Jamaican authorities have declared a state of emergency in several regions to combat crime and violence, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 07th December, 2022) Jamaican authorities have declared a state of emergency in several regions to combat crime and violence, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said.
"States of Public Emergency have been declared in the parishes of St. Ann, Clarendon, St. Catherine and specified areas of Kingston and St. Andrew. St. James, Westmoreland and Hanover are also under States of Emergency," Holness said on Twitter on Tuesday.
Holness added that as the Christmas season begins, he intends to ensure that Jamaicans have holidays "free from criminal threats."
Under a state of emergency, authorities have the right to arrest people and search buildings without a warrant.
Jamaica is one of the most violent countries in the Caribbean. In 2021, the island nation had almost 50 murders per 100,000 inhabitants. This was the highest homicide rate in Latin America and the Caribbean that year, according to statistical agencies.
