These two women vent their anger at the shooting yesterday of cab driver Andrew Wilson by the police in St Catherine. The women were among scores of protestors who blocked a section of North Street, Central Kingston last night. See story on Page 5. (Photo: Bryan Cummings)

WESTERN BUREAU -- The National Association of Taxi Operators has told its more than 13,000 members across Jamaica to strike today to protest the alleged police killing of one of its members in Flankers, Montego Bay on Saturday.

"We have instructed our members to withdraw their services... as a mark of protest and to urge the police to speed up their investigations into the killing of our member," Edgerton Newman, the association's general secretary, told the Observer late yesterday.

Last night, Colin Manning, the association's president, warned that the threatened strike could be prolonged until the end of the week if a taxi driver killed in St Catherine yesterday was a member of the association. Up to last night, the association was still making checks to find out if Andrew Wilson, 23, of Pryce Lane in Central Kingston, belonged to their group.

They also want a meeting with National Security Minister Peter Phillips and Police Commissioner Francis Forbes, by tomorrow, at the latest, to discuss both incidents.

Yesterday's incident led to demonstrations on North Street in Central Kingston as well as near the Spanish Town Hospital.

At an earlier meeting yesterday with the police in Montego Bay, the cabbie group had laid down conditions that it wanted met, to prevent their strike over the Flankers killing. Some of these had already been agreed to even before the group's ultimatum, but Newman still insisted that his members will refuse to carry passengers today.

The taxi association's position hardened last night as news of the St Catherine incident emerged.

Earlier, Newman had told the Observer that the withdrawal of service would initially last for a day, but if the association is not satisfied with the pace of the investigations by Wednesday, services will again be disrupted on Thursday.

He said, however, that his association would not support any violent demonstrations by its members.

"If there are any demonstrations, I am asking that the law takes its course," Newman said. "I expect no roadblocks, no stone-throwing. What I expect is peaceful withdrawal of service."

The conditions that have already been met by the police, in relation to the Flankers incident, include:

* the state will absorb the funeral costs of the two men killed in Flankers;

* all the policemen involved in the incident have been taken from front-line duty;

* the cops' hands have been swabbed and their weapons will be tested.

The taxi association still wants the investigation to be done with urgency and then for formal charges to be brought against any cops found to be implicated.

Meanwhile, calm returned to Flankers yesterday, with state agencies working together to fully clear the roads.

"The situation is calm now and we don't expect any further problems," Assistant Commissioner of Police Lynval Bailey told the Observer yesterday.

Bailey, however, said that the security forces would maintain a strong presence in the area.

Yesterday, crews from the National Works Agency (NWA) and the National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA) were busy cleaning the roadway which was blocked on Saturday and on which bonfires raged.

Percy Stewart, NSWMA regional manager, said his crew had been in the area since Saturday and had removed the debris and washed the main thoroughfare from Flankers to Ironshore.

Police said no arrests have been made from Saturday's protest.

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