Jamaican Police.Com

The Police Officers Association (POA), which represents the officer corps of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF), has welcomed the recent call from the National Transformation Programme (NTP) for a national ceasefire during which there would be no murders for the month of January, 2009.

This plan proposed by the NTP is the latest in a series of initiatives that are intended to tackle the island’s soaring crime rate. So far, over 1,600 people have been murdered in 2008. The programme, which goes under the moniker ‘A Fresh Start for Jamaica’, is a partnership of Church, State, business and civil society. While details of the NTP are still emerging, it’s still not clear what role the police would be playing in the latest assault on crime.

Notably, not all police are giving immediate support – Karl Angell, communications director for the JCF, has declined to give a comment on the new programme and the Police Federation reportedly wants more time to deliberate over the matter before giving its reaction and making a definitive statement.

Tags : anti-crime initiative, jamaica crime initiative, national ceasefire, police officers association