ECHOES OF the Kraal murder trial linger on as year 2005 peters out. So do the almost daily reports of killings which have given this small island a murder rate among the highest in the world.
Of more mundane concern is the prospect that the year 2006 will see the selection of a new Prime Minister, ending the long transition of leadership of the ruling People's National Party and thus the Government.
As the year entered its final week the electioneering of the four contenders for the top post was wearing thin, even as national crises unfolded with natural disasters as a backdrop to the level of crime. There was a sense that decisive political guidance to deal with these problems was distracted by the hustling on the hustings. The candidates are sounding like critics of their own administration, which has served an unprecedented four terms in office.
Jamaica got its share of the devastation wrought by the most severe hurricane season since 1933. The collateral damage to roads in particular sparked a political squabble in a rare collision of Central and Local Government interests, as Jamaica Labour Party parish councillors challenged Minister Pickersgill's version of road repair allocations.
On the crime front, killings have become almost as commonplace as simple larceny. The toll of more than 1,600 does not include the victims of police action; at least 12 policemen themselves have been killed by criminal guns.
The controversy surrounding the Kraal trial has raised questions about the quality of justice and the operation of the courts. The debate on these questions must canvass the resources allocated to the system, the approach of lawyers, as well as potential witnesses who tend to shirk both their lawful and civic duty to make the system work. It is vital to preserve public respect and awe for the justice system; for the rule of law must be the bedrock of the system of government even as it accommodates varied religious beliefs and political differences.
In our view the post-trial tone of bravado by Senior Superintendent Reneto Adams is inappropriate. It smacks of the Wild West marauder, back in the saddle as the self-appointed nemesis of all badmen. This surely is not the image of a police force disciplined and resolute to tackle crime through the appropriate channels and led by the Commissioner of Police.
THE OPINIONS ON THIS PAGE, EXCEPT FOR THE ABOVE, DO NOT NECESSARILY REFLECT THE VIEWS OF THE GLEANER.
