SOE detainees are being held under JCF Act, not emergency regulations – Chang
KINGSTON, Jamaica — None of the individuals who have been detained since a state of emergency (SOE) was declared for the parish of St Catherine a week ago, are being held based on the provisions of the Emergency Powers Regulation that were deemed unconstitutional in a landmark Supreme Court ruling on June 17.
Instead, the detainees are being held under the provisions of the Jamaica Constabulary Force Act.
This was disclosed on Thursday by National Security, Dr Horace Chang in the House of Representatives.
He was speaking after he had tabled the new regulations that will govern the SOE after the wrong copy was inadvertently tabled during Tuesday’s sitting of the House.
According to a release, Chang was responding to questions from the leader of Opposition Business in the House, Phillip Paulwell, who wanted to know whether the government and security forces were abiding by the Court ruling which found that the constitutional rights of St James taxi operator, Roshaine Clarke had been breached.
Specifically, the Full Court comprising three justices, found that Clarke’s right to freedom and liberty as guaranteed by the Jamaican Constitution had been breached. Clarke, who was held for seven months and denied medical care, under a SOE that was declared in St James in 2018 was awarded approximately $18 million in damages.
Chang said that following the ruling, the findings were analysed and the security forces notified.
“The police have not utilised any of the powers in the regulation,” Chang insisted.
He explained that “a number of critical players were apprehended and they are being held under the Jamaica Constabulary Force Act”. The security minister said the majority of the detainees have been charged “because there are charges that could be laid and several are awaiting identification parades”.
He emphasised that no one is currently detained under the old Emergency Powers Regulations.
Despite clearing the air, Chang’s disclosure caused the Opposition to pounce. The Opposition has repeatedly asserted that the SOE as used by the government is unconstitutional and has argued that the security forces have other available crime-fighting tools to tame the crime monster.
The Member of Parliament for St Andrew South West, Dr Angela Brown-Broke, restated that position.
Addressing Chang, she said: “I’m trying to wrap my head around it…what you’re saying is that the persons who have been detained since (last week) Friday were not detained using the regulations and I’m just wondering because, many persons have been saying before that there were other instruments, there were other provisions under which persons could’ve been held and the work of the police could’ve been done”.
Brown-Burke noted that since the SOE was declared, much of what was published as news (of people being detained), “persons actually thought that this was because of the SOE”.
“But if they were not held under those provisions then it means that without the state of emergency those things could have been done and they could have been held,” she argued.
Continuing, she said: “It seems to reinforce the notion that there are other instruments and other ways of going about what we are doing apprehending persons without using this”.
Without agreeing with her position, Chang told Brown-Burke that he would rather be briefed by the police “because we instructed them according to law and they indicated that they’ve done some things, they would not have done everything but what they have apprehended is within the powers they currently have as a constabulary”.