Ministry of National Security

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Minister of National Security, Senator the Hon. Dwight Nelson, addressing the fourth in his series of consultations on crime at the Golf View Hotel in Mandeville Manchester on Thursday (November 26).

Minister of National Security, Senator the Hon. Dwight Nelson, has said that a number of new crime-fighting initiatives are to be introduced in Manchester, immediately.

"We are going to be putting in place, with immediate effect, strategies to ensure that you enjoy the rest of the year without worry, and it will continue until Manchester is brought back from the increased level of criminal activities occurring," Senator Nelson said.

He was speaking at the fourth in his Ministry's series of islandwide crime-fighting fora, at the Golf View Hotel in Mandeville Manchester, on Thursday (November 26).

The Minister noted that Manchester had enjoyed tranquility over the years, with low levels of crime, but where the level of crime has now reached will require that the security forces beef up their presence in certain areas.

"Police intelligence has indicated that there are some troubled areas from which criminal behaviour emanates, and in which criminal behaviour is fermented, and we are going to be targeting those areas," he emphasised.

Mr. Nelson called for ongoing co-operation between the police and citizens. He said that the time has come to break from the tradition of formulating crime-fighting policy, where decisions are made by executives and handed down for implementation.

"It has not worked. The time has come for us to sit with the people who are most affected and hear from you; what we are doing wrong, what we should do that we are not currently doing; because it is you who are feeling the brunt of the blow," he stated.

He explained that the crime fora seek to build co-operation with all law abiding citizens, strengthen community policing and restore trust and confidence between the police and the citizens.

"The police acting alone, with hard policing, cannot be successful in fighting crime. There has to be a level of co-operation and teamwork between the police and the citizen. The citizens have to trust the police, and the police have to ensure that the citizens trust them," the Minister said.

Mr. Nelson was supported by personnel from the Ministry of National Security, the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF).

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