JAMAICANS For Justice (JFJ) has accused the Jamaica Observer of engaging in “sensationalised framing” of its demand for accountability from the police and of seeking to “distort” its mission while ignoring the impact of its work.

The rights group issued its broadside against the newspaper on Wednesday in response to views expressed in two editorials — published February 25, 2025 and April 22, 2025 — as well as the Observer’s report on comments made by Police Commissioner Dr Kevin Blake in the constabulary’s Force Orders last week in which he urged human rights groups to ensure that their advocacy does not cross the line into vilification.

Accordong to JFJ Executive Director Mickel Jackson, the two editorials appear to be an emerging pattern by the Observer of “misrepresnting” the group’s mission and displaying “bias”.

Additionally, she said the comment in the February 25 editorial that JFJ lacks a “just cause” is an affront to the families of people killed by agents of the State.

Here is the full text of Jackson’s response.

“The Jamaica Observer’s recent coverage of Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ), including its April 22, 2025, editorial, accompanying article, and an earlier piece on February 25, 2025, titled ‘JFJ in search of a just cause’ demands a robust response.

As executive director I am compelled to address the newspaper’s seeming emerging pattern of misrepresenting our mission, questioning our motives, and displayed bias.

The April 22 editorial accuses JFJ of ‘pouring cold water’ on crime reduction efforts, while the accompanying article amplifies Police Commissioner Dr Kevin Blake’s call to avoid ‘vilification’ of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF). The February piece similarly dismissed our work by suggesting we lack a ‘just cause’.

JFJ unequivocally appreciates the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) and JCF officers who serve under perilous conditions to protect our communities. When criminals harm or kill law enforcement officers, we have consistently maintained that such acts are attacks on the State itself, requiring perpetrators to be brought before the courts for justice to be served.

We acknowledge the right, and duty even, of officers to protect themselves and civilians, a position upheld in our public statements and community engagements. However, our gratitude does not negate our responsibility to demand accountability when State power is potentially misused. In the face of 98 police fatal shootings between January 1 and April 22, 2025 — a 123 per cent increase over the previous year where 44 deaths were recorded — greater scrutiny is needed.

We urge the Observer to advocate for practical reforms alongside JFJ. First, the JCF must address why none of the 750 body-worn cameras were used in the 98 fatal shootings of 2025 or the 189 fatalities in 2024, despite their proven value — like in the November 2024 Windward Road case where CCTV led to charges against two officers.

Second, increased forensic resources are vital to speed up investigations as Indecom-recommended charges are often delayed by slow ballistics reports. We challenge the Observer to engage with Indecom’s data and the body camera issue, rather than framing JFJ’s advocacy as divisive, and to ask the police commissioner about the timeline for data storage infrastructure to support more camera deployment.

In March 2024 JFJ welcomed the new commissioner, urging the JCF disciplinary process and protocols be made public, with transparent policies and a trackable accountability framework for officers, as seen in other jurisdictions. The Observer should explore these recommendations instead of using sensationalised framing.

For over two decades JFJ has championed human rights, ensuring marginalised Jamaicans live with dignity and security. The continued reference to our donors is a blatant attempt to undermine the organisation, given the Observer’s insinuation of donor-driven motives. Rest assured, our work is grounded in facts and ethics; we submit detailed progress reports to donors — notably the same international development partners, such as the European Union, that also fund the State. JFJ acts at the behest of no donor, whether private sector, international development agencies or otherwise — any grant received is subject to our mandate.

In 2024 JFJ distributed Know Your Rights books and other materials, empowering some 5,000 citizens in schools and communities to understand their legal protections, as well as to build trust to enhance public safety in Jamaica’s high-crime context. The organisation trained 569 law enforcement officers between 2023 and 2025. The Observer’s failure to acknowledge this work, while fixating on our critique of police killings, seeks to distort our mission and ignore our tangible impact.

JFJ’s legal support, especially for domestic violence survivors, has provided pro bono aid to hundreds, securing protection orders and offering psychosocial support. We also advocate for families of those killed by State agents, challenging impunity. Yet, the Observer reduces our efforts to ‘carping’ about police misconduct, dismissing the voices of hundreds we serve and the lived experiences of Jamaicans facing systemic abuses, from arbitrary arrests to excessive force. The Observer’s February 25 claim that we lack a ‘just cause’ is an affront to these victims, whose pain is no less real because it implicates the State.

We do not dispute the 35.9 per cent drop in homicides. In fact, we celebrate crime reduction. But to ignore the surge in police killings is selective accounting. The Observer’s assertion that JFJ lacks evidence of ‘extrajudicial killings’ is misleading. Our data, supported by Indecom reports and victim testimonies, documents patterns of excessive force and often conflicting accounts to the ‘shoot-out’ narratives. The 2008 report cited by the Observer is outdated; current evidence points to systemic issues such as delayed investigations due to under-resourced forensics.

Human rights advocacy strengthens democracy, not weakens it. We invite the Observer and all Jamaicans to join our protest on April 29, urging for reforms. Accountability should be a shared commitment, not seen as vilification. JFJ remains resolute, undeterred by misrepresentations, and firm in purpose.”