Pirates, drug-runners and smugglers can operate with little fear of capture in Jamaica’s territorial waters, as the police and army are unable to adequately patrol the seas because of a shortage of “suitable and appropriate boats”, the Sunday Observer has learnt.

A senior police source who asked not to be named said that of the 11 boats assigned to the Marine Police, four were out of service, and the other seven were frequently off the job as a result of inadequate maintenance.

Opposition spokesman for national security, Derrick Smith, who expressed concern over the situation, pointed to a second problem – not enough gas for the boats which operated, apparently because of low funds.

“The Marine Police are not being given enough fuel to make regular rounds, and they are also short of navigational equipment. So they get lost when everything gets foggy and blue,” Smith complained.

He said the cops were currently given “two 15-gallon tanks of gas to patrol for the week, but the Yahama 250-horse power boats suitable for the service required 45 gallons of gas per day”.

Chairman of the Police Federation, Sergeant David White, contacted by the Sunday Observer, said he was worried by the shortage of patrol equipment that the police needed to keep the country’s waters safe from drug traffickers.

“We seriously need some boats right now and we need the proper boats such as launches and whalers,” White said.

The shortage and inadequacy of naval and maritime assets have severely hampered efforts by Jamaica to stem the flow of illegal drugs into and out of the island, as drug-runners frequently operate with impunity in the 12-mile expanse of Jamaica’s territorial waters and the 188-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Jamaica’s role in the fight against drug trafficking, according to local sources, is important both geographically and financially. Worth an estimated US$5 billion annually, the country is seen as an important transshipment point for the substance, particularly from Colombia, northbound to the United States.

In the meantime, Jamaica has resorted to using boats seized from Colombian drug dealers, under the Assets Forfeiture Legislation which allows the assets of convicted drug traffickers to be confiscated.

But that, too, was fraught with problems, Sergeant White said. “Those boats, and we use some of them right now, are unsafe. They are a fire hazard, and this makes them dangerous to the lives of the policemen and women,” he said.

Smith insisted that the ‘go-fast boats’ used by the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) in assisting the Marine Police to patrol the seas, were not appropriate for the purpose.

“The go-fast boats are not boats that should be used for patrols. They are susceptible to explosions,” the opposition spokesman said.

Responding to the concerns, communications advisor to the Ministry of National Security, Donovan Nelson, said the JDF was given three boats by the United States last year and “the boats are the same as used by the law enforcement officials in that country”.

Addressing the issue of the security presence on the seas, Nelson said both the police and JDF had requested additional assets. “Some have been given to them, and some are on order.”

“The Coast Guard cutters allow them to stay for long periods on the seas, but they rely on the speed of the go-fast boats for high-speed chases,” he said.

Smith blamed “indecision on the part of Government since 1995” for the lack of equipment at the Marine Police. He said that as a result, areas such as Bowden in St Thomas, Black River in St Elizabeth and Whitehouse in Westmoreland – hot spots for contraband dealers – were becoming “almost forgotten”.