'Little trust in Police Force'
THE GOVERNMENT is not doing enough to fight crime and violence, according to the overwhelming majority of persons interviewed in a Gleaner-commissioned poll.
At the same time, more than half the 1,000 persons surveyed believe lack of trust is the reason for low public support of the police in their attempts to quell Jamaica's rampaging criminality.
The poll found that close to 86 per cent of those interviewed felt that, given the recent upsurge in the incidence of violent crimes, the current approach by the security forces is far too limited.
"This is a view that is widely held across all sectors, but in particular among the more affluent groups within the society," said pollster Don Anderson in his analysis. The poll was conducted by a team of researchers from Market Research Services Ltd. between September 15 and 24 and included interviews with persons 18 years old and over. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2 per cent.
The poll found that nine of every 10 persons interviewed in St. Mary and Trelawny are dissatisfied with the treatment of the crime problem, making them, from a parish perspective, the most concerned.
The police approach to crime, and in particular the national crime initiative, has come in for heavy criticism since controversial reports that Commissioner of Police Francis Forbes said the crime plan had failed. That statement was later denied and Minister of National Security Dr. Peter Phillips assured the nation that the crime plan was a success.
However, Dr. Phillips would earlier this month admit that one of the key elements of that success, a three per cent decline in the murder rate, had slowly slipped away. Murders now stand at over 730 since the start of the year.
But the poll also found that only 9.8 per cent of those interviewed felt that the efforts to deal with crime and violence are suitable for the state of the problem. Four per cent were either unsure or had no opinion.
Mr. Anderson and his team also found that those polled believed there were two primary reasons for the low public support for the police. "In the first place, over 53 per cent cite a lack of trust between the citizens and the police as the real cause for low public support... another 24 per cent cite corruption in the police force as a major contributory factor and are therefore unsure as to whether or not any information given will be handled professionally".
"This is a view supported by all demographic groups, especially persons in the low socio-economic group," said Mr. Anderson. He added that it is a view agreed on by persons in all parishes except for Portland.
"Specifically for those reasons persons are very reluctant to co-operate with the police and vital information that could assist in their investigations is as a result not forthcoming," noted Mr. Anderson.
