Two more warders to resume work

Knight

TWO MORE of the 800 prison warders who have been on interdiction since February 2000, have been given the go ahead to resume work.

The two ­ Clive Clarke and Hambert Parchment ­ were relieved of interdiction by the panel hearing the disciplinary charges against them last week. They were represented by attorneys-at-law Hugh Levy and Wentworth Charles, respectively. The panel released them after the no case submissions made by their lawyers were upheld.

This brings to four the number of warders from the Tamarind Farm Prison in St. Catherine, who have been allowed to return to work since the hearings into the disciplinary charges against them started in July.

The hearings resume this morning at 10 at the St. Andrew Parish Church Hall, Ellesmere Road, Kingston.

The approximately 800 warders were sent on interdiction at quarter pay in February, 2000. This followed a sick-out against the re-appointment of Lt. Colonel John Prescod of Commissioner of the Correctional Services to a further two-year term in December, 1999.

Minister of National Security and Justice, K.D. Knight, ap-peared before the current panel appointed by the Public Services Commission to hear the case against the Tamarind Farm warders on July 24. The panel is comprised of former Electoral Advisory Committee chairman William Chin See, chairman, the Rev. Sam Green and former Assistant Commissioner of Police Everard Williams.

Mr. Knight has been one of the main witnesses for the prosecution. The Minister acknowledged receiving a letter from University and Allied Workers Union (UAWU) vice-president, Lambert Brown, stating that the warders were taking industrial action. The letter has been one of the main pieces of evidence supporting the Government's claim that the warders were on a sick-out in breach of their terms of employment.

But, after more than 18 months, the PSC has only brought charges against only about 63 of the warders. Five were suspended without pay after the PSC ruled that they should be dismissed and they appealed to the Governor-General. Another 11 have had their case part-heard and are now before the Supreme Court. Another 20 warders at Tamarind Farm are still awaiting summonses to appear before the panel.

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