July 30 2010
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Tragedy of Jamaica's lethal cocktail of crime and politics

 

Tragedy of Jamaica's lethal cocktail of crime and politics
Fidelis Onyedikam
As thousands of heavily armed Jamaican soldiers and police descend on Kingston to arrest ‘the peoples’ president’, Christopher “Dudus” Coke with the view to extraditing him to America to face charges of conspiring to supply marijuana, cocaine and firearms, what is happening on the ground wouldn’t have been unpredicted.
According to the Prime Minister of Jamaica, Bruce Golding, who imposed a state of emergency in his country, the national forces are winning, three days on.  The situation will soon be brought under control, clean up of the country will commence and the suspected drug baron captured and handed over to American authorities for prosecution.  But “Dudus” is still at large as Kingston burns and flood with blood.   
The reality is:  Over 60 citizens have been killed by their national forces, who are supposed to defend them against any aggression, shops are being looted, hundreds of people have been injured, tourism is suspended, hospitals are running out of blood, schools are closed, western countries have stopped issuing visas to Jamaican citizens until further notice while advising their nationals to avoid visiting Kingston.  Good.
Information escaping from the Kingston war zone, from those who managed to ring their relations in the UK, said that many people, probably known to the armed forces have been allegedly deliberately and systematically targeted in the shootout, men randomly seized by the forces and taken away to unknown destinations ‘naked’, and people’s mobile phones were being confiscated by the police.  
A source, whose update is being awaited, warned that she may not be contacted if her mobile phone was confiscated.
 The facts are that Washington and Kingston have bilateral agreement on extradition.  And Christopher Coke had been implicated in connection with the alleged offences in America, whose government reserve every right to formerly request his arrest and trial in New York.   Jamaica may be obliged to comply with the extradition request after exhausting unsuccessfully all avenues to negate the protocol. 
The question is: Why is the Prime Minister so impatient to capture Mr. Coke after holding out against the move for over nine months?  Would it not be conceivably thought that sending in thousands of armed forces will escalate the already tense situation?  Think about the scare his move would leave permanently on his country and people.  And the chances are that even if Mr. Coke was eventually captured or killed, another baron will emerge from the ruins of Kingston, if not already in place.
If the Golding administration had taken a softly-softly approach, Coke may eventually be arrested without such a huge casualty and ruining of the country’s infrastructure and economy.  It is a different scenario if the PM decided to carry out war against drug and firearm trafficking in a tagged operation.  
What is happening now will lead to the distrust of the government by its people, who may accuse it of slavishly following American orders at a time when Washington is trying to win the trust and friendship of its neighbours.             
There is also a sensitive problem of diversity – an area rife with teenage pregnancy and high unemployment v affluent neighbourhood and political elite – bearing in mind that Coke had triumphed in the former  while the PM failed and desperately needed Coke’s army of followers to keep himself rooted as a local MP for the enclave.  The PM’s offer to resign should be welcomed and the political stalwarts flirting secretly with drug kingdoms probed.    
If politics in Jamaica is cleaned up, it will be easier to clean up Kingston’s underworld of crime and drug havens.      If the elites’ hands are tainted with drug money, they will not rest now the war is on until the marijuana empire is wiped out otherwise more of the country’s blood will continue to be shed in this fashion.
As America battles the drugs trade from all frontiers – as close enough to home as on its Mexican borders, for which President Obama had requested $500m to combat, to Columbia, Jamaica, and as far away from home as Afghanistan, the home of opium manufacturing – knowing that its elite citizens are hooking up in droves to illegal narcotics, Washington will not stop short of preventing the substances entering its soil and even the soils of its ‘area of influence’.
If Kingston wants to wipe itself out of the world map for Washington to be drug free, so be it.  By now, many nations would have realised that using overwhelming force to crush a minority does not produce a lasting solution.  You can take out the ring leaders or scatter the entire group in the immediate; they will regroup and resurface, and probably become faceless.  This was the case when America took on Sadam Hussein’s Iraq and Taliban’s Afghanistan without providing viable alternative to take over the vacuum thus created by taking out the main men and scattering their followers who later engaged in suicide warfare. 
The best way to tackle the situation like that of Jamaica is to make the masses gainfully employed without them resorting to daily bread from drug barons such that an attack on the godfathers will not be an attack on the masses.     

