THE NOISE Abatement Act has various issues associated with it. At present, Section (3) of the act, which came into effect in 1997, states that "no person shall, on any private premises or in any public place at anytime of day or night (a) sing, or sound or play upon any musical or noisy instrument; or (b) operate, or permit or cause to be operated any loudspeaker, microphone or any other device for the amplification of sound, in such a manner that the sound is audible beyond 100 metres from the source of such sound and is reasonably capable of causing annoyance to persons in the vicinity".

However, from observation, the seemingly selective application of the Noise Abatement Act, which sees some promoters facing rigorous enforcement while others are allowed to operate with impunity, is becoming a source of increasing concern which is not good for the entertainment industry along with party and dance attendants. From observation, on many occasions, there are confrontations between the police who try to enforce the law and party or dance attendants. As part of the Jamaican culture, a dance or party always stay in force until daybreak. However, the Noise Abatement Act put an end to such a happening.

Remote areas

Under the Jamaican Constitution, persons are entitled to enjoy the quietness of their homes or residents without molestation. On many occasions, the parties are being kept on the beaches or in well remote areas that are not close to residential areas. But the police choose to put an end to the dance at 2 a.m. I have seen where the police have ignored one dance, yet put an end to another. I am not in a position to go into details as to why that might have happened, but this needs to be reviewed. On many occasions, however, the police choose to stop dances because operators are keeping a dance without a permit, or there might be other security issues associated with the staging of the event.

I am, etc.,

Charlie Brown

charliebrown1004@hotmail.com