Incsr 2010 Volume 1

INCSR 2010 Volume 1 Country Reports
Jamaica
I. Summary
Jamaica remains the Caribbean’s largest source of marijuana for the United States. It is also a transit point
for cocaine trafficked from South America. While cooperation between Government of Jamaica (GOJ)
and U.S. Government (USG) law enforcement agencies remained strong, delays in proceeding with the
significant extradition request for a major alleged narcotics and firearms trafficker who is reported to have
ties to the ruling Jamaica Labour Party, and subsequent delays in other extradition requests, have called
into question Kingston’s commitment to law enforcement cooperation with the U.S. The GOJ’s ambitious
anticorruption and anticrime legislative agendas announced in 2007 remain stalled in parliament. Five
anticrime proposals under consideration as part of an extensive agenda to address the widespread crime
challenges have yet to be debated by Parliament. Jamaica is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention.
II. Status of Country

Porous sea and air ports serve as direct export locations of marijuana and cocaine to the United States.
Jamaican law stipulates that consumption of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana are illegal, with marijuana
being the most frequently abused. The possession and use of MDMA (3, 4-
methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or Ecstasy) is controlled by Jamaica’s Food and Drug Act and is
currently subject to light, non-criminal penalties. Jamaica’s murder rate per capita reached 1,672 in 2009
making it one of the highest in the world. The difficult economic situation has spawned a significant
increase in aggravated crime such as larceny, robbery, and rape. This, in turn, has placed a national
spotlight on increasingly brazen criminal activity throughout the country which continues to threaten civil
society. A particular focus of concern has been the increasing activity of organized crime, which
permeates both the legitimate business sector as well as the political sector. The “guns for ganja” trade
exacerbates the problem as undocumented handguns continue to flow freely into the country. Recent
assessments indicate that approximately 70 percent of the illegal firearms entering Jamaica originated
from the U.S.
III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 2009

