THERE IS a famous saying, attributed to Benjamin Disraeli the 19th century British statesman, which goes: "There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."The saying comes to mind in seeing the 2003 annual progress report, the Jamaica Social Policy Evaluation (JASPEV), claiming that "the overall per capita crime rate of Jamaica has been among the lowest in the Western Hemisphere for the past quarter of a century."
It is not surprising that data from the Jamaica Constabulary Force corroborate the finding. For the overall crime statistics have been frequently cited by the Police High Command as a kind of consolation screen to balance against the soaring murder rate.
A sceptical population must ask what comfort can be derived from a statistically declining crime rate when the most serious crime of all is soaring beyond belief.
The JASPEV report preserves its credibility somewhat in conceding that the landscape of crime has changed focus from property to "spiralling rates of murder". And, increasingly, the victims are women and children.
It is the horrific murder toll of 1,212 to date a rate of nearly four per day that remains the major concern of every law-abiding Jamaican. And it must be the concern of the police, the Ministry of National Security, the Parliament, and all who care about the
security of the nation.
Tourists, prospective investors, and all who hear about Jamaica will not be swayed by overall figures, which create an illusion of tolerable crime. That is a dangerous stance for law enforcement to take when the guns are still being smuggled in to feed the drug trafficking and other nefarious activity.
There is no comfort in statistics that suggest a shift in focus from property to violence on women and children. In which category does extortion fall in this analysis? Implicit in this type of crime is the threat of violence, which the JASPEV report concedes is still a
factor.
The overall view should not lull the resolve of law enforcement to fight crime with even more vigour and determination. It is a dangerous illusion to think otherwise.
