PhillipsNATIONAL SECURITY Minister Dr. Peter Phillips yesterday advocated the hanging of persons convicted of importing and distributing high-powered weapons and ammunition, and petitioned the private sector to become stronger participants in the struggle against crime.
Addressing the Jamaica-British Business Association luncheon meeting at Le Meridien Jamaica Pegasus hotel in Kingston, Dr. Phillips said persons taking in guns in the country should be hanged if caught and convicted.
He was referring to last November's police seizure of a record 41,000 assorted rounds of ammunition and 14 firearms in St. Catherine and St. Andrew. "In the end, 40,000 rounds of ammunition constitute, potentially, 40,000 murders, and the penalty must suit the crime," he said.
Dr. Phillips had earlier sought to assure local British entrepreneurs of the Government's crime-fighting tactics to stem the rising number of murders which stood at 71 yesterday and 1,139 last year.
The National Security Minister's comments came only two weeks after the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) unveiled its crime plan and suggested that convicted narco traffickers be hanged for their crimes. The party subsequently withdrew the proposal following what it said were misconceptions about the calibre of traffickers that would be dealt capital punishment if caught and convicted.
Noting that crime poses a threat to tourism, and that Jamaica has lost between 0.5 and 0.8 per cent in Gross Domestic Product in the last decade due to crime, Dr. Phillips said the country's international reputation is also at stake as the continued rise in crime makes Jamaica unfit for foreign investments.
"The conduits that are used to bring the cocaine in are also used to bring the guns in, whether it's along our coastline or through our ports. The tremendous financial resources generated by this illicit trade are used to corrupt critical institutions of (the) society in both the public and private sectors," he said.
Meanwhile, Dr. Phillips urged entrepreneurs to cooperate fully with law enforcement agencies to resist the onslaught of criminals.
"Where for example, people find themselves being subject to efforts of extortion, don't suffer quietly," he urged. "Get in touch with the appropriate agencies, because the problem will not go away if we leave it unattended. It will only grow and get worse and unmanageable."
He said tackling crime in Jamaica will involve the developing of a fundamental consensus among all sectors of the society including the private sector, which he warned to be prepared to accept new crime-fighting plans that may arise.
