The current National Security Policy (NSP) identified, like many reports over the past decade, that crime and corruption are the principal obstacles to Jamaica’s growth and development. The NSP also recognised a common misconception that the way to make progress against organised crime is to disrupt specific forms of criminal activity e.g. narcotics trafficking. However, that traditional approach does not...

A recent IDB discussion document describes Latin America and the Caribbean as "...one of the most violent regions of the planet. Its average homicide rate in 2012 was 23.7 per 100,000 inhabitants, almost four times the global rate, and more than twice the standard used by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to define an epidemic (10 homicides per 100,000). Jamaica...

The 2013 calendar year ended with 1197 murders versus 1099 recorded for 2012 or a disappointing increase of 9%. For the first half of 2013, the figures were continuing the downward trend experienced since May 2010. However, in the third quarter, the number of murders spiked to almost four per day.  This increase was attributed to a number of factors...

In 2009, Jamaica had the third highest homicide rate in the  world, at 63/100,000. The rate fell markedly after the Tivoli operation, to just over 40/100,000. In 2012 there was a 4% reduction in murders relative to 2011 and for the first half of 2013 there was a 6% reduction in murders relative to the first half of 2012. However,...

The mandate of the Ministry of National Security… broadly speaking… is to create an environment of safety and security for our citizens; to protect our borders—the maritime and territorial space; to prevent the trafficking of narcotics and other contraband; to regulate the use of firearms; and to manage the correctional system. Crime has had a very negative impact on our...

INTRODUCTION… Our systems of national security, policing, law enforcement and justice are facing a range of rapidly evolving challenges. Criminals are using modern cyber-technology and psychological tactics. They are becoming increasingly innovative, developing new forms of crime, and expanding their international cooperation. It is clear that incremental adjustments to the way we do things will not provide an adequate response....

The right of Jamaicans to protest and freely express their opinions is an important guarantee of our Constitutional democracy and a demonstration of the vibrancy of our civil society. I think the outrage and anger over the recent loss of a number of innocent lives is an appropriate response and an encouraging signal that the society is growing intolerant of the...

Drug trafficking, once viewed largely as a social and criminal problem, has transformed in recent years into a major threat to the health and security of people and regions. The $61 billion annual market for Afghan opiates is funding insurgency, international terrorism and wider destabilization. In West Africa, the $85 billion global cocaine trade is exacerbating addiction and money-laundering while...