Policy Initiatives. The Ministry of National Security (MNS) and the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) held a
two-day high level forum to discuss organized crime and its impact on Jamaica’s political and economic
stability. The MNS outlined an ambitious set of legislative proposals which included tackling the drugs
for guns trade, lottery scams, extortion, and the trafficking of drugs and people. These proposals are
currently being reviewed at the Cabinet level with the hopes of being presented to Parliament for
ratification. Efforts to reform the police force, as mandated by the GOJ-approved Police Strategic Review
in 2007, have yet to yield significant results in a law enforcement system that is plagued by corruption
and inefficiencies.
The GOJ took steps to ensure greater accountability in the implementation of the anti-money laundering
provisions of the Financial Investigative Division Act enacted in late 2008. Procedural training was
provided to judges, prosecutors, and investigators on how to apply the new legislation with further
training exercises planned for the next two years. A Code of Practice for investigators has been developed
to guide officials in the execution of their powers and is expected to be sent to Parliament. The Bank of
Jamaica and the Financial Services Commission regulate compliance with the Proceeds of Crime Act of
2007 by financial sector institutions. As a result of enforcement efforts, 31 persons were charged with
money laundering; $86 million (Jamaican Dollars) in property seized; $3 million (U.S. Dollars) seized;
and $1,335,724 (U.S. Dollars) forfeited.
375
Jamaica is not in full compliance with the Egmont Group requirements. The Financial Action Task Force
has deemed that Jamaica has complied fully with three of the recommendations, is largely compliant in
twenty-seven areas, partially compliant in thirteen, and non-compliant in five areas.
Pervasive corruption at Kingston’s container and bulk terminals continues to undermine the USG
Container Security and MegaPorts (CSI) initiatives team’s activities. In an effort to combat corruption,
the Commissioner of Jamaican Customs Department has taken measures to crack down on importers who
evade customs duties and to dismiss staff complicit in criminal activity.
Accomplishments. Drug-related arrests were relatively stagnant at 6,346 arrests for 2009. Drug seizure
levels showed a dramatic decrease with approximately 9 metric tons of marijuana seized compared to
nearly 32 metric tons in 2008. The GOJ seized 222 kilograms of cocaine, 2,785 Ecstasy tablets and 3.2
metric tons of hashish.
Law Enforcement Efforts. Two years after the strategic review of the police force, the GOJ has yet to
implement the necessary recommended reforms. The slow paced, along with the increasing rate of
aggravated crime compelled the Jamaican Executive Office (JEO), MNS, and the Police Services
Commission (PSC) to assess the overall effectiveness of Police Commissioner Lewin’s leadership.
Shortly after a public statement of no confidence was announced by the Prime Minister, Commissioner
Lewin tendered his resignation and left office on November 6, 2009. He provided few details for his
resignation but stated that there were numerous problems that he encountered with the authorities that
conflicted with the macro management of law and order in Jamaica. The Jamaica Constabulary Force
(JCF) senior official, Owen Ellington was appointed Acting Police Commissioner until the PSC formally
appoints a permanent replacement in January 2010. While he has taken a strong public stance to eliminate
corruption, he could face, as his predecessor did, internal, judicial and political roadblocks that hinder
efforts to reform the police. In the past, these battles have paralyzed the Commissioner’s authority and
ability to affect change on the force. If this continues, Commissioner Ellington’s fate could be similar to
the previous three Police Commissioners who, despite the best of intentions, could not secure the
necessary legislative support and political will to underscore their reform efforts at a time when murder
and other violent crimes threaten to overwhelm the country.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Assistant Attaché
office in Kingston currently supports a 41-person JCF Vetted Unit with investigative responsibility over
violations of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR), weapons smuggling, human trafficking, human
smuggling, money laundering, and fraud investigations. Much of the unit’s investigative efforts have been
focused primarily on investigating lottery scam cases under the auspices of the Jamaican Operations
Linked to Telemarketing (JOLT) Task Force. The task force was established to combat the overwhelming
amount of fraudulent monetary schemes perpetrated on United States citizens. Since inception of JOLT in
May 2009, the task force has yielded 60 arrests, seized $283,460 (Jamaican Dollars), repatriated
$251,892.00 (U.S. Dollars) back to victims in the United States, and contributed to the opening of
approximately 140 domestic ICE cases.
Corruption. As a matter of policy, GOJ does not facilitate or encourage illicit production or distribution
of narcotic or psychotropic drugs or other controlled substances or the laundering of proceeds from illegal
drug transactions. However, pervasive public corruption continues to undermine efforts against drug-
related and other crimes, and plays a major role in the safe passage of drugs and drug proceeds through
Jamaica. For the first time, corruption ranked first to crime and violence as the area of greatest concern
for Jamaicans. It remains the major barrier to improving counternarcotics efforts. Indeed, Jamaica’s delay
in processing the U.S. extradition request for a major suspected drug and firearms trafficker with reported
ties to the ruling party highlights the potential depth of corruption in the government. The Jamaica
Defense Force (JDF) investigates any report of corruption, and takes swift disciplinary action when
warranted in furtherance of its zero tolerance policy. Unfortunately, a bill creating an Anti-Corruption
Special Prosecutor remains stuck in Parliament despite having the requisite legislative majority needed
376
for passage. There has not been legislative action to create a National Anti-corruption Agency (NIIA),
which could satisfy the Inter-American Convention against Corruption’s requirements. However, the
Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB), headed by an internationally recruited police officer, continues to have
success in identifying and removing corrupt officials which included the dismissal of 59 JCF personnel
