We dare not forget

THE EDITOR, Madam:

SOMETIME IN December 1999, a letter was published with the caption 'Lest we forget!'

To my mind, there is no incident of the recent past above all others which we dare not forget. This is the incident which led to the death of Agana Barrett, Ian Forbes and Vassell Brown at the Constant Spring lock-up during the period Thursday, October 22 to Saturday, October 24, 1992. Here are some facts which we ought not to forget:

1. That 18 men were packed into a cell measuring 8'x7' for approximately 38 hours (this number increased to 19 half-way through the period);

2. That between Thursday 7:30 p.m. to Friday 1:00 p.m. the only food the men were given was sugar, water and crackers. This was at about 7:00 a.m. on Friday (they had been given lunch at about 1:00 p.m. on the said Friday);

3. That between Friday 2 p.m. to Saturday 8:00 a.m. they got neither food nor water;

4. That they were constantly forced to drink the perspiration from the walls in order to survive;

5. That at least one man drank his own urine;

6. That no charges had been laid against these men neither had they been found doing anything of a suspicious nature;

7. That the above was as a consequence of the action of that agency of the state which is supposed to preserve our rights namely the Police Force;

8. That the incarcerated men begged members of the Force who were present for relief from the extreme conditions which they were experiencing but to no avail;

9. That no visiting officer visited the relevant cell during the period of incarceration (contrary to the relevant Regulations).

Incidents like this and many others e.g. that involving Michael Gayle, constitute a blot on a nation's history and conscience. As we begin a new century, it is a convenient time for us to resolve that as a nation this will never happen again. But our resolve must be converted to action in order for it to be effective. Accordingly, I am suggesting as follows:

• That cell 3 of Constant Spring Police Station, that 'veritable death trap' be dismantled;
• That the police be made to discontinue the herding of persons for the purpose of processing. This practice of raiding a community and carting off all males over 14 for processing must cease! It must be unconstitutional. Why is it that it has never happened in Beverley Hills or Cherry Gardens?
• The relevant government agency should ensure, with voluntary contributions from the Police Force and other members of the society, that an appropriate memorial is built. At the official unveiling of the memorial we should have a church service focusing on repentance for the dastardly deed and a resolve to do better.
• Maybe even at this late stage we could have some investigative journalism regarding whether the visiting officer who failed to do his duty was ever charged professionally.

Isn't it interesting that Paul Bogle's initial protest in the 1860s concerned the lack of medical assistance available to detainees in St. Thomas?

The middle class of this country continue not to take these matters seriously simply because they do not live in areas in which these atrocities occur. Cheers to the group 'Jamaicans for Justice' who provide an exception to this generalisation! Injustice shown to Agana Barrett and others ought to be perceived as injustice to us all. We ought to make warning from the old Jamaican proverb "same knife that stick goat wi stick sheep too."

Read what the prophet Amos (Chapter 6) had to say about fate of the unconcerned middle class of his day. He likened them to 'fattened calves', they drank 'wine by the bowlful' and used the 'finest lotions' he said but they did not grieve over the ruin of their country!

Let us take action to ensure that we do not forget and so hopefully we will not repeat our mistakes.

I am, etc.,

S. RICHARDS
12 Hope Road
Kingston 10

THE EDITOR, Madam:

THE PRIME Minister has intervened and now there will be no development of the Hope Country Club. What are we then left with in terms of the real future of this 21 acres of mountainous hillside property:

1. The people of Hope Pastures will continue to be plagued by robberies and petty theft quite forgetting the fact that in order to protect their own interests, the developer would have had to put in good security measures to protect the development from the squatters.

2. Rheema Kerr, Curator of the Hope Zoo, says the hillside should be turned into hiking trails and look-out points. What are the young people of Jamaica going to look at in the midst of our beautiful St. Andrew hills? A squatter settlement? Is it safe to go on hiking trails in the Corporate Area? Is that not a recipe for rape and robbery?

