Mark Wignall | Murders again, naturally

In the aftermath of the horrific gun deaths and mayhem which took place at Cherry Tree Lane in Clarendon, the actions taken would be something like this:

Long before the nation could allow the pain to seep into our souls, the police personnel connected to the nearest station would be in touch with their ‘squaddies’ at other stations spreading many versions of that single, troubling theme.

On a parallel track would be the head of the station creating a file listing the initial findings. The divisional leader, the nation’s crime chief, the commissioner of police, the security minister, would liaise to determine the best presentation to the prime minister, especially one that would not burden him with too many details of pushback.

The prime minister would be no less troubled than the collective pain felt but, in any response, he would have to cover his political flank and do so without it becoming too obvious. At the time of writing, the hands-on crime chief, ACP Fitz Bailey, has informed the nation basically that thugs operating abroad had a falling out and the horrific killings was the result. So far, five men have been held.

Eight persons were killed, including a seven year-old boy and three women. Nine other persons, including a baby, were left with bullet wounds. Let that sink in.

The killers were angry. I first saw that anger about 20 years ago. One politically aligned community launched a midnight arson and gun attack on a community politically aligned to the ‘other’ side. Seven people were killed. The week after when I spoke with some of the murderers and expressed my ‘concerns’ that women and children were killed, they told me two simple things.

One, I did not live there, therefore I could not pretend to understand their lives. Two, they had been warning the other side to cease the gun harassment and they didn’t take it serious enough.

The shooters in the Cherry Tree Lane killings had one main objective, and that was to create fear, to plant terror. Just point the high-powered weapons and pull the trigger. And that is the message. The prime minister has announced a significant bounty of J$25 million for key info and gun finds.

I have a question. Can the actions we take today give us a guarantee that such a gruesome horror story will never happen again? History easily provides us with the answer.

LOOKING TO THE PM FOR CRIME SOLUTIONS

A concerned reader had problems with what the prime minister said.

‘The PM referred to the murders as “This is an act of terror ...”. Are not the many other murders by gunmen of Jamaicans acts of terror? The PM stated, “We will not treat this as another criminal act.” The PM stated, “ We have played with gangs for too long.”

“Prime Minister, why has your Government played with killers and terrorists for too long? These killers and terrorists have made Jamaicans live in fear, caused mass migration, and impacted the economy and mental stability of the people of Jamaica. Is that good governance?”

Because the PM is not at the top of his political game as he was in late 2020, he ought to know that more of our people will look to him when social crises like the Cherry Tree Lane killings happen.

The reader continued. ‘The PM stated ,”We must use this as an opportunity to draw the line finally in the sand and to separate the gangs from our communities.” After the slaughter of thousands of Jamaicans by gangs and holding the reins of power for some eight years you are now going to “draw the line finally”. Prime Minister, isn’t this just an admission of political lethargy?

“PM, you stated in the 2016 campaign that, under your administration, people would be safe and could sleep with their windows open. Even though we know that you had caught political flu while on the campaign trail, surely, Mr Prime Minister, could you not have met us halfway? Murder, mayhem, death and terror have only gotten worse since 2016. Why should we believe you no?.”

He ended with, “PM, why has your government in some eight years not given the DPP the resources to prosecute criminal gangs and lock up gang members for long periods of time?”

TRAVEL ALERT AND TOURISM PIE

Jamaica’s tourism industry was quick to recover from the social and economic ravages of COVID-19. Can it stand up to the piling up of US travel alerts?

We know, of course, about some home-grown truths we are mostly familiar with. The typical tourist couple casually holding hands and walking the streets in the resort areas of Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, Oracabessa, Negril and Portland are safer than Jamaicans walking on Red Hills Road or in Half-Way Tree.

The last alert said, “The U.S. State Department has updated a warning urging travellers to avoid a popular Caribbean hotspot.The update, issued July 25, urged people to reconsider travel to Jamaica due to crime and lack of medical services. The department first issued its alert in February, citing an increase in home invasions, armed robberies, sexual assaults and murders, with some incidents occurring at popular all-inclusive resorts.”

The US believes in the primacy of its people and will do what America believes will satisfy the safety and the freedoms of its citizens. While I find it difficult to believe that criminal incidents occur at all-inclusive resorts to the extent that is stated, the responsibility is on us to clean up our act.

At least one hotel chain has reported a significant, but not frightening, decline in occupancy rates and average spend per tourist.

Tourism Minister Ed Bartlett is one of the few gems left shimmering in the PM’s crown. But, if the society finds that too much hopelessness descends whenever a major crime fix is desired nationally, it must be driven home to the prime minister that Mr Bartlett cannot perform miracles.

An even more painful consideration. As unpopular as the PM and the JLP are, I cannot find some electoral and political evidence to convince me that a change of government is likely to bring about a major crime fix.

Mark Wignall is a political and public affairs analyst. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and mawigsr@gmail.com