THE GLEANER'S editorial on vigilante justice published on July 31 was a timely one, highlighting two recent attempts by members of small communities to enforce their kind of justice. This 'justice' is called 'mob justice' or 'vigilante justice' as opposed to legal justice carried out by means of due process.
COMMUNITIES
From the time of the abolition of slavery until the mid-20th century, most people in Jamaica lived in communities scattered throughout the country. Some larger communities benefited from a church, and a school was usually attached to it.
Some townships had markets and probably a police station. It was unlikely that the members of the community travelled further than to the nearest village or market town. They knew each other and recognised those from neighbouring villages. It was, as it were, a large family environment.
When strangers entered their 'space', they were viewed with suspicion and a watchful community eye was placed on them.
If some trouble erupted, e.g. goats disappearing or a village girl being raped, suspicion mounted to conviction, fuelled by gossip and conjecture, and the stranger(s) would be captured and beaten by an aroused and furious mob, which sometimes ended up in a killing. Sometimes the suspicion was justified, sometimes not.
In Jamaica, as in most countries today this system of 'justice' has been replaced by a system of law in which the suspect is presumed innocent until proved otherwise and, according to rights guaranteed under the Constitution, is granted the opportunity of a trial, at which guilt would need to be proved before any sentence to punishment could be carried out.
When the police have evidence of guilt, the suspect can be placed in safe custody, and can arrange for legal assistance and apply for bail while the police attempt to gather additional evidence. At a given point in time, a trial date is set. Depending on the evidence presented in the Court, the suspect can be found guilty or innocent and is either sentenced to appropriate punishment or released.
If this is the law of our civilised land, why do some communities still revert to taking the law into their own hands? For the answer to this question we have to look at how the law enforcement agencies operate in practice.
SAFE CUSTODY
If persons in the community know where a suspect is, or have actually apprehended a suspect, they should call the police. This should not prove difficult these days with the advent of landline and cellular telephones.
Some people, however, may object to bringing the police into the area due to the fact that they may have had bad experiences in the past. Or, as is sometimes the case, the police may not have a vehicle, or be insufficiently staffed for one to leave the station.
The community may fear the police and will allow the suspects to escape, or to abscond if given bail. Safe, properly built police stations and lock-ups are needed along with trustworthy attendants and keepers. Hopefully, the new community policing initiative will provide better understanding and trust on both sides, and result in more information and greater assistance being given to the security forces. Then, and only then, will the nation begin to become united against all types of crime.
DELAYED TRIALS
The huge backlog of cases for trial means that hundreds of suspects have to wait months, sometimes years, before trials are brought to a conclusion. This is not justice. More resources and more qualified staff, from judges to court attendants are desperately needed, as is greater efficiency in the processes. Computers must be installed and the training of staff in their use must be seen as a priority. The archaic practice of judges being asked to take down testimony by hand must be replaced with modern equipment and processing methods, and the introduction of stenographers must take place within the promised timeline.
WITNESS PROTECTION
Many people are afraid to come forward as witnesses in the first place, but often those who have come forward are faced with frustrating delays, as they are called to attend Court to give testimony in trials that are repeatedly postponed. Many do find the courage to attend despite threats to themselves and their families. All that is possible must be done to protect witnesses from the beginning. It is distressing to hear still of witnesses being asked to attend identification parades without the necessary facilities in place to protect them. Waiting until witnesses have received threats is waiting too long.
MOB JUSTICE
Perhaps communities think that their swift action will save them trouble and danger in the future, and that if the mob justice that is meted out is a collective effort the law will be unable to touch them. But mob justice is not justice at all and must be strongly and publicly condemned and the perpetrators must be identified and charged. Resources must be found to improve the legal justice system and stop this throwback to a brutal past.
You may contact Jamaicans For Justice at ja.for.justice@ mail.infochan.com or visit their web site at jamaicansforjustice.org
