerted effort on the part of the government can suffice at this time. If people are being maimed and killed and have their property destroyed to the extent that we have it here in Jamaica, it ought to be recognised that we are in a full-fledged crisis of gargantuan proportions. The sad fact is that the past administration that was in power for over 18 years and under whose tenure crime increased exponentially, never saw these criminal attacks against the citizenry and the police force as a crisis. This administration must not repeat this mistake.
There can be no doubt that the crime problem in Jamaica is intractable and cannot be solved by the application of any one remedy. I have always argued that it is a multi-faceted problem and has to be approached from a number of angles. One of the angles that has to be addressed is the internal ethical cleansing of the police force. We have all heard of the corruption that is rampant in the force. It is true that every country has rogue cops in its police force but we seem to have more than our fair share in Jamaica.
The new administration has to demonstrate that it means business and that it will have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to ethical breaches of the code of conduct of functionaries in the force. It has to demonstrate in forceful terms that it will not tolerate extra-judicial killings by the police and that such cops will be removed quickly from the force and will be subject to the quick and swift remedy of the law. It does not take a lot of money to do this, but it takes great political will. Does Mr Golding have this will?
Another angle to be addressed is the development of depressed areas, especially inner-city areas, that breed unemployment and criminality. I believe that there is a correlation between poverty and crime, but poverty need not lead to crime. The question is one of opportunity: to work, to take care of one's daily affairs without let or hindrance and the freedom to pursue happiness as a construct of civilised living.
If the government is serious about crime it must spare no effort and resources in seeing to the development of these areas. In the end, crime is a human problem and must be addressed from the standpoint of the development of the person. A theology and psychology of personhood needs to be discovered in the development of the human capital. Brute force tactics will not work. We have tried these in the past and we have seen the sad outgrowth of these tactics. The reckless adventurism of the task force under Reneto Adams is a case in point.
In saying this, it must be acknowledged that hard-core criminality as we have it in Jamaica cannot be contained without force. But we need to shift the accent from force to intelligence gathering. This is where I believe the army at Up Park Camp can play a pivotal role. What are we doing with a sitting army of 4,000 in a population of 2.6 million people covering 4, 411 square miles of real estate? We could easily retire 2,000 soldiers and absorb them in the constabulary force. We could train a cadre of them in intelligence gathering.
Another cadre of about 500 men and women could be trained in paramilitary techniques to deal with hard-core criminals and to cleanse communities of their influence. I would suggest that this cadre be trained in Israel with whom we have ambassadorial relationship. When trained in policing functions they would be placed under a civilian authority and not under the political directorate or the police force. They would be directly answerable to the citizens of this country.
The remaining number of the 2,000 would be retrained in policing functions and be absorbed into the existing police force, thus increasing the number of boots on the ground.
Finally, crime cannot be fought effectively without a clear and decisive collaboration between citizens and the police. At the present time, the public relations between both is at a low ebb. Some way has to be found to increase and enhance the Neighbourhood Watch programmes and to continue the training of the police in community policing. As the relationship between the police and the communities improves, trust and confidence will be enhanced and we will all be the better for it.
Policing in Jamaica cannot be the function of the police alone. While we criticise them, as we must when they step out of line, we must also recognise the hard work they do and the danger they face daily in doing their work. I may not know a great deal about policing and law enforcement, but I am just a little parson trying to find some solution to a grave problem in our country. I invite my fellow Jamaicans to come together and work for common solutions to the problem of crime in our beloved country. Cry, the beloved country, indeed.
stead6655@aol.com
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