The Jamaican Government has imposed a new state of emergency in three western parishes - St James, Westmoreland and Hanover. It will last 14 days, in the first instance, and an extension will require two-thirds majority votes in both houses of Parliament.

Prime Minister Andrew Holness made the announcement on Tuesday morning during a media briefing at Jamaica House.

It was only in January that the government lifted a year-long state of emergency in St. James, seat of the western city of Montego Bay, famous as a tourist destination.

That served to dramatically reduce the incidence of serious crimes, particularly murder, in 2018, but with the lifting of the security measure at the beginning of 2019, the number of murders has risen dramatically, leading to Tuesday's declaration.

Police Commissioner

Police Commissioner Major General Antony Anderson, speaking at the press briefing, explained that Westmoreland is leading the three parishes in respect of its murder rate, and was projected to record 90 killings by the end of the year in the absence of appropriate interventions.

"St. James has gone up 70 per cent over where it was last year at this point and Hanover is still significantly high," he added.

It was therefore because of these figures "and the challenge of violence in these spaces that caused myself and the CDS (Chief of Defence Staff - Jamaica Defence Force) to recommend to the Prime Minister that we declare a State of Public Emergency in these areas; we must save lives," he declared.

JDF

Lieutenant General Rocky Meade, Chief of Defence Staff of the Jamaica Defence Force, stressed that the State of Emergency will give the security forces "temporary additional powers, including additional powers of search, arrest and detention."

He acknowledged that "persons may be justifiably concerned about the implications of the security operation as they go about their everyday lives, but sought to give assurance that "both the JDF and JCF have been properly trained and oriented to give due regard to the basic human and citizen rights of all persons within the communities."

That orientation will guide their actions during this period as well, he said.

He urged residents to assist the security forces to rid the parishes of crime and violence by using the JDF's tipline at 876-837-8888 or 311 to report criminal activity.

Clarendon?

The Police Commissioner was asked by a journalist why the parish of Clarendon was not included in those placed under a State of Public Emergency, given the fact that it is also a major crime hot spot.



He acknowledged that Clarendon does "lend itself to one," but said there were not enough resources to include a fourth parish in the initiative at this time.

He said the "contiguous nature" of the three parishes - Westmoreland, Hanover, St. James - "allow (sic) us to use our resources in a more efficient way and get the result across all three parishes, because they are beside each other."

Opposition

The parliamentary opposition has said the declaration of the state of emergency without critical anti-crime measures will not be of long term benefit.

In a media release, Opposition leader Dr Peter Phillips said the resurgence of criminal activity, more than one year after the State of Emergency in St James, underscores the fact that a state of emergency without other anti-crime measures that single out and target the producers and perpetrators of violence and bring them to justice will not provide the level of security that the country deserves.

Dr Phillips said the country still awaits the formal announcement of the other crime fighting measures which secure Jamaica in a sustainable way.

In relation to the State of Emergency declared today, Dr Phillips said it is expected that the accompanying regulations will be announced along with the appropriate tribunal to ensure that the rights of the people are protected.