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at the junction of Industrial Terrace and Marcus Garvey
Drive at the appointed time. These buses waited there for
quite a long time but nobody turned up. He had made
arrangements to accommodate these persons temporarily at
the National Arena, but nobody availed themselves of that
particular opportunity. That action was a deliberate action
taken basically to reduce injuries to individuals that could
occur once the operation had started.”
Refusal of Residents to be Evacuated
7.43.
None of the witnesses who testified before the Commission had
taken up the offer to be evacuated. Some said that they did not know of it;
others said they heard of it only late on the Sunday evening; still others said they
refused because of a distrust of the JCF. Annette Marshall spoke of that distrust
on 15 September 2015:
“No garrison community likes the police because they
brutalise us.”
7.44.
Troy Palmer said that he was aware that buses had been provided
by the JCF but neither he nor his relatives availed themselves of the buses
because, “me say dem a carry we and kill we”.
Security Forces’ Expectations of Casualties
7.45.
A question arises naturally as to whether the security forces
anticipated any casualties as a result of the anticipated joint operation.
(a)
The JCF
7.46.
DCS Hinds was specifically asked whether the JCF contemplated
that the operation would cause “collateral damage in the nature of probable
injuries and damage to property of law abiding residents of Tivoli Gardens”.