THE organiser of a justice forum for victims of the May 2010 police-military operation in Tivoli Gardens was left disappointed yesterday after only a handful of people, literally, turned up for the event.

Lloyd D’Aguilar’s Tivoli Committee organised the Labour Day of Justice and Solidarity to mark the anniversary of the deadly operation.

“In Tivoli you don’t really see people fighting for their rights; that says volumes for what is going on,” D’Aguilar told the nearly 10 people, including performers and speakers, who were in attendance yesterday.

“This is why the State is able to do what it does and get away with it. They can go to Montego Bay tomorrow and get away with it; it can go to Clarendon tomorrow and get away with it; it can go to Spanish Town, it can go to any inner-city community and do the same thing because people are not going to fight for their rights and take chances and risk. They are going to sit down and say, ‘Bwoy, look weh dem come do to wi’. And if that is the attitude, then this is going to be done to you over and over and that is unfortunate,” D’Aguilar lamented.

The event, which was scheduled to start at 2:00 pm, only managed to get underway at minutes after 4:00 pm with a performance by Dr Michael Abrahams.

Yesterday marked the sixth anniversary of a two-day police-military operation to apprehend then Tivoli Gardens don Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke. At least 77 people, including a member of the Jamaica Defence Force, were killed in the operation.

Coke, who was wanted in the United States of America on drug-trafficking and firearms charges, was captured a month later and extradited to the US after waiving his right to an extradition hearing.

— Racquel Porter