THE INDEPENDENT Jamaica Council for Human Rights has joined the chorus of calls for an independent investigation into the killings of seven men by police in Braeton, St. Catherine.
The Council issued a statement saying, "If we cease to require the police to respect and obey the law, it will be impossible to preserve our society from anarchy and chaos."
The Council contends that the public has no confidence in existing mechanisms for investigating incidents involving the police, as in the past, "wrongful acts have gone without punishment because of delays and cover-ups".
The Council says the persons investigating the Braeton incident should be recruited from outside the police force.
Deploring the murders of principal of the Hartlands Primary School, Keith Morris, Constable Dwight Gibson, retired Customs Officer, Dennis Betton, as well as the seven young men, the Council pointed out that there is a "significant difference" between murders committed by gunmen and those committed by the police, who are sworn to uphold the rule of law and who are accountable to the public.
On March 14, Curtis 'Gary' Smith, Tamoya Wilson, Christopher Grant, Andre Virgo, Dane Whyte and Lancelot 'Craig' Clarke and Ronald 'Reagan' Beckford, were killed in what police from the Crime Management Unit said was a shoot-out on Seal Way.
Police Commissioner Francis Forbes said witnesses implicated three of them in Mr. Morris' murder. One of four guns reportedly recovered from the scene was said to have been stolen from Constable Gibson, who was murdered at the Above Rocks Police Station on March 1.
The Council wants an "intensive investigation, firstly of the action of the police in this particular incident, and secondly, of police methodology in these and similar circumstances". If the investigations are to have any credibility, the Council further maintains, present procedures must be changed.
It argues that:
Relatives of the deceased be given the right and a fair opportunity to have their own experts examine the physical evidence, the scene of the killings and exhibits, and to have a pathologist present at the post-mortem;
Persons charged with conducting the investigations should be adequately skilled and should be independent of the Constabulary Force;
The selection of jurors for the Coroner's Court must be removed from the control of the regular Constabulary Force.
The Council quoted National Security and Justice, Minister K.D. Knight's Sectoral Debate presentation last year, in which he said "when the police disregard the basic rights of these citizens, the conclusion is that not only are the police oppressive, but the state itself sanctions the oppression....no form of verbal appeal can be successful in getting the people to support police personnel in those circumstances".
"The upholders of the law must at all times act in accordance with the law," Mr. Knight added, "and whenever there are breaches, sanctions must be swift, certain and transparent". The Council is the latest of several groups to call for an independent investigation into the Braeton incident.
Amnesty International said that the circumstances surrounding the shootings suggested that the deaths amounted to extrajudicial executions and should be investigated in accordance with international standards.
It also called for an urgent investigation of the activities of the Crime Management Unit headed by Senior Supt. Reneto Adams.
Locally, the Opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) has urged the Government to set up a Commission of Inquiry into the incident and to remove from front-line duty of all the officers involved in the shooting.
Jamaicans for Justice also called for an independent investigation and complained about the contamination of evidence from the crime scene.
Describing the killings as "highly suspicious", the Council of the Jamaican Bar Association echoed JFJ's disappointment with the handling of the crime scene and enjoined Mr. Knight to ensure that an independent enquiry was conducted.
Mr. Knight has requested an official report of the incident from the Police Commissioner and Police Public Complaints Authority, and said that statements collected by investigators should be made available to the Coroner for St. Catherine.
