Prime Minister declares zero tolerance against crime

KINGSTON, Jamaica, Feb. 9, CMC – Prime Minister Andrew Holness has instructed security officials to take a zero tolerance approach in the fight against crime and violence.
The announcement was made at a press conference called on Wednesday following a special meeting of the Cabinet.
The Prime Minister, in outlining his government’s plan to address issues such as domestic violence, sexual abuse and the sexual grooming of minors, suggested that the national has been brought to its knees with crime.
“The police when called to a scene, have now been given a policy directive that the aggressor as determined in the discretion of the police will be the condition of the bail after detention will specify that they must get counseling or have a discussion about the use of violence in domestic issues, intimate issues or in grooming.”
He also called on the police to take a zero tolerance approach to Child Pornography.
Holness also said that 400 additional police officers will be trained to deal with domestic violence, which accounts for 37 per cent of  murders annually.
As part of the zero tolerance approach, the police, with the help of the Transport Authority, will also target illegal taxis by removing dark tints from the windows of all public passenger vehicles.
Meanwhile, leader of the main opposition People’s National Party (PNP), Portia Simpson Miller on Wednesday also called on Government to urgently make its security plans public.
“The crime wave we have seen over the last few months will have a devastating effect on economic growth and development if it is not checked. It is important that the Government and the police tell the nation urgently the measures being implemented to keep our country safe,” she said in a news release.
She also urged Jamaicans to exercise responsibility and vigilance as they go about their daily business.
Over the last 13 months, 86 people had been held for shooting, 67 for murder, 252 for rape, 280 for robbery, 202 for sexual offences/indecent assault, 237 for sexual intercourse with a girl under the age of 16, 169 for break-ins, while 54 were held for larceny under the category of crimes against women and children .