KINGSTON, Jamaica — Prime Minister Andrew Holness yesterday dismissed the idea of using dons for community building interventions when the authorities roll out the Zones of Special Operations law.

According to Holness, an important part of the joint police military command in the zones is to restore the trust and confidence of the citizens through community building.

However, he said: “We will not use any dons to do community building or policing work. This is not an operation that relies on any informal system of community leadership or justice or control. We don’t need any dons in Jamaica. We’re not going to legitimise any don”.

He stressed that the JCF must improve its public image and urged officers to protect the principles of the organisation.

“Your job is to convert the citizens into your crime fighting allies. You do community building, particularly as it relates to security, using community leaders that are well established and are known to be law abiding,” Holness told members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) at the Police Officers’ Club in Kingston.

He said, when implemented, the Zones of Special Operations will help to bring law and order to communities and that the law is aimed at reducing murders, not to take away rights.

“This is a long term commitment by the government of Jamaica to restore the rule of law in a geographical defined area that was previously gripped by high crime,” the prime minister asserted.

“The success of the operation is that within the zones there are no murders. If you can bring the murder rate down, that will be a success.”

The objective, he explained, is to bring down homicides by cutting off the capability and opportunity of criminals.