National Security Minister says he was misunderstood

Jamaica's Minister of National Security, confidence in his resolve to confront the country's crime problem having been shaken last week, is now moving to allay public concerns, vowing his full commitment to the fight against crime.

In a release issued on Monday, Peter Bunting, the National Security Minister,  said there had been some misunderstandings surrounding statements made by him on the weekend and promised that "no stone will be left unturned in the fight against crime, and to uphold the rule of law in Jamaica."

At the annual appreciation service for policemen at Northern Caribbean University in the central parish of Manchester, Bunting reflected on his 15 months in the job and admitted  that the fight against crime seemed to be a futile endeavour in Jamaica.

That statement evoked strong reactions of dismay and incredulity, with some commentators calling for the minister to resign if he no longer had the stomach for the fight.

In one of the latest of those reactions, Susan Goffe, Chairman of the human rights group, Jamaicans for Justice, said the minister needed to "clarify very quickly what new measures are being taken. There are a lot of things that need to be incorporated into the plan for crime going forward. The issues of community renewal; the issues of proper community policing, and if we don’t ever deal with these major aspects of dealing with crime, then why are we surprised when we keep coming back to a point that what is being done isn’t having the effect."

Mrs. Goffe was speaking on RJR's  ‘Beyond The Headlines’ on Monday afternoon.

The minister did receive some support from one of his predecessors. K.D Knight, Minister of National Security for more than a decade, starting in February, 1989, said he had faced similar moments of frustration in the job. Knight, also speaking on 'Beyond the Headlines', encouraged Bunting to bounce back from what he said was most likely a temporary moment of despair and return with renewed vigour for the job at hand.

BUNTIN'S STATEMENT, IN FULL

I would like to assure all Jamaicans that no stone will be left unturned in the fight against crime, and to uphold the rule of law in Jamaica.  This administration has made the safety and protection of Jamaicans a top priority and nothing will be allowed to undermine or deter us from the goal of reducing crime and violence.

I make this statement against the background of some misunderstanding of my remarks over the weekend at the 13th Annual Prayer and Thanksgiving Service for the security forces at Northern Caribbean University.  As Minister, I was also asked to lay a red carnation for the latest policeman to have died at the hands of gunmen, Sergeant Courtnie Simpson, as part of the ceremony of honouring security personnel that had passed away in the preceding year.

 I spoke against the background of challenges facing the security forces and a spate of senseless domestic killings which account for so many innocent lives, and which law enforcement is almost powerless to prevent.  In the days immediately preceding the service, there had been a number of such incidents including the killing of a teenaged student by another teenaged student, a teenage son killing his father, and a mob killing of an alleged burglar.  As Minister, I have often spoken of the nature of crime in our country and that it will take more than the sole efforts of the security forces to achieve our goals for crime reduction.

It was against this background that I reaffirmed my belief in the need for Divine intervention to touch the hearts of Jamaicans to bring about a change in our culture to help win the war on crime.  This is not a new appeal and in fact was the motivation for the formation of the Manchester Dispute Resolution and Violence Prevention Association, which has trained scores of first responders to domestic violence in communities across the parish. It is a joint effort of the Ministers' fraternal, NCU, political representatives, the private sector, and the Police.

The thanksgiving service which I attend each year is always an emotional event.  I had prefaced my remarks with a personal comment that the loss of my mother a few days earlier made my participation in this year's event especially poignant.  The related emotions displayed may have led to a misunderstanding of my comments as Minister.

My statement was in no way intended to signal any position of retreat, but rather an affirmation of the contribution of a faith-based belief system shared by a majority of Jamaicans.  For the record, I want to assure all Jamaica that, far from retreating, there is increased determination on my part as Minister, and on the part of the administration I represent, to confront and remove the monster of crime and violence from our midst.

The relentless campaign that has been mounted by this administration against criminals of all kinds will continue and, with the help of every well-thinking Jamaican, we will succeed.