Twenty-five women constables march during the Jamaica Police Academy 81st passing-out parade at the Twickenham Park Training Facility in St Catherine. Eighty-six constables graduated in total. - Peta-Gaye Clachar/Staff Photographer
Despite the pomp surrounding the passing-out parade of 86 constables on Wednesday, National Security Minister, Colonel Trevor MacMillan, forewarned the graduates of their difficult mission to collar Jamaica's intractable crime woes.
Speaking at the Jamaica Constabulary Force's 81st passing-out parade at the Twickenham Park training facility in St Catherine, MacMillan highlighted a recent wave of brutal murders, targeting children and the elderly, a sombre reminder that the nation was at breaking point.
"We are at a crucial crossroads in our nation's history. This is a make-or-break time for all of us in law enforcement," the minister said.
He charged the graduates not to be "daunted or overwhelmed" by the sharp rise in violent crime.
MacMillan's comments come in the wake of a slew of macabre killings which have shaken the nation and sparked outrage from political leaders.
Sequence of tragedies
On Sunday, a body, believed to be that of 11-year-old Ananda Dean who went missing on September 17, was found in Belvedere, St Andrew.
The burning to death of an elderly couple in their Clarendon Park home and the molestation and killing of a nine-month-old baby added to the sequence of tragedies that have rocked the country this week.
Youth Minister Olivia Grange, opposition spokesperson on youth, Lisa Hanna, and the Office of the Children's Advocate have condemned the killings.
The child murders are in the context of a rapid rise in general homicide in 2008, despite the one-year-old Jamaica Labour Party administration's pledge to curb violent crime.
In 2007, 18 children, aged 14 and younger, were slain. The 15-19 age range, however, represented the majority of teen killings, numbering 131.
A total of 1,574 Jamaicans were killed in 2007, one hundred fewer than the record mark of 1,674.
Macmillan
Graduates who received awards
Woman Constable Stacey-Ann Smith-Dennis: Student displaying best Christian principles Woman Constable Latoya Brown: Best leadership qualities Constable Kefrick Anderson: Most disciplined Woman Constable Sunlin Morgan: Best all-rounder Woman Constable Susan Bruce: Student obtaining highest marks (85.8%)
