The idea that decisive crime fighting initiatives are synonymous with breaching Human Rights is a falsehood perpetuated by those who make a living from high crime rates and a constant state of confrontation between Police and citizens.
♦The Office of the Public Defender♦ The Independent Jamaica Council for Human Rights♦Jamaicans for Justice ♦Families against state Terrorism♦Peace Management Unit♦Amnesty International♦ Ministry of Justice ♦Attorney Generals Office ♦Etc.…..Etc.…Etc.….
These are just of few of the Agencies and Government Departments operating in Jamaica supposedly looking out for the interest and Human Rights of Jamaicans.
These bodies are singularly focused on the rights of those who say they have been aggrieved by agents of the state.
WHO LOOK OUT FOR THE INTEREST OF VICTIMS?
I may be wrong, as such I welcome feedback which will educate me about existing NGO’s in place which is geared at helping victims of crime.
I have no quarrel with genuine efforts to help people who have been victimized by the Government or its agents.
For years the actions of both political parties on the Jamaican people have been traumatic and worthy of redress.
God knows all of us average people need all of the help we can get when seeking redress from powerful Governments and their Agents.
We cannot ignore the fact that there has been no effort, at least that I have seen, instituted to aid victims of crime.
I believe fundamentally that aiding those who through no fault of their own, have been victimized by crime, is a far more noble cause than fighting to ensure that killers are treated with care, as stipulated by designated Internationally based Liberal Agencies.
We await with genuine interest the new set of crime fighting initiatives to be announced by the Prime Minister.
Nevertheless, we remain deeply skeptical that anything announced will have any substantive positive result unless the police are unshackled and empowered to go after criminals wherever they are.
There are more than enough processes in place to ensure that police officer who acts outside the bounds of the laws are prosecuted.
I actually believe that the degree to which the police is shackled is a driving force in the rapid growth and viciousness of the crimes being committed on the most vulnerable.
It’s full time that this Administration sends a strong message to criminals that their actions will not be tolerated.
Anything else will simply be a capitulation to the viscous murderers who continue to take innocent lives with impunity.
This is what Erika Guevara-Rosas, Americas Director at Amnesty International, had to say about our country awhile back.
“Police shootings are generally attributed to a “tough on crime” approach, but often disproportionately target poor communities where victims have little recourse.”
In the very same statement, Amnesty said this. “Jamaica has one of the world’s highest murder rates and is rife with gang violence.”
Amnesty International and other Groups which take on the role of advocating for human rights are able to research and report on what they see around the Globe.
Neither of these Internationally based Agencies has any impact on legislation outside the broader framework of the Geneva Conventions and other Treaties in the western nations, Agency, even in which they are based or from which they emanate.
Jamaica should not allow Amnesty International or anAgency, or any Treaty to prevent it from doing what is it’s core function.
That is providing security in the Jamaican state.
The fact that an International Human Rights Agency can verbalize the fact that(1) Jamaica has one of the highest crime rate in the world and is rife with gang violence.
Then (2) argue that the very same violent gang affiliated young men” have little recourse to their lives of violent crimes” when targeted by police crackdown.
This statements have vindicated my arguments that these agencies do not care about crime. Neither do they care about crime victims.
Obviously what they care about is maintaining pressure on poor nations so that they are forced to hands off violent crime, effectively keeping their economies struggling and dependent on their larger more powerful patrons.
It is important to understand that these Agencies are based in the United States and Great Britain.
Having lived in the United States for over 25 year I am hard pressed to see a situation in which Amnesty International , the Inter American Commission for Human Rights, or any other Agency have once placed themselves in the fight African-Americans have with unlawful police killing of unarmed black men.
They have no power in America, they should have no power to dictate laws in Jamaica . Their advocacy in to ensure the continued financial dependency on the larger patron states , ie the United States, England etal.
It is a part of the world order which is geared at keeping smaller states with people of color financially dependent.
They can only guarantee failed economies in crime ridden societies. Failed economies mean perpetual dependency on larger powerful states for loans.
These loans are attached to stringent austerity measures which in turn further impoverishes debtor states.
And the cycle continues.
The poorest Nations with the highest incidents of crime have the most vocal, most powerful Human Rights advocacy.
Nations which take their own futures in their own hands by discarding the views of these agencies have done very well for themselves and in many cases are economic models for the rest of the world.
The question is, when will Jamaicans realize that the very people supposedly looking out for their well-being are the people keeping them in poverty.