Document #1018626
IRB – Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada (Author)
The following information was provided by a
journalist with The Daily Gleaner in Kingston, Jamaica (21
June 1994). The term "Posses" was first used by American and
British writers to "sensationalize what are basically drug-related
gangs and their activities in Jamaica." The Posses became involved
in party politics by supporting particular political parties or
candidates in the 1970s. However, they have shifted their focus
from politics to criminal activities in the inner cities of
Jamaica, where they have concentrated on the drug trade and related
activities. Some foreign reporters have tried to link the Jamaican
Posses to drug-related and other criminal activities in North
America, but the source was uncertain about such links. He stated
that the Jamaican gangs are Jamaican-based and they are not capable
of managing crime networks around North America.
The source stated that the Jamaican
government does not appear to be in control of the situation. The
government has responded with increased use of police, but the
police are not adequately equipped to fight crime in the country.
In short, the government has been "paying lip service" to the
problem of crime prevention in Jamaica. While the government makes
regular announcements on its plans or intentions to combat crime,
its actions stop at these public announcements. The crime rate
related to gang activity in Jamaica has not receded, an indication
that the government's response to these activities is ineffective.
For instance, the number of people murdered in drug and
gang-related activities in Jamaica is expected to reach 700 this
year, an increase from last year's figure of slightly more than
600.
The failure of government initiatives to
fight crime can be attributed to poverty. The cost of basic
necessities in Jamaica is constantly on the rise, and people are
unable to make ends meet with their meagre incomes. This situation
makes crime more attractive. The source stated that he was not in
any way trying to justify crime.
Nonetheless, he believed that unless the
government begins to seriously tackle the economic problems of
Jamaica, it will continue to fight the consequences rather than the
root causes of crime in the country. The government's resort to
regular announcements of crime-fighting plans is an attempt to
reassure a public, which is already cynical about the government's
ability to fight crime. The Jamaican public is aware that the
government has been losing the battle against crime in the streets
of its slums. The DIRB is unable to corroborate this information at
the present time.
This response was prepared after
researching publicly accessible information currently available to
the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does
not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular
claim to refugee status or asylum.
Journalist with The Daily
Gleaner, Kingston. 21 June 1994. Telephone interview.