Alfred SangsterTHE RECENT shoot-out at Braeton and the people's response have brought into sharp focus the deep divide within the society of how we perceive the issues of justice and policing. On the one hand, there are those who see the incident in which seven young men were killed as police executions and extra-judicial killing.
There are many calls for an official enquiry. Others see the executions as necessary to rid the community of known criminals. "Dem fe dead!" Too bad if there were some innocent persons among the guilty. Why were the innocent ones in that type of company anyway? The police in today's Jamaica are in a 'no-win' situation. You are damned if you do and damned if you don't. Many persons believe that crime is out of control. Yet the Commissioner's office sometimes paints rosy pictures with statistics of crime down in parish X: while murders are up, these are largely due to domestic disputes.
What characterises the Jamaican society in which the police have to operate? It is a society in which discipline has deteriorated to a marked extent. Taxis violate every rule of the road code: cyclists ride and overtake on the wrong side of the road, squatters defy the law and capture land with impunity: school children attack their teachers and one another, and stone police stations. More and more people do as they like.
It is a society in which corruption has become institutionalised at all levels of the society. The latest reports are that drug planes land freely at rural airports. Politics is increasingly seen as a corrupt process, and white and blue collar crime has escalated. Protection rackets mushroom (as in the days of the Mafia in the USA) and even force business places that refuse to cooperate, to close down. It is a society which has become increasingly violent.
Domestic violence has surged, and ruthless elements have become more and more evident in a society which finds itself in a survival mode. The principal of a school was shot in the back while running away from gunmen. These elements indiscipline, corruption and violence are evident everywhere and the police force is no exception.
Commissioner Francis Forbes' attempts to establish a citizen's charter runs up against these elements in the society in general, and the Force in particular. What are the police to do? They too as an organisation face the problems of carrying out their job. What are some of the factors that make their job more difficult?
Police as enemies: The police, far from being seen as supporters of law and order and as being concerned about the protection of citizens, are increasingly seen as enemies of the people. Unlicensed taxi operators protest when they are prosecuted by the police. Certainly many of the inner-city communities see the police as enemies. What has caused this? Political tribalism, inner-city protection of criminals, dons and enforcers have all contributed to the mutual distrust.
This is an area where Christians have a major role to play in bringing healing and peace. But it cannot be a one-way street.
An inefficient justice system: The general perception is that the justice system is itself inefficient, bureaucratic and frustrating. Cases take too long to come for trial and appeals go on forever. The facilities and infrastructure of the local justice system leave much to be desired, yet we are moving to establish a Caribbean Court. The law is not enforced. One particularly galling item is the lack of implementation of the death sentence. Persons who are sentenced to death for the most gruesome of murders remain free of sentencing because of long and convoluted appeals. The law currently upholds the death penalty and I for one support this position. Until the law is changed then let it be enforced. In my view the argument of the death penalty being a deterrent is irrelevant.
This leads to another factor. Jails are now soft options. While on the one hand we have the recent appalling disclosure of prison beatings by the courageous Dr. Notice, on the other hand we find prisoners with cellular phones, dangerous criminals are let out on week-ends, and mass escapes take place regularly. The correctional centres are clearly being run by a very inefficient system. Colonel Prescod is the Commissioner who, after being severely censored by Mr. Justice Harrison in his report, was promptly reappointed by the Minister of National Security and Justice.
Hard labour
I am not certain what the Minister expected to happen in terms of prison administration. Evidently he is getting no better than might be expected and his expectations are obviously not high enough. The police seem to spend a great deal of their time recapturing prisoners who escape. But the prisons should be places where hard labour is just that.
Selective Morality. Members of the community who are very strident in their criticism of the police often practice selective morality. We hear no outcry when policemen are gunned down in the line of duty or when they are off-duty, or citizens cut down by the bandit's gun, but police actions are more often than not open to immediate critical comment. Protesters often have hidden agendas and may at times be in league with criminals.
A case in point is the recent allegation of a man claiming that one of the persons shot at Braeton was his brother and he no longer had any confidence in the police. This position has to be open to question for the man who was shot had a criminal record! Those who call loudly for commissions of enquiry must also ask for the examination of community death houses in certain areas. With the current crisis in the country there needs to be a wind of healing and reconciliation. This can ultimately only come from God using people who are committed to the process of healing.
A.W. Sangster is former President of the University of Technology.
