One Year In Government - Prime Minister Andrew Holness

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THE ROLE of every security
organisation in post-independent
Jamaica is to provide a safe and
secure environment for its citizens, as our
Constitution says, “The State has an
obligation to promote universal respect for
and observance of human rights and
freedoms.”
Citizen security and public safety are
recognised as cornerstones of ongoing
national development, creating a critical
foundation for economic growth and social
opportunities. Security and safety of our
people should be seen by all as both a core
developmental goal and as an essential
precondition for the delivery of other
developmental goals.
On December 1, 2016, Cabinet took a
step that had been recommended in the 2007
National Security Policy, and enabled the
prime minister, in his role as minister of
defence, to be supported by a national
security advisor (NSA). The role of the
NSA has different areas of focus in different
countries across the world, and in Jamaica,
we are tailoring the Office of the National
Security Advisor (ONSA) to strategically
meet and anticipate our unique domestic,
regional and international security
considerations. The NSA will focus on
strategic security initiatives, including the
development and monitoring of policies and
the coordination of programmes that will
have a long-term and impactful effect in
improving citizen security and public safety.
ROLE OF THE OFFICE
The ONSA will provide, inter alia,
coordination across the country’s security
apparatus and operations; act as the
principal channel of communication
between the prime minister and the
intelligence community; advise the prime
minister on current and perceived threats to
national security and public order, and give
support to the National Security Council.
The ONSA will also be responsible for
updating the National Security Policy for
Jamaica in accordance with the changes in
the strategic landscape, and shaping a new
national security system that is involving a
civil society that is aware of, and that
participates in, its own security.
There is immense potential and
opportunity for Jamaica to be a safe country.
The requirement for substantial
improvements in some areas related to
crime and violence is recognised, and
addressing these challenges have been a
priority for the Government with the
alignment of all the agencies that provide
security services.
As the 2016-2017 and the 2017-2018
Estimates of Expenditure show, the
Government has increased its spending on
national security and social security, and
this should be seen as a recognition of the
urgency for immediate interventions to
address the current issues of violent crime in
• • gleanerjamaica • jamaicagleaner • FEATURE THE GLEANER, THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 2017 G10
FILE PHOTOS
Police on foot
patrol along East
Queen Street in
Kingston.
Coordinated approach needed
to combat crime, violence
Antony
Anderson
New approach to
ensuring security
THE MOST immediate security
imperative, as experienced by a
resident of Jamaica, is crime
and violence, but the solutions
to this are rooted in several
other initiatives that are being
undertaken by the Government,
including support for growth,
jobs and social protections.
Many of these initiatives require
the monitoring of threats to
preserve community safety and
security, the building of
infrastructure in all
communities, and the
availability of social security
services to every citizen.
Jamaica’s decisive move to
become an international
financial centre – as shown by
the passage of the Jamaica
Economic Free Zone Act and
legislation to update laws
supporting new forms of
companies and financial
services – must be supported by
a high level of integrated
security that will assure local
and international investors of
our readiness as a secure
business environment.
SECURITY IS
EVERYONE’S BUSINESS
The medium- and long-term
solutions for our security risks
and threats involve all of
government, and the ONSA is
now addressing the coordination
of programmes across the
specialised areas of security,
such as peacekeeping and law
enforcement; the investigation
of major organised crime; the
surveillance of our sea, land and
cyber borders; and the integrity
of official data and documents
for both business and for
individuals.
Proudly, I can say that
Jamaica has a cadre of trained
and dedicated personnel across
our security agencies, and as the
NSA, I am in a position to
champion ongoing
professionalisation in these
areas. These public-sector
professionals alone, however,
will not allow us to reach all of
our goals, and again I reach for
the Constitution of Jamaica
Chapter 3 Section C which says,
“All persons are under a
responsibility to respect and
uphold the rights of others.”
Citizen rights and security is a
matter for all of us.
The Jamaican approach to
citizen security and public
safety must be one that is
decisive but balanced.
Importantly, the new approach
must encourage an increasing
sense of empowerment of
people and communities to
participate in their own security.
The Office of the National
Security Advisor is proud to be
part of the process of ensuring
that Jamaica becomes known
for being a safe country for our
people, as much as we are
internally celebrated in many
other endeavours.
– Submitted by the Office of the
National Security Advisor
This soldier was among members of the security forces
engaged in a joint military-police operation in Kingston in
2006 when they detained this man.
There is
immense
potential and
opportunity for
Jamaica to be a
safe country.
CONTRIBUTED
Marine patrol on Galleon Bay.
CONTRIBUTED
A Jamaica Defence Force Coast Guard ship on patrol.