Bob Marley. Cool Runnings. Montego Bay. Reggae. Rum. All these are things are famously and quintessentially Jamaican. “Oh Kingston Town, the place I long to be,” went the UB40 lyrics from the song of the same name, and if you allow yourself to be carried away by the daydream of tropical islands in the Caribbean, you may just think of Jamaica as Paradise.
Jamaican gun laws unfortunately resemble something closer to the infernal than the divine. By today’s standards Jamaica has among the most draconian firearm legislation on the planet, and citizens cannot possess any firearms without providing compelling reasons as to why they need said firearms, and then complying with onerous, extensive, and expensive procedures in order to obtain their licences. This effectively turns firearm ownership into something that can only be achieved by the rich, well-connected Jamaican elite.
Back in the 1970s Jamaica was actually a paradise: an anti-gun paradise of Fascist proportions. Following spikes in violent crime, Prime Minister Michael Manley enacted two far-reaching and invasive laws in a misguided attempt to contain the problem. What resulted were the travesties known as the Suppression of Crime Act and the Gun Court Act.
The Suppression of Crime Act allowed for the police and military to combine forces in order to disarm the populace: soldiers would block off neighbourhoods and the police would then go house-to-house performing warrantless searches of every building and confiscating all firearms and ammunition found.
If this sounds menacing to you, then the Gun Court Act will be positively alarming in comparison. It is what amounts to a secret court, where all suspects are tried in camera and without a jury. The testimony of any police officer is sufficient to secure a conviction, and corroborating physical evidence is never required. If convicted by a Gun Court the guilty party will be imprisoned for life without parole.
Let that sink in for a minute: if you are arrested and accused of committing any alleged firearm-related offence, you can be sent to prison for the rest of your life with no chance of parole, on a conviction based solely on the testimony of any police officer and requiring absolutely no hard evidence what so ever.
How Orwellian is that?
This entire legal travesty, which tramples the very concept of civil rights in totality, was the brainchild of a man who graced us with this pearl of wisdom: “It will be a long war. No country can win a war against crime overnight, but we shall win. By the time we have finished with them, Jamaican gunmen will be sorry they ever heard of a thing called a gun. There is no place in this society for the gun, now or ever.”
Decades later we can look at Jamaica and judge whether or not Prime Minister Manley’s War on Crime (and War on Guns) has borne any meaningful fruit. With a homicide rate that has dramatically increased by 20 percent in 2015, and now stands at 45 homicides per 100 000 people, Jamaica has the dubious honour of being in the top 5 nations with the highest murder rate on Earth.
Even more damning, Jamaica’s homicide rate in 1973, before the gun ban, was 11.5 per 100 000. In 1977, three years after the ban was enacted, murder rates nearly doubled to 19.5. By 1980 the homicide rate had nearly quadrupled to 41.7, and peaked at 59.0 per 100 000 people in 2007. In summary, after having banned civilian ownership of guns, Jamaica experienced a near-fourfold increase in its homicide rate within a period of only 6 years. And the homicide rate has remained exorbitantly high ever since.
Despite a gun ban enforced by warrantless search-and-seizure by the authorities, and despite lifelong imprisonment without the option of parole for any gun-related offences, the Jamaican homicide rate is among the highest in the world and continues to increase. It is quite obvious to conclude that the incredibly severe and repressive gun control enacted by Jamaica in 1974 had absolutely zero impact on curtailing the rising homicide rate. In fact, by disarming law-abiding Jamaicans of their ability to protect themselves against violent criminals, the 1974 gun ban had exactly the opposite effect: a sustained and astronomical increase in the homicide rate.
Gun control does not work. It turns citizens into soft targets and does absolutely nothing to stop criminals, who do not care for laws in any case, from perpetrating violence. Because if you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns. And the bloodbath will simply become so much worse.
Carl Nicholson
•9 years ago
Great article as always. Now how to preach to the unconverted? And get it to mainstream media?
gunservant85
•9 years ago
Exploring a few options in that regard, but the more people who spread this, the more attention it will get 🙂
Zoo Keeper
•9 years ago
What Jamaica did is exactly what GFSA have advocated. They want the SAPS to have the power to search anyone and all property without warrant and at any time. They openly advocate the effective deletion of a couple of our rights in the Bill of Rights.
Strangely, the media is silent on this
gunservant85
•9 years ago
Many in the media are comrades-in-arms of the GFSA group. It is a disgusting conflict of interest.
Chris
•8 years ago
Zookeeper, any link for me to a source of where GFSA states that? A google search came up inconclusive :/
gunservant85
•8 years ago
Their spokespeople hammered on this in the late 1990s as the debate around the proposed FCA of 2000 heated up.
gunservant85
•8 years ago
I think it was either Sheena Duncan, Adelle Kirsten, or Peter Storey.
Chris
•8 years ago
It’s a real shame there isn’t a written or otherwise recorded source to be found, as that is quite the sound bite to play anyone who believes GFSA kak stories. It shows an utter disregard for people’s fundamental rights… Even more interesting when you find out George Soros is behind most of their funding. I know his charity work appeals more to the public than Trump, but I still can’t help wonder how the political left can fear one wealthy man and his agenda, yet be absolutely willing to submit themselves to another. Guess it depends who pays your salary at the end of the day. Thanks for your reply gunservant, the quest continues
gunservant85
•8 years ago
I am busy researching the Soros-GFSA link right now, will hopefully have something to publish next month. It is dramatic.
Ludwig Churr
•8 years ago
Whilst you are about it. Can you find out who the anonymous benefactor is? it my be GS in his personal capacity as well. Or will it be a political party? It may well be,
Rifleman III
•9 years ago
Reblogged this on Rifleman III Journal.
Ludwig Churr
•9 years ago
Alarming indeed. Links to their crime stats and historical utterances?
gunservant85
•9 years ago
Links are in the text 🙂 and a quick Google reveals all.
The Grey Enigma
•9 years ago
Reblogged this on The Grey Enigma.