We find it is absolutely scandalous that the Jamaican government does not feed prisoners during the period they are away from lock-ups and at court and on trial for their alleged crimes.

That assertion - up to now unchallenged - came to public notice last Thursday during the case of Sheldon Pusey, 25, who is accused of murdering Ambassador Peter King.

Justice Marva McIntosh had to adjourn her post-lunch summation of the evidence and her direction to the jury because Mr Pusey, who reportedly suffers from sickle-cell anaemia, was not in court. He was feeling ill, having not been fed at lunchtime.

Abandoned its obligation

The feeding of prisoners is the responsibility of the department of correctional services, which falls under the ministry of national security. But it was reported that the department had long ago abandoned that obligation with regard to prisoners who are at court.

In those circumstances, the families of the prisoners would take them lunch, and if they don't, they are likely, as Mr Pusey did, to go without.

We are at a loss to understand the thinking behind this policy on the part of the Department of Correctional Services, except that it is aimed at saving a few dollars, or as a form of punishment, or both.

Presumed innocent

But the concept is that people, in Jamaica's system of justice, are presumed innocent until proven guilty by the courts and, therefore, not subject to punishment by the state until such a time.

Moreover, the deliberate withholding of food from prisoners would be cruel and inhumane and a violation of human rights, for which those in charge would be accountable. Nor should Jamaica want to raise the possibility of such a claim for the sake of a few dollars.

If there has been a genuine breakdown in the system, the correctional services department should fix it urgently, or prisoners should be encouraged to pursue legal action against the state.

Editorial – JDF must now account

Major Murphy Pryce, the head of training at the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), made the following statement recently at the force’s training facility at Newcastle in the Blue Mountains: “Training here has resulted in the death of individuals due to heat-related illness, so the (lack of water) is crucial. We are remaining innovative and will continue to train personnel for Jamaica.”

We sense that Maj Pryce is unaware of the import and seriousness of that remark, from which he simply moved on to the more important issue of fixing things and harnessing “resources”.

The “death of individuals” during JDF training has to be a fundamental matter, demanding full accountability from the army rather than the seemingly glib and offhand manner which it was mentioned by the training officer.

The JDF needs to disclose how many persons have died in such circumstances, over what period, whether its training regime was properly adhered to and if it is in need of review.

Critically, too, it should disclose if there was, or ought to have been, any issue of liability on the part of anyone.

In the absence of the facts, it would seem wholly irresponsible for any commanding officer to send out a soldier to training without the appropriate kit if it is crucial to sustaining his existence.

The opinions on this page, except for the above, do not necessarily reflect the views of The Gleaner. To respond to a Gleaner editorial, email us: editor@gleanerjm.com or fax: 922-6223. Responses should be no longer than 400 words. Not all responses will be published.