since March 2009. The Branch’s number one task is to target high-level officers responsible for
corruption. The GOJ now requires senior police officers to sign employment contracts to improve
accountability and facilitate the speedy dismissal of corrupt police officers.
Agreements and Treaties. Jamaica and the U.S. have a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) in
place, which assists in evidence sharing. The U.S. and Jamaica have a reciprocal asset sharing agreement,
and a bilateral law enforcement agreement governing cooperation on stopping the flow of illegal drugs by
maritime means. Jamaica is a party to the Inter-American Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in
Criminal Matters. The GOJ signed, but has not ratified, the Caribbean Regional Maritime Counterdrug
Agreement. Jamaica is a party to the 1988 UN Drug Convention, the 1971 UN Convention on
Psychotropic Substances and the 1961 UN Single Convention as amended by the 1972 Protocol. Jamaica
is also a party to the UN Convention against Corruption, the UN Convention against Transnational
Organized Crime and its three Protocols, as well as the Inter-American Convention against Corruption.
Until August 2009, the extradition treaty between the USG and the GOJ had been actively and
successfully used by the United States to extradite suspected criminals from Jamaica. Extradition requests
were routinely and timely processed by Jamaican political and judicial authorities. The GOJ’s unusual
handling of the August request for the extradition of a high profile Jamaican crime lord with reported ties
to the ruling Jamaica Labor Party, which currently holds a majority in parliament, on alleged drug and
firearms trafficking charges marked a dramatic change in GOJ’s previous cooperation on extradition,
including a temporary suspension in the processing of all other pending requests and raises serious
questions about the GOJ’s commitment to combating transnational crime. The high profile suspect resides
in and essentially controls the Kingston neighborhood known as Tivoli Gardens, a key constituency for
the Jamaica Labour Party. Jamaica’s processing of the extradition request has been subjected to
unprecedented delays, unexplained disclosure of law enforcement information to the press, and
unfounded allegations questioning U.S. compliance with the MLAT and Jamaican law.
Cultivation/Production. Natural environmental barriers such as swamps, marshes and mountainous
terrains make it difficult to conduct marijuana crop surveys. Marijuana is grown in areas generally
inaccessible to vehicular traffic on small plots in both rocky terrain and along the tributaries of the Black
River in Saint Elizabeth. Eradication of marijuana decreased this year, with 254.9 hectares eliminated
compared with 423 hectares eliminated in 2008. Much of this is due to fiscal constraints within the JDF.
Jamaican law also prohibits the use of herbicides; therefore only manual eradication is conducted.
The manufacture, sale, transport, and possession of Ecstasy, methamphetamine, or the precursor
chemicals used to produce them remains regulated by civil and administrative rather than criminal
authorities. Jamaica is not a producer of precursor chemicals or other chemical substances, and therefore
relies on the export countries to conform to international standards governing export verification. Jamaica
does not import the prime components used in combination with diverted chemical substances for the
production of synthetic drugs. Furthermore, the importation and sale of pharmaceutical products and
chemical substances are regulated, and reinforced with fines or imprisonment. Additionally, other
controls exist to monitor the usage of pharmaceutical products and chemical substances, including register
controls, inspections and audits.
Drug Flow/Transit. Cocaine smugglers continued to use maritime containers, couriers, checked luggage,
and bulk commercial shipments to move cocaine through Jamaica to the United States. There was a
noticeable increase by law enforcement in detection of liquid cocaine secreted into consumer goods and
luggage. Marijuana traffickers continue to barter for cocaine and illegal weapons. While Operation
Kingfish, a multinational a multinational taskforce (GOJ, U.S., United Kingdom and Canada) to target
377
high profile organized crime gangs, continued to successfully operate, it has not been able to exclusively
focus on high powered leaders of criminal gangs. This is due to the fact that these leaders are afforded
community and, in some cases, police and political protection. Additionally, their activity is often linked
with legitimate business holdings.
Domestic Programs/Demand Reduction. Jamaica has several demand reduction programs, including the
Ministry of Health’s National Council on Drug Abuse. U.S. funding supported the provision of books and
teaching staff to an inner-city after school program. The GOJ operates five treatment centers through the
Ministry of Health. The GOJ/Organization of American States Inter-American Drug Abuse Control
Commission (CICAD) university-level certificate program in drug addiction and drug prevention remains
active. The United Nations Office Drug Control (UNODC) works directly with the GOJ and NGOs on
demand reduction; however, due to limited resources these programs have limited impact.
378
ERROR: undefined
OFFENDING COMMAND: GLATJO+ArialNarrow-Bold
STACK:
[/.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef
/.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef
/space /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /
.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /period /.notdef /
zero /.notdef /two /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef
/nine /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /A
/.notdef /C /D /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /I /.notdef /.notdef
/.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /P /.notdef /.notdef /S /.notdef /U
/V /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /
.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /a /.notdef /c /d /e /f /g /.notdef /i /
.notdef /.notdef /l /m /n /o /.notdef /.notdef /r /s /t /u /v /.notdef /
.notdef /y /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /
.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /
.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef /.notdef ]
/GLATJO+ArialNarrow-Bold*1

Incsr 2010 Volume 1

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Incsr 2010 Volume 1

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

INCSR 2010 Volume 1 Country Reports

II. Status of Country

III. Country Actions Against Drugs in 2009

You might also like