#Jamaica, October 14, 2019 — Ten years ago, Jamaica recorded its highest murder rate within a decade with some 1,680 homicides in 2009. Ten years on, and two years after a murder count of 1,616 people (second highest in 10 years), the country is trending downward, significantly.
It is widely believed that the Jamaican Government’s bold
interventions curtailed the killings and the murder count has decreased in some
areas, like St. Thomas by 32 percent.
St Thomas, Jamaica. Photo by JamaicaStar
It is still heartbreaking that hundreds of people have died
to violence of some kind in what is the third largest English speaking country
in the Western Hemisphere and the largest one in the Caribbean, but many take
heart in the fact that based on trends, one can surmise that likely 300 people
will not be killed.
So, what happened to cause this reduction?
The answer is bold initiative including declaring a State of Public Emergency (SOE) in several crime-ridden districts and parishes – St. James, Hanover and Westmoreland are among them – and that meant curfews and other drastic controls and powers were enacted for those areas. Not only did the Jamaican government do it once, but over and over again in both 2018 and 2019 because, they say, it is working and has not hurt tourism.
Canadian tourists comfortable with SOE. Claudia Gardner, JIS Photo
Loop News Jamaica reported in October 2019 that Dr. Horace
Chang, Minister of Security is completely persuaded that the State of Public Emergency
has saved lives, when social programmes did not.
“The first time we
had a significant fall that has saved well over 200 Jamaican lives and stopped
the mayhem and slaughter on the streets of Montego Bay, that was the
introduction of the state of emergency,” the security minister explained while
speaking at a Violence Prevention and Peace Building Symposium.
Also in October, it is reported that those SOEs, were
extended.
Advertisement
Jamaican Prime Minister, Andrew Holness in addressing the
House of Assembly about the need to extend the SOE in south St. Andrew Police
Division, presented statistical reasoning.
“It is a solution that has yielded results, and we are well aware
of the challenges and the downsides to the SOEs,” he added that despite skepticism,
“We have saved, by virtue of the collective
action of this House by putting in place the SOE: 30 lives. There were 51
shootings in the 84 days before the SOE – that is down to 27.
Murders in the area were cut by half said the
Prime Minister.
Reporting on the national impact of the SOE, PM Holness in a
Jamaica Information Services news report said: “We have started a process of
bringing down our murder rate from 1,600 in [2017]… . We have now brought it
down to 1,280 [in 2018] and if we continue, we will bring down our murder rate
to below 1,000.”
Advertisement
Jamaica leads the Caribbean region in murders, has seen a spike in
gun violence in 2019 and reports are that 70 percent of crime is linked to
illegal drugs.
The State of
Public Emergency gives the security forces temporary additional powers,
including powers of search, arrest and detention. Security forces can also curtail operating
hours of business, restrict access to places and detain individuals without a
warrant.
Magnetic Media is a Telly Award winning multi-media company specializing in creating compelling and socially uplifting TV and Radio broadcast programming as a means for advertising and public relations exposure for its clients.
The Caribbean Natural Resources Institute (CANARI) informed that the Caribbean Climate Justice Alliance, in preparation for the upcoming annual COP28 in 2023, launched its “Caribbean Climate Justice and Resilience Agenda,” outlining the priorities for climate justice and resilience in vulnerable Caribbean small island developing states (SIDS).
In a press release, CANARI highlighted that the agenda recognizes the major threat of climate change to the region as well as aims to louden the voices of the at-risk groups “on the frontlines of the climate crisis and catalyze actions for climate justice and local resilience in the Caribbean SIDS.”
The priorities stated under the agenda are:
Curbing emissions to limit global temperature
increase to 1.5 ̊C
Scaling up locally-led solutions for adaptation and
loss and damage
Improving access to and delivery of climate finance
for frontline communities, small and micro enterprises, and civil society organizations as part of a ‘whole of society’ approach
Scaling up just, nature-based solutions for resilience
Supporting a just transition for pro-poor, inclusive,
sustainable and resilient development
Promoting gender equity and social inclusion
approaches to climate action
Promoting youth and intergenerational equity as
core to the climate response
Integrating a rights-based and earth-centered
approach in addressing all these priorities and ensuring climate justice
The at-risk groups referred to in the release include small-scale farmers and fisherfolk, rural women producers, income-poor people, elderly and disabled people, Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities, migrants, and LGBTQIA+ people.
Being cognizant of the severity of the effects of climate change on the Caribbean, CANARI referred to the fact that the very existence of the region is on the line.
“If greenhouse gas emissions continue unabated and global temperature exceeds 1.5 ̊C, the impacts of rising sea levels, more intense hurricanes, rainfall variability, ocean acidification, and other changes threaten the very existence of our way of life in the Caribbean and other SIDS that have contributed the least to global emissions.”
“Everyone must continue to invest in preventing violence against our women and girls (VAWG). It is an investment in our shared future,” were the words of Dr. Carla N. Barnett, CARICOM Secretary-General, as she reiterated the need for solutions against VAWG.
She called attention to VAWG as she gave a speech surrounding the annual campaign “16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence,” which runs from November 25 to December 10, 2023.
Barnett expresses the well-known fact that VAWG is one of the most prevalent issues affecting all corners of society.
“VAWG remains one of the most pervasive forms of human rights violations in the world and cuts across all races, cultures, genders, and educational backgrounds,” she maintained, as she continued to point out the sad reality that this is still a major issue despite regional and global policies.
“Despite the existence of regional and global policies and legislation to combat VAWG, weak enforcement and discriminatory practices remain significant barriers to ending VAWG.”
The Secretary-General highlighted statistics for VAWG, bringing attention to how serious and embedded this issue is in society.
She said that globally, 736 million women—nearly one in three—have experienced violence—physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual violence, or even both.
For the Caribbean region, she said surveys conducted between 2016 and 2019 inform us that one in two women experience intimate partner violence, which is higher than the global average.
In continuation, Barnett expressed that the campaign calls everyone to action against VAWG, including “development partners, civil society organizations, women’s organizations, youth, the private sector, and the media.” Also, world governments are being asked to share how they are investing in gender-based violence prevention.
Ending her address, the Secretary-General urged everyone to wear the color orange for the duration of the campaign, as well as on the 25th of each month, “as a symbol of hope for a brighter future where women and girls live free from violence.”
#TurksandCaicos, November 25, 2023 – Her Excellency the Governor, Dileeni Daniel-Selvaratnam, chaired the 26th meeting of Cabinet on Wednesday, 11 October 2023 at the Governor’s Office, Providenciales.
All Members were present except the Hon. Josephine Connolly.
At this meeting Cabinet:
Approved the Consultation Report on the Proposed Amendments to the Turks and Caicos Islands Immigration Ordinance with amendments and agreed for the amended document to be brought back to Cabinet for final approval for onward submission to the House of Assembly.
Approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Turks and Caicos Islands Government (TCIG) and Geta Crew Holding Ltd. for a mixed use development project on the island of Grand Turk, with the view of entering into a Development Agreement as per the Encouragement of Development Ordinance and the National Investment Policy.
Approved the renewal of rental lease agreement, for various Government offices, between TCIG and Waterloo Property Management, Grand Turk.
Approved the awarding of the following contracts:
PN 005694, TR 23/13, Furniture and Equipment for NJS Francis Building; and
PN 005696, TR 22/10, Purchase of Patrol Vessels.
It noted the update from Her Excellency the Governor regarding the upcoming visit of UK Ministers to the Turks and Caicos Islands.