THE EDITOR, Madam:
I AM back in the United States after spending two months in your beautiful country. However, my wonderful Jamaican experience was overshadowed by my experiences with the Jamaican police, most notably by a tragic incident which occurred two days before my departure.
Jamaican police shot and killed a young man at DeBuss in Negril on August 13; I heard the shots fired as I sat on my veranda that afternoon. I understand that the victim was climbing a fence in an effort to get away. I also understand that the contents of his bag later revealed nothing more than a toothbrush, not a machete as purported by the police, in an effort to defend their shooting of this man.
Any early death is tragic, of course, but this one is even more so due to the circumstances. This man was someone's son, probably a brother, possibly a father or a husband. His crime was in not being able to get over the fence before his life was cruelly taken from him.
This incident was the culmination of numerous events which I witnessed involving the Jamaican police. Early in my visit I witnessed the police clubbing a man in the head and knees as he lay in the sand; the man had been smoking cocaine on the beach and tripped while running from the police. The club to the head and knees was unnecessary as the man was not fighting his arrest.
About three weeks later I experienced some verbal harassment by a Jamaican man; police were called by security and by the time they arrived, the man's harassment had escalated to threats of violence.
The police attempted to handcuff this man for several minutes. It appeared to me that the three officers did not know how to use their handcuffs. One of the officers accepted my offer of help (I have past law enforcement experience). By the time I cut away the handcuffs which they had tangled up in the man's net shirt, they had let the man run away and had to chase him down the beach.
There was also an incident with a Rasta who was beaten by the police. He had been picking up bottles and was ordered off the beach. When he continued his search for bottles, the police clubbed him in the leg, leaving a serious injury which was later tended to by a tourist. This disturbing incident was witnessed by all the tourists on the beach that afternoon.
I was warned before my first visit to Jamaica that it would be unsafe for me to travel there alone due to harassment, etc., by the local people. I found just the opposite to be true: I was welcomed and well cared for by the local people. The misbehaviour and unsafe feelings I experienced came from the police, who cannot be relied upon to do that which they are paid to do.
Not only do the Jamaican police use excessive physical force, they appear to be corrupt. My Jamaican friends, who have legitimate businesses on the beach, are harassed almost daily by police 'begging' for lunch money. This begging carries with it an unspoken threat hand over the money or risk serious legal trouble involving your business or worse, time in a Jamaican jail.
I am outraged that Jamaican police are allowed to openly conduct themselves in such a manner. I have no easy explanation for the corruption. I wonder, however, if lack of proper training is partially to blame.
I urge the Jamaican people to come together and rise up and demand proper training for new officers and ongoing training updates for current officers. Refuse to give in to the demands for money from police officers. Do not stand by in silence as your brothers and sisters are threatened, beaten, or killed.
Police in any country should be relied upon to protect its people, to preserve their dignity and their lives, not to be involved in stripping them of these rights, with no consequence.
I am etc.,
MAXINE LANG
E-mail: maxml1@yahoo.com
PO Box 206, La Centre
WA, USA 98629
Via Go-Jamaica
