Denise Clarke, Staff Reporter
WESTERN BUREAU:
THE ST. James Parish Council has distanced itself from any involvement in an incident in which two homeless persons were set afire in Montego Bay on Thursday.
Some residents of Montego Bay, referring to an incident nearly three years ago when more than 32 people were forcibly evicted, charged that the Parish Council is responsible for the plight of the street people in the second city. The agency is also being accused of trying to get rid of the street people before the scheduled visit of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II later this month.
"That's ludicrous," said secretary manager Christopher Powell yesterday. "We categorically deny any involvement in this incident. We have nothing to do with it. People are being mischievous."
The police say Michael Morales and Donovan Mitchell were set afire by persons unknown between 2:00 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. Thursday, as they slept on the pavement at Sam Sharpe Square. Both men sustained severe burns to their legs, and were admitted to the Cornwall Regional Hospital, where their condition is listed as serious.
"We are doing everything necessary to assist the men through our Poor Relief Department," said Mr. Powell. "We are trying to find out who their relatives are and if they are from St. James."
The Council is spending about $15 million to prepare for The Queen's visit. The preparation includes repairs to the Rose Hall main road, and the beautification of Sam Sharpe Square.
The number of homeless persons now living on the streets of Montego Bay is said to be more than 70 and rising.
In the wake of the attack on the street people, Elizabeth Hall, the Jamaicans for Justice Representative in Western Jamaica said the authorities need to do more to protect homeless persons from abuse.
"The system in place for them is just not working. It is a reflection of us as a society in the way we take care of our sick and indigent. We are just not caring," she said.
Nurse Administrator at the Committee for the Upliftment of the Mentally Ill (CUMI) Joy Crooks pointed to the need for additional facilities to house the city's homeless.
"A 32-bed ward at Cornwall Regional is not enough. One ward is not enough to treat persons with acute mental illness, which is what it was designed for, and those with chronic mental illness. We need a national programme to monitor these people," said Nurse Crooks.
This latest incident comes less than three years after the forced removal of street people from Montego Bay. In July 1999, 32 street people were tied up, pepper sprayed, and taken by truck to St. Elizabeth where they were dumped. The Commission of Enquiry which probed the incident absolved the political directorate of involvement in either the planning or execution of the operation. The Commission concluded that Inspector Ainsworth Gidden, who reportedly led the operation, and his five-member team, actively co-operated, aided and abetted the incident.
Only five of the 32 victims are receiving the monthly compensation of $20,000, recommended by the Carl Patterson-led Commission. Inspector of Poor Jeremiah Dehaney said the department was still trying to locate the some of the victims. Three homeless persons who were identified as the being on truck on the night of the incident have not been seen since. Dudley Bernard, who is said to be of Indian descent and in his 60s, Anthony Walker, who is of dark complexion and is in his mid-40s, and Dennis Hanson from Anchovy in the parish, are those listed as missing.
