Red stripe,goldeneye and the Gleaner.

mattd mattd at useoz.com
Mon Dec 31 21:07:44 PST 2001


JAMAICA: Island sets new record for homicides, with 1,136 slain in 2001
KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) - Jamaica reported a record 1,136 homicides this 
year, fueled by drug trafficking and gang violence, police said Monday.
The toll was a 28 percent increase over last year's 887 slayings. The 
former record in the Caribbean country of 2.6 million people was 1,038 
killings in 1997.
Detective Sgt. Jubert Llewellyn blamed the increase on an influx of drugs 
in Jamaica and said the country is increasingly being used by traffickers 
as a transshipment point. Another factor was fighting between gangs with 
clashing political loyalties in the capital, Kingston.
Defense Minister Peter Phillips announced the government plans to recruit 
1,000 new police officers to the 10,500-officer force to implement 
anti-crime measures he plans to announce in January.
The government also will be working to recruit an unspecified number of 
soldiers, Phillps said Monday. The army has about 3,000 soldiers, but the 
government will not give a specific number.
Gang fighting in West Kingston flared in May, leaving 71 people dead in 
several weeks. In July, 28 others were killed in a few days of gunfights 
when police and soldiers moved into a neighborhood that is a stronghold of 
the political opposition
KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) - Three Jamaican musicians face obscenity charges 
for allegedly using foul language during a concert last week, police said 
Monday.
Oneil "Elephant Man" Bryan was charged Monday, police said in a written 
statement, and is to appear in court on Jan. 16. Police have not yet issued 
summonses to Rodney "Bounty Killer" Pryce and Desmond "Ninjaman" 
Ballintine, who also face charges.
All three performed at a Dec. 26 concert in Portmore, a community on the 
outskirts of Kingston. They perform dancehall, a hybrid of reggae and rap.
Pryce and Ballintine were convicted in November of using profanity at a 
concert in July. They were put on nine months of probation.
It wasn't immediately clear what maximum penalty the musicians might face 
if found guilty. 





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