3. Not one of the opposers to the development have made the slightest recognition of the economic activity and prosperity that would result from this development to the surrounding community.

Jamaica is crying for positive economic activity in every arena, and housing solutions in easy convenient locations.

It is not possible in a poor developing country for the Government to do everything and that is why you have mechanisms such as the Housing Act and agencies such as NIBJ and JAMPRO to enhance public sector and private sector economic interaction. This development was well planned and should have been encouraged in every way possible.

Do you know how difficult it is to get financing for projects in Jamaica, and to pass successfully, a process known as 'country diligence'.

Can you imagine the impression the prospective financiers for Mr. Cartade's development now have of 'the modus operandi' of the Jamaican Government?

It is so tragic that investors will be left with no alternative but to form the conclusion that it will be impossible to continue to work with the Government, if they are going to bend and bow once any kind of criticism heaves in their direction, despite the results and long-term benefits to the entire community, which are self-evident.

I am, etc.,

JENNIFER MESSADO
Dominica Drive
Kingston 5

Met service found wanting

THE EDITOR, Madam:

WITHOUT NOTICE, people in several parishes experienced an unusual windstorm which left much damage behind. For many, it was a night of terror, especially those who lived alone. Howling winds uprooted trees, damaged buildings, disrupted power and telephone and cable and water supplies etc.

It was like a small hurricane, predicted as a cold front by the meteorological experts, and in this year 2000, one must say that we didn't even have one beep. We have been trying them out all year long. Something went wrong and those responsible are weighed in the balance and found wanting.

When I was a boy, we had the Met Service in Mandeville.

The distinguished and bearded Prof. Pickering, retired and living at Woodlawn, had his telescopes, giant ones on the lawn, and I expect with his barometer etc., gave news to the post office, they hoisted the black flag and the news was spread across to warn the country to be ready.

That was 60 years ago; indeed the farmers in rural districts knew about the shepherds warning by looking at the sky. Today, despite the boasting and the show-off and despite tracking systems across the United States 24 hours per day with the Weather Channel, we still seem so backward.

Yes, the beep, beep, needed to be sounded. Thankfully, there was no loss of life. Destruction of fruits was great and there was no time to put away loose objects.

We will require greater accuracy in year 2000, the nation needs to know.

I am, etc.,

CLEVE GRANT (REV.)

New energy policy needed

THE EDITOR, Madam:

THE HIGH cost to Jamaica for the importation of energy should have made the Govern-ment urgently seek alternative sources of energy. This must be given high priority. May I suggest some alternatives:

Peat development: Peat is found in the north western regions of the country. Why not try to use it to generate power? Other countries use it to great effect. The government should spare no effort in developing this resource.

Solar power: Though this can offer only limited power, I believe that this is an area that the government should explore and exploit. Some agricultural lands can be devoted to more than one purpose, food can be grown and at the same time, solar fans can be erected on the same land.

Hydro-electric power: This is also another area that we can look at. Small hydro-electric plants can be constructed on some of our rivers to generate power. Perhaps these plants can be used to supply power to the immediate environs.

Nuclear energy: This is an area that should be given high priority. Jamaica should have at least two such plants. Safety standards of the highest quality must be strictly enforced. I think that most of Jamaica's energy needs can be fulfilled by nuclear power.

Ethanol power: This was an area that was being looked at in the past. I don't know why it was dropped, but this should be another viable area for Jamaica. It is my understanding that the ethanol can be made from sugar-cane. If this is true then I can't see why we have not yet started to make maximum use of this source of power.

The government must give the research and development of alternative source of power much more priority.

If they give it the same level of attention as they give FINSAC, then I am sure that most of our energy needs can be satisfied in Jamaica. Think of the long-term benefits that we would get.

I am etc.,

MICHAEL A. DINGWALL
E-mail: dingwallmichael@yahoo.com
1 1/2 Lake Lane
Kingston 2.
Via Go-Jamaica

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