NATIONAL Security Minister Colonel Trevor MacMillan says the police will, over the next few months, place greater emphasis on its community initiative to help dismantle criminal gangs and arrest the country's spiralling crime rate.

MacMillan made the remarks at a community meeting in Avon Park, Kingston, on Wednesday which was organised by member of parliament for South St Andrew, Dr Omar Davies. Dr Davies had organised the meeting to give residents a chance to speak with security officials and to relate some of the problems they face daily.

"The nation continues to be affected by the fast-rising murders, and we believe that community policing is the way to solve this problem," MacMillan said.

"It is not only aimed at establishing a greater relationship between the police and residents, but I believe that it is one of the only solutions to fighting crime," the minister said.

He said as part of the approach, he and the police commissioner were working on a plan to assign at least one cop from each station to be in constant contact with residents of the community in which the station is based.

"This special police officer will be responsible for going into the area where his station is located to hear from the people and to keep close contact with the people as a way of building the relationship between the police and citizens in each community," the minister explained.

He said other plans include programmes to improve the cops' human relations skills.

As for his reasons for targeting criminal gangs, the security minister said gang violence was responsible for the majority of the over 950 murders that have occurred since the start of the year.

"There are more than 150 criminal gangs in Jamaica and these gangs are responsible for the majority of the murders," he told the Observer.

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