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| NEWS > 08 January 2007 |
Other related articles:
US slams Pakistan's poor HR re
Islamabad, 10 March, (Asiantribune.com): The United States has criticised Pakistan's human rights record, calling it "poor" and underlined the "limited progress" in democratisation of the country. The annual progress report brought out by the State Department said, "Pakistan's human rights record continued to be poor, despite President Musharraf's stated commitment to democratic transition and enlightened moderation.
"Restrictions remained on freedom of movement, expression, association, and religion. Progress on democratisation was limited," the report said.
It alleged tha... Read more
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 Article sourced from
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Jamaica Gleaner - Kingston,Jam
08 January 2007
This article appeared in the above title/site.
To view it in its entirity click this link.
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Corruption confession won't ch
On December 24, 2006, The Sunday Gleaner pub-lished the confessions of a corrupt cop. Readers (from here and abroad) expressed shock and outrage, while others related that they were not surprised. Several congratulated this newspaper for being brave enough to publicise the problem of corruption within the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).
Thankfully, the vast majority of our police are decent, dedicated, honest, patriotic and hard-working citizens. It's because of them that 'the confession' came as no surprise to me. My many patients, acquaintances and friends within the JCF have spoken of such things (and far more) in graphic chilling detail. They are embarrassed, disgusted and frustrated by the actions of their corrupt colleagues, but are powerless to do anything about it. Reporting corruption can have dire consequences.
The National Security Minister's statement, "As it stands now, we can protect anyone who comes forward with information in relation to the JCF", and the planned whistle-blower legislation is fine in theory. However, fears of ostracism or worse yet, becoming the victim of a 'fatal shooting incident' on the streets or of an 'accidental firearm discharge' inside a guardroom are real.
Making the problem worse
The constabulary is not unique; many other governmental depart-ments are tainted by corruption and complicity. Corruption compromises our security, costs lives and erodes our economy. The problem is more devastating when it involves upper echelon civil servants; not only do they set a bad example but the effects are far-reaching - sometimes international.
Corruption is facilitated by convoluted red tape, lengthy procedures and exorbitant fees/taxes. The same goes for inflated traffic fines, deducted points and motor vehicle seizures for relatively minor offences. High fines deter law-breakers and add to our coffers, but they also increase the income of rogue cops. Electronic ticketing won't help this situation, sting operations will. We need traffic school for offenders and less imposition of punitive fines.
If someone exceeds the posted speed limit by up to 10 kilometres-per-hour (that's just 6 miles per hour), and a traffic cop 'offers' to accept a 'contribution' for saving the driver some of the $5,000 fine and two points off his/her driver's licence, not many could resist 'helping themselves' out of that situation. And, if a wrecker driver offers to return a vehicle for a fee which would save thousands of dollars and an entire day of rigmarole, which among us would turn down such 'magnanimity'?
Price for speaking out
Regarding organised and/or violent crimes; the police and private sector interests are making it easier and sometimes financially beneficial for people to report those criminal activities. However, eyewitnesses and victims still shun the courts because many have lost their lives in the pursuit of justice. This is why a lot of people remain silent and why vigilante justice and extra-judicial killings occur.
Some will find The Sunday Gleaner exposé on police corruption disturbing, but it's certainly nothing new to the powers-that-be. The problem persists because we haven't tackled the basis for it. Greed plays a role in corruption, but so does insecurity. I'm not being placatory but, the needs of our police are no different from the average Jamaican. They need physical and financial security, good educational oppor-tunities for their children and affordable and accessible health care.
Okay, one corrupt cop anony-mously confessed something that everybody already either knew or heard about - don't hold your breath for change. We Jamaicans lack sustained resolve, so, like many other important newsworthy disclosures, this too shall pass. It will soon blow over and everything will get back to 'normal'.
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