JFJ receives list of Coral Gardens beneficiaries

READ: Olivia Grange | Resetting The Relationship With Rasta: Doing The Right Thing

Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) has indicated that it is in receipt of a portion of a social enquiry report that it had been eyeing court action to get access to since the publication of a Gleaner story on Monday.

The human-rights lobby had contended that after months of requesting a copy of a report prepared by the public defender and sent to the Government on the 1963 Coral Gardens incident, it was yet to receive a favourable response. The Office of the Prime Minister had reportedly denied the group’s request to get a copy of the April social enquiry report, which the JFJ said was necessary to establish the formal details in respect of the beneficiaries of a trust fund announced in 2017 by Prime Minister Andrew Holness.

However, a section of the report was sent to JFJ via email on Monday. In confirming receipt, JFJ Executive Director Rodje Malcolm told The Gleaner that the development represented a step forward.

“We did not know the total number of beneficiaries. We now know that, and we will be able to work with the Government to establish which will comprise the trust,” Malcolm said on Tuesday.

The number of beneficiaries has increased from what was previously believed, he said.

The social enquiry report was required by the Government before the members of the trust fund could be named to compensate victims of the human rights abuse on the Rastafarian community on Good Friday 1963 in Coral Gardens, St James.

In 2017, Holness apologised to the community and announced the establishment of a $10-million trust fund to begin compensating the victims.

Increase in initial sum

Last year, Culture Minister Olivia Grange said that the initial sum announced by Holness had been significantly increased. Speaking in the Sectoral Debate, she said that the Government was “committed to transferring $30 million annually, over the next three years, to ensure the sustainability of the fund”.

She also said that $12 million had already been transferred to the administrator general.

In April this year, National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang reiterated that the culture ministry would increase the money from “$13 million to $30 million”. The fund was expected to grow to $102 million by next year.

However, according to JFJ, the only money in the fund was the initial $10 million announced by Holness, which has grown to $13 million through interest.

JFJ was retained by the Rastafari Coral Gardens Benevolent Society to act on behalf of the victims and survivors of the Coral Gardens incident.

erica.virtue@gleanerjm.com