Fidelis Onyedikam

Troops on the streets of KingstonTroops on the streets of KingstonAs thousands of heavily armed Jamaican soldiers and police fought pitched battles for the past three days in a impoverished part of Kingston to arrest the gangland "people's president", the tragedy, including the deaths of more than 60 people, was not predicted.

submitted by Editor on May 26th 2010

Why closing rehab centre for teenagers is wrong

 

Why closing rehab centre for teenagers is wrong
Tom Barnes
Teenage addicts are being denied 'life saving' treatment, a top drugs educator has claimed. Referrals to Middlegate Lodge, the only dedicated youth drug rehab centre in Britain, have been axed in favour of cheaper treatments in the community.
Sarah Graham, spokesperson for the high profile drugs advice life line FRANK, told The-Latest:
“It is very difficult for teenagers to come off drugs in their communities.  They may have an alcohol or drug dependant parent. They may be subject to pressure amongst their peer group. Middlegate provide life saving treatment to teen drug addicts, so it’s important it stays open.”
Middlegate Lodge, set in the tranquil Lincolnshire Wolds, provides a sanctuary to drug and alcohol dependent teens far away from the temptations of their everyday lives.
Yvonne Pickwick’s daughter was treated at Middlegate when she was just 15.  The housewife from Oxfordshire believes that without the dedicated team at the unit her daughter would no longer be alive.
She said: "At first I thought it was teenage rebellion. But when she started getting into heroin I knew it was serious. I used to walk the streets looking for her. If it was not for Middlegate I don't know if she would still be with us."
Yvonne's daughter Louise, now 26, spent three months at Middlegate in 1999. She does not believe she could have kicked her habit if she had remained in her home town
Louise said: "There is no way I would have come off drugs in Banbury. My social circle was mixed up with drugs.”
Eight of Louise’s drug addicted friends have died in the last 10 years, including the father of her first child.
“When my son’s father died I realised that it was time to get clean. My son had been taken into care and my life was a total mess. I certainly do not think I would be alive to be telling this tale if it were not for  the staff at Middlegate,” said Louise.
The National Treatment Agency is a health authority within the UK’s National Health Service. It works in partnership with local councils advising on treatment for drug and alcohol abuse. The NHTA is behind moves to wind down Middlegate.
Its spokesman Paul Hayes, said: “Child experts now recommend that vulnerable young people are best helped in their community. Most under-18s have not been taking drugs long enough for it to result in dependency. Substance misuse is a symptom of wider troubles – offending, truancy, mental health issues, family and relationship problems. This requires a wider portfolio of care than whatMiddlegate can offer.”
But Deirdre Boyd, of addiction today, believes that the NTA comments are misjudged. She said: “While it is difficult to diagnose most under-18s as being addicted to drugs (rather than choosing to use), that is no excuse not to support the only teen rehab in the country. Rehabs offer people the opportunity to learn from their past and take responsibility for their future, particularly through forging healthy relationships.  
One of Middlegate’s residents, for example, left behind a life of child prostitution to qualify for university after successful treatment. All accredited rehabs address the issues Paul Hayes mentions.  His comment shows a sad lack of understanding of what rehabs offer. Or, indeed, what true recovery is,” said Boyd.

Tom Barnes - The-Latest EXCLUSIVE

Deaths could result from centre's closureDeaths could result from centre's closureTeenaged addicts are to be denied "life saving" treatment because referrals to the only dedicated youth drug rehab centre in Britain are being axed by health chiefs. Funders plan to switch cash from Middlegate Lodge to cheaper treatments in the community.

submitted by Editor on March 2nd 2010

Jackson's dad to sue Dr Murray for 'wrongful death'

Joe JacksonJoe JacksonOn the anniversary of pop legend Michael Jackson's death, renowned US celebrity news website TMZ say they have obtained a copy of a legal document that Joe Jackson has sent to Dr Conrad Murray.

submitted by Newsdesk on June 23rd 2010
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