Happy Birthday to The Right Honourable Mosiah Garvey
“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots.” – Marcus Mosiah Garvey
St Mary murder rate down 50%
Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of National Security, Senator Matthew Samuda, says St Mary’s murder rate is down by 50 per cent.
Samuda made the revelation on Friday during the official opening ceremony of the Police Post at Ian Fleming International Airport in Boscobel, St Mary.
“Serious and violent crimes in the parish as at yesterday (August 12) are down by 27 per cent. However, the metric that we tend to use to judge safety and security outcomes is usually the murder rate, and in this parish, the murder rate, year to date, is down 50 per cent,” Samuda said.
Samuda attributed the reduction to the Government’s efforts in improving security infrastructure and police mobility coupled with enhanced technology, human resource and training.
“We [the government] have been unrelenting in our efforts to provide the Police High Command with the relevant technological, surveillance, telecommunications, mobility, forensics, human resource and training, and intelligence apparatus to fulfil duties,” he said.
Samuda said under the Ministry’s Project Rebuild, Overhaul and Construct (P-ROC) over $5.2 billion in strategic investment has been allocated to improve the Jamaica Constabulary Force.
While pointing out the newly constructed police post which represents the latest success of Project ROC, he said “it is important to reinvest national gains into improving the welfare and safety of police officers”.
“This development, and Project ROC in general,” Samuda said “is a part of the ministry’s transformational agenda to strengthen the Constabulary Force, and the national security apparatus in its entirety, to overcome this country’s chronic security issues.
Visit to Stony Hill Police Station and Square with SSP Aaron Fletcher, Minister Juliet Cuthbert and Senior Team at MNS
Yesterday I toured the Stony Hill Police Station and the Environs of the Square alongside SSP Aaron Fletcher, Minister Juliet Cuthbert and a senior team from The Ministry of Nation Security.
This visit was done to assess the security infrastructure and technology needs of the JCF in the space, in addition to engaging with residents to assure them of our commitment to their security.
I remind citizens that there are safe ways to provide information to the police and in partnership we will make stony hill more secure and safe for all.
Stony Hill to receive JamaicaEye to assist in crime fight
Minister without Portfolio in the Ministry of National Security, Senator Matthew Samuda has stated that JamaicaEye is one of the suite of tools that will be used to improve crime fighting capabilities in Stony Hill.
“JamaicaEye plans to have a national presence and has been building out accordingly. All town centres are a priority to the Ministry and Stony Hill is one such commercial centre”, Samuda said during a tour of the Stony Hill Police Station and the town centre on Thursday.
The minister, who was accompanied by Member of Parliament for St Andrew West Rural, Juliet Cuthbert-Flynn explained that despite a general downward trend in serious and violent crimes for the St Andrew North Police Division, Stony Hill has recorded an increase in crimes during the past few weeks, which the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) has been working to curb.
He noted that under the ministry’s Project Rebuild Overall and Construct (ROC), a number of JamaicaEye cameras will be installed in the Stony Hill community.
“The JCF needs a lot more investment if it is to truly be able to provide the sort of security needed nationally in every crevice. The Government is working and has prioritised its investment in security, which is evidenced by the mass renovation of just under 100 police stations and we are still doing so despite budgetary cuts imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is also well known that JamaicaEye functions as a force multiplier and we would like to ensure that we have a force multiplier in effect for Stony Hill,” added Samuda.
Meanwhile, Superintendent of Police and Commanding Officer for the St Andrew North Police Division, Aaron Fletcher, said the use of technology is far enhancing the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s (JCF) ability to combat crime. “I speak specifically to the Jamaica Eye Surveillance systems that are being installed, which have assisted with criminal apprehension. They have gone far in assisting us with our efforts to treat with investigations and the identification of perpetrators”, he said.
Superintendent Fletcher also pointed out that the JCF is able to use technology to track motor vehicles that have been used to aid in committing crimes, citing recent cases where vehicles used to commit crimes have been intercepted shortly after.
Share:
Orientation Session For Members of the Board of Visitors and the Parole Board
Very excited about this ! We will have the opportunity to announce our objectives and expectations that will aid the Board of Visitors to play a more active role in the lives of the most vulnerable.
Share:
Nelson Mandela International Day
On Nelson Mandela International Day we remember a titan who played a major role in overcoming evil forces and undoubtedly changed the world for the better. We reflect on his legacy. Nelson Mandela endured a great deal of adversity, not least of which, was a lengthy and inhumane imprisonment, in his struggle to achieve a state of peaceful and just coexistence for all people in his native South Africa.
That mission has always resonated with Jamaicans, which is why we hold the late President Mandela in the highest regard. This day of remembrance, however, is also meant to call attention to the plight of prisoners and correctional staff around the globe.
Throughout President Mandela’s imprisonment he remained a focal figure of the cause he championed. A mere four years after his release from prison he was elected President of a renewed South Africa. Thus, Mandela’s experience is a fitting reminder that those who our justice system has sentenced to a term of imprisonment are not quite removed from society, but rather remain a continuous part of our whole. Most of those in our custody within correctional facilities will rejoin society. Their treatment while in state custody is therefore of critical concern: it does not serve our society to provide anything less than dignified and rehabilitative care to these individuals.
At the end of 2015, the United Nation’s established their Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, otherwise called the Nelson Mandela Rules. These rules constitute a framework for managing correctional institutions in a just and humane manner, while recognizing both the dignity of individuals in the custody of the state and the value of correctional staff as a social service. Since 2016, the Mandela Rules have helped inform the approach Jamaica’s Ministry of National Security and Department of Correctional Services have taken in modernizing the administration of corrections.
The progress thus far has been admirable but insufficient! Bringing our correctional institutions up to standard necessitates greater support for & training of our correctional officers.
We endeavour to ensure additional improvements are made to the correctional services as we at the Ministry of National Security strive to honour Nelson Mandela’s legacy and uphold principles of equity, fairness and justice.
Share:
Happy 78th Anniversary to the Jamaica Labour Party !
On this day in the year 1948, Sir Alexander William Clarke Bustamente founded the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP). Today as we celebrate our 78th year, we reflect on how far we’ve come as a country and as a people. I ask that we remain positive in these challenging times and be patient as we continue on our path to build back stronger and better. Here’s to more prosperity!
Share:
Brief Presentation on the Extradition (Amendment ) Bill 2021
Last Friday, I presented the Extradition (Amendment) Bill 2021 in the Senate.
The rationale for the amendments to the Extradition Act came out of concerns expressed by the US State Department on the difficulty in acquiring the affidavits of victims, particularly in cases of lotto scamming and fraud, in extradition proceedings.
The amendments seek to clarify and amplify the law, and will not infringe the rights of any person being sought for extradition, whether to the United States or to any other country.
Share:
Centres of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Donates Medical Supplies to the Department of Correctional Services
Thank you to US Government, who through the Embassy, and the local teams from CDC, & the INL for this generous donation of nebulising kits, automated external defibrillators and well needed PPEs valued at $4.5 million. Though there are no active COVID-19 cases in the Department of Correctional Services, we continue to be vigilant and increase capacity for future cases of infections.