Murders in Jamaica drop however activists alarmed at upward thrust in deadly police shootings

Jamaican officers have hailed a pointy aid in murders however rights campaigners warn that tackling crime will have to no longer come on the expense of responsibility amid an “alarming” upward thrust in deadly police shootings.

Already careworn with the best possible murder charges within the area, Jamaica has not too long ago struggled with a surge in gang-related violence. But the selection of murders in step with capita has been falling this 12 months, with a marked decline between January and April.

“April 2025 has marked another historic milestone. For the second time this year, we have recorded the lowest number of murders in over two decades,” Dr Kevin Blake, the police commissioner, stated in a remark.

He added that this “progress is not accidental” however a results of “careful planning, tireless execution, and a commitment to excellence” via the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the Jamaica Defence Force and their strategic companions.

According to Blake, in comparison to the similar duration remaining 12 months, between January and April, there was an 18% decline in general primary crimes, and murders are down via 37%.

“These are not just statistics. Each number represents lives saved, communities stabilised, and a signal that the tide is turning,” he stated.

But the human rights team Jamaican for Justice (JFJ) has raised considerations a few corresponding “significant and alarming increase” in deadly police shootings in the similar duration.

According to Jamaica’s police court cases authority, the Independent Commission of Investigations (Indecom), 111 folks had been fatally shot via safety forces between January and April 2025, when put next 44 in the similar duration remaining 12 months – a 152% build up.

Indecom is asking for reinforced responsibility thru mechanisms corresponding to body-worn cameras amid an “elevated increase in use of force by the State”.

Their considerations and proposals are echoed via JFJ, which not too long ago staged a protest in opposition to the “significant and alarming” build up in deadly shootings via police.

Joining the requires extra body-worn cameras, JFJ’s govt director, Mickel Jackson, stated: “Outside of the numbers, which in and of itself calls for greater scrutiny, we have received complaints, where citizens are giving a different account from the police’s official account.” She added that there are circumstances the place newbie movies contradict police accounts of deadly shootings.

These “conflicting accounts”, she stated, are “enough to take pause and certainly to advocate for body-worn cameras”.

Carla Gullotta, the chief director for the human rights team Stand Up For Jamaica wired the significance of creating family members between the police and folks in “fragile and volatile areas”.

Katrina Chin, whose cousin, Andrew Richards, 39, was once killed via police in January, often known as for larger transparency from police. Indecom is nonetheless investigating Richards’s capturing, however his circle of relatives has maintained that he was once blameless.

Recalling the morning that she watched her cousin’s physique being got rid of from his area coated via a sheet after an early morning defence forces raid, Chin stated: “I understand that our country seriously has a problem with crime. We’re not denying that.”

The JFJ’s paintings, she added, isn’t anti-police. “We’re just advocating for it to be done the right way. We can’t just be so desperate to lower our crime rate that we’re willing to kill innocent people,” she stated.

She added that politicians will have to watch out that, of their defence of police movements, they don’t seem to be “fueling” the view that the police are “untouchable”.

Ahead of the JFJ protest in opposition to the rise in killings, for which they requested their supporters to put on black, a counter-protest was once introduced on social media, which invited folks to put on blue in fortify of the police. Major companies corresponding to Jamaica’s widespread pharmacy chain, Fontana, supported the “blue” marketing campaign.

Executive director Kevin O’Brien Chang stated he and team of workers made up our minds to put on blue since the plummeting crime charges are making folks really feel more secure. “Every day, the police and soldiers put their lives on the line, and they pay the ultimate price,” he stated.

During the protest, the Jamaican top minister, Andrew Holness, was once pictured in a blue go well with talking to a police superintendent, with native media reporting that he wore blue to fortify the counter-protest.

Addressing considerations concerning the expanding selection of killings via police, Holness reportedly stated: “Obviously, the JCF’s increased activities in interdicting criminals and in dealing with the gangs would have caused a significant increase in the loss of life of those who challenged them. But I think the country should also understand that the gang warfare is at a level where we must respond and respond decisively.”

Blake, the police commissioner, defended his officials, announcing: “We are a disciplined, modern law enforcement agency with a constitutional mandate to serve and protect all Jamaicans without fear, favour or ill will.”

Jackson wired that everybody, together with the police, has the correct to protect themselves. But, she added, “you can support the police and still be pro-accountability. You can support the police and the reduction in murder rates and their efforts, and still call for the body-worn cameras.”

The police themselves would have the benefit of having the unbiased account from a digital camera, she stated, including she was once disillusioned to look the pinnacle of presidency showing to make a choice aspects, even though that was once no longer his goal.

“A call for accountability should never be seen as anti-police, and this was a moment, in my humble opinion, that I believe that the prime minister of the country should have come out and say that ‘I stand with law enforcement officers – but I support the call for increased accountability,’” she stated.