Phillips calls off briefing on joint crime initiatives
published: Wednesday | November 27, 2002
THE MINISTER of National Security, Dr. Peter Phillips, has postponed a press briefing scheduled for today, which was to reveal details of his recent trip to the United Kingdom.
Dr. Phillips and Commissioner of Police, Francis Forbes, returned home on the weekend from a visit to the UK, during which they reportedly sealed a number of agreements with the British Government, including plans for the assignment of Jamaican police officers to locations there.
Today's briefing was expected to reveal the details of those agreements. But, a release from the Ministry late yesterday said that the Minister would instead speak to Parliament on Tuesday on new anti-crime measures.
Prime Minister P.J. Patterson is also scheduled to address the nation on the same subject on Sunday night.
The National Security Ministry release said that the press briefing was postponed "until further notice" and promised that Minister of Information, Senator Burchell Whiteman, would update the media on yesterday's deliberations of the National Security Council instead.
YESTERDAY'S RELEASE
A release from the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) yesterday evening confirmed that Prime Minister Patterson chaired a meeting of the National Security Council at Jamaica House which looked at "a comprehensive plan to address issues relating to serious crimes and public order.
"The comprehensive plan, which has been put forward for consideration, has been crafted in light of past experiences and with the benefit of recent analysis of both the historical and the current situation in the country. The international dimensions of crime have also been taken into account. Most of the elements of the plan are in place and the legislative reforms to support aspects of it will be fast-tracked," the OPM release said.
It added that, in the meantime, Mr. Patterson had given instructions for the plan to be further fine-tuned for implementation.
The Council also received reports from the Minister of National Security, the Attorney-General, the Commissioner of Police and the Chief of Staff of the Jamaica Defence Force, Admiral Hardley Lewin, as well as the Director-General of the Planning Institute of Jamaica (PIOJ), Wesley Hughes.