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| N
E W S Last
updated:
Wednesday, August 23,
2007,
4:00pm EST
| Statement
from Prime Minister, The Most Honorable Portia Simpson
Miller |
| Thursday,
August 23, 2007 |
The Most Hon. Portia Simpson
Miller, Prime Minister of Jamaica. |
A
number of comments have been made in the media,
including Page One editorials in the press today
(Tuesday, August 20) with respect to the Proclamation
of the State of Emergency in the wake of the passage
of Hurricane Dean on Sunday. These are either incorrect
or based on a misunderstanding of what the Proclamation
is intended to achieve and how it actually operates.
First, it is incorrect to say that I did not consult
with the Leader of the Opposition in respect of
the recommendation I eventually made
to the Governor-General. The fact is I spoke to
the Opposition Leader on Saturday and again on Sunday,
on this matter. Members of the Government and senior
members of the Opposition are fully aware of these
discussions.
I took note of the Opposition Leader's comments.
However, the Constitutional responsibility and authority
to make a decision in this matter is vested in the
Prime Minister and I have no hesitation in accepting
full and personal responsibility for that recommendation.
Second, it is quite mistaken to suggest, as one
newspaper has done, that the Proclamation was issued
"as an after thought." My decision was
taken after the most careful and extensive consultations
and discussions with the Heads of the Security Forces
and other agencies. It followed reports received
of looting and attempted looting in both rural and
urban areas, exchanges of gunfire between criminal
gangs and
further reports of sizeable groupings of armed criminals
sighted in sections of the Corporate Area.
In considering my recommendations, uppermost in
my mind was the need to maintain public order and
the safety of our citizens especially given that
the country would be under the cover of darkness
with the passage of Hurricane Dean.
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It
is also important that there be a clear understanding
of what the Proclamation of a State of Emergency
in the face of a natural disaster such as a hurricane
is intended to achieve. The Emergency Powers Act
explicitly states that under such conditions the
powers granted are "for the preservation of
peace, for securing and regulating the supply and
distribution of food, water, fuel, light and other
necessities, for maintaining the means of transit
or locomotion, and for any purpose essential to
the public safety and the life of the community."
I wish to make clear, this State of Public Emergency
is not an action intended to violate or take away
the rights of anyone. Rather, it is to protect the
human rights of Jamaicans including the right to
life, the protection of property and the maintenance
of public order in light of a national emergency
occasioned by the passage of Hurricane Dean.
All Jamaicans can be assured that I have no intention
of maintaining a State of Emergency any longer than
is absolutely necessary and in particular, there
is no intention to hold the general election during
the life of any State of Emergency.
JIS,
Washington, DC
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