Promoters appeal for party ban exemptions

WESTERN BUREAU:

PARTY PROMOTERS in Westmoreland are being warned that no permits will be issued in crime hotspots between now and the Christmas holidays.

The caution has come from Senior Superintendent Wayne Josephs, whose Westmoreland Police Division, up to October 18, recorded 124 murders since the start of the year.

“Permits have been and will continue to be issued on a case-by-case basis,” he advised. “But I want to hasten to say that if we are having any area in the parish where we are having an uptick in criminal activities, we will not be issuing any entertainment permits within those areas,” declared Josephs, the division’s commander.

Windel Dawson, chief executive officer of Rolling Entertainment, under whose brand the annual December 16 Addi-Onli party is held in Big Bridge at the Allure Night Club, just outside the parish capital Savanna-la-Mar, said that the industry should not suffer because of crime.

“Crime affects everyone, and it is sad that the entertainment sector is suffering because of the decisions of the police. If hoodlums know that security personnel are there, they are not going to go there,” said Dawson.

But as the annual Addi-Onli party date draws closer, Dawson is hoping that the police will approve his permit, despite the area being a concern to the police. He told The Gleaner that nothing untoward is likely to happen 99 per cent of the time if the police are present.

“... I would say to the police, give the events the permit, but under the guidance that they must pay for the services of police officers, in addition to having a private security company,” he said. “Which sensible gunman would want to attack an event policed by members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force?”

Meishtaing ‘Mega Vybz’ Wright, a club operator who promotes a Monday night party, is appalled at the police’s decision.

“It is one of the most inaccurate things that they would have used, because if you notice, whenever there is a crime committed, it happens in broad daylight. Very rarely you’ll find that an incident would happen at a party, or somebody getting shot while leaving a party,” said Wright.

SMALL VENDORS

A pan chicken vendor, who requested anonymity for safety concerns, said that sales on the margins of party venues generated the lion’s share of his income. He believes that a ban on events could evolve into a financial crisis for small-scale vendors.

“I understand what the police are trying to do, but they must also remember that small vendors like myself depend on these events to earn a living to feed our families. They have to do something to control crime, but not allowing an event to keep will affect us,” the pan chicken vendor said.

“That decision will affect us, especially now going into the Christmas holidays. We were affected during the COVID-19 period, and this is probably going be our best Christmas in three years,” he added.

Wright argued that the entertainment industry is being unduly blamed for the country’s escalating crime rate, and that such a burden should not be laid at the feet of promoters, because nobody is being killed at parties and stage shows.

“What the police force needs is proper detectives that will go out and do some work [with] technology and manpower, because each time there is a flare-up of violent crimes in Westmoreland and other parishes, they blame it on parties,” Wright contended.

“If the hoodlums want you, you could be under your mother’s bed, they are coming for you there. They can find you anywhere ... . They (police) will have to do what they must do. I can’t change that,” he added.

Westmoreland’s divisional commander said, however, that the decision was grounded in evidence.

“A lot of times they can’t go into their communities to get them, so when they see the gatherings [they strike],” Josephs said, noting that police deployment was dictated by intelligence.

“We see where at quite a few of these entertainment events, persons have been shot, so we have to protect the people against themselves sometimes,” said Josephs. “We will not be issuing entertainment permits where we are seeing an increase in criminal activities.”

Joseph’s concern is likely linked to a string of deadly shootings at parties in Westmoreland this year.

Among them are the murder of 29-year-old Edward Mosley and the shooting of a 38-year-old hairdresser in Negril on September 27; the killing of 26-year-old Akeem Dulcio in Llandilo in mid-August; and the deaths of Marshall Gayle and his common-law wife, Sherece Murray, in a mass shooting in Sheffield in February.

albert.ferguson@gleanerjm.com