Delroy Chuck Injustice anywhere," the great American Martin Luther King warned, "is a threat to justice everywhere." Perhaps, someone should put this quotation on the walls of every police station, government building and prominently in the Cabinet Room. Injustice is so rampant that the cry for justice, for even-handed and thorough investigations, for transparency and truth, and for closure to heart-rending events, can be heard in every corner of our fair land. Why has this government, with so many attorneys in its ranks, seemed so devoid of an unquestionable commitment to truth and justice?
When the history of this administration is written, one underlying theme that will run like a seamless web throughout its governance is 'it was nobody's fault'. How else do we explain that so much is going wrong, awfully wrong, and yet no one seems responsible, accountable or brought to justice for even heinous crimes? Citizens, especially the weak and vulnerable in our inner city communities, must doubt the opportunity and ability to find justice, to confront the agencies of the state on an equal footing, to restore peace to their surroundings, and to respect and surrender to the due process of law and order. In truth, the rule and processes of law have not brought peace and closure; they have wreaked havoc, frustration and injustice.
STILL FRESH
The events of July 7-10, 2001, in Tivoli Gardens, are still fresh in our minds. Twenty-five innocent persons, and two members of the security forces, met their untimely death, and after an inquiry that the respected international agency, Amnesty International, deemed 'structurally biased in favour of the State', no one is any wiser, as it appears that the Commission was not interested in finding who the true culprits were, how did the events unfold, why was no gunman shot and killed and, actually, in truth and justice. The events of July 7-10 were anticipated, and easily predicted, as a similar episode occurred in May 1997, when the security forces fired thousands of rounds of ammunition over three days, causing the death of innocent women and children, and nothing, absolutely nothing, came of the allegations of state terrorism. Why, then, if it occurred in 1997 and in 2001, should it not occur again?
This country, and the people of Tivoli, especially the family and friends of those killed and injured, deserve an impartial and independent inquiry. The country's commitment to the rule of law, to a fair and impartial tribunal in ferreting out injustice, and to the dignity and respect of its citizens, will be questioned internationally and stained forever unless we bring satisfactory closure to the shameful and disgraceful episode of July 7-10 in Tivoli. Many will wonder if it is necessary, and why can't we simply forget it, but we must always remember injustice breeds injustice.
How do we explain the continuing brutality, state excesses and injustice committed almost daily?
The fact of the matter is that the security forces have engaged in wanton and downright breaches of the law and no one is held accountable and brought to justice for some of the most blatant transgressions. Actually, when things go wrong, we seem to find ways and means to cover up, committees and commissions to investigate and make recommendations none of which are acted on, and allow time and poor memory to appease the anger and rage of the populace. How many of us remember the brutalities of the Montego Bay Street People Scandal, the beatings of over 300 inmates in St. Catherine District Prison, the detention of 47 young men from Grants Pen resulting in the death of Agana Barrett and two others, the Braeton Seven, the fraud and corruption of Operation PRIDE, and so on. Have there been satisfactory outcome to these events, all of which shocked and stirred the conscience of the nation?
WHAT OF THE STATE AGENCIES?
Yet, the government will allude to the many state agencies that have been put in place to deal with injustices and breaches of human and constitutional rights. The Public Defender, the Police Public Complaints Authority, the Office of Professional Responsibility, the Bureau of Special Investigations, and the many committees and commissions, are examples of responses to the grave concerns and serious allegations of gross misconduct and manifest breaches by the security forces. But, what have been the accomplishments of these bodies? Without resources, personnel and transparency, these bodies are nothing but paper tigers and, actually, their usefulness and worth have not been discerned or appreciated.
Still, when everything is going wrong, leadership must take the blame, and the government of the country cannot escape the blame and responsibility for the rampant injustices, abuses and indignities to our citizens.
To be sure, we need closure to every allegation of injustice, and the leadership of the country needs to ensure that this happens. Admittedly, criminal violence and other crimes are wreaking havoc but we need to confront them with superior intelligence and patent commitment to the rule of law and not with more crime and injustice.
It is true that many persons and communities are appeased when alleged and well known gunmen and criminals are eliminated but let us forever remember that if we bring jungle justice to the people then we send the terrible signals that our criminal problems can be resolved with murder, violence and brutalities, which may partly explain the continuing and escalating criminal violence.
Delroy Chuck is an attorney-at-law and Opposition Member of Parliament. He can be contacted by e-mail at delchuck@hotmail.com.
