Holness to announce commission on violence in Jamaica

Prime Minister Andrew Holness has told Jamaicans in Washington DC that early next year, he will be announcing a commission to study violence in Jamaica.

Speaking at a town hall at the  Howard University College of Medicine in Washington D.C, Holness said the commission would be mandated to make recommendations to the government on measures that may be pursued to make Jamaica a more caring and loving society.

"I think that that is very important to our brand because violence is tarnishing Jamaica," he said.

According to Holness, the propensity to violence is one of the reasons for Jamaica's crime problem.

He said another issue related to the lack of trust in the police, resulting in criminals assuming the roles of dispensing justice, welfare and protection.

But according to the Prime Minister, the government is seeking to address this issue through the States of Emergency and the Zones of Special Operations declared in certain parts of the country.

"For the first time, the Jamaican government has deployed force," he said, noting that there have been no complaint of misuse of force in the areas where the security measures have been imposed.

The Prime Minister has promised that within the next decade, Jamaica's murder rate and level of violence will be significantly reduced.

Last year, 1,616 people were murdered in Jamaica.

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