Dennie Quill, Contributor

The activities of violent criminal gangs have become a focal point of local crime news in the last decade or so. News reports have helped to convey a picture of gang members as ruthless persons, who make a living through robbery, extortion, drugs, gun running and various acts of violence. Mayhem, murder, reprisals, turf-war, drive-by shootings, inter-gang feuding are terms that we have come to associate with gang activities in the Corporate Area and other urban centres. We were led to believe the police had a clear strategy to dismantle these gangs which, they say, are responsible for undermining the well-being and safety of our country.

Take a place like Spanish Town. Based on news reports, the crime graph in the old capital has soared because well-armed gangs such as Klansman and One Order have established a vise-like grip on the society, driving fear into the hearts of businessmen, citizens and police alike. But, up to now, these men have largely remained faceless. But that has changed. In the wake of the murder of Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) chairman, Douglas Chambers, members of the Klansman gang called a press conference earlier this week to say they had nothing to do with that murder.

Mere spectators

No, this is not a joke. A university colleague, who is visiting from Trinidad saw the news item and called me in disbelief. He was shocked that a gang could have the temerity to stage a press conference, and the media actually covered it, he was more stunned that the police were standing by as mere spectators at this spectacular media event. Like me, he felt that the image of the police as responsible representatives of social order was seriously damaged.

So, contrary to speculation, the Klansman did not kill Chambers neither did it murder a vendor, who is believed to have witnessed the killing. What was the purpose of the press conference? Are they telling the police to back off? Do they claim responsibility for any crime committed in Spanish Town? This is a question I wish someone had asked. A spokesman for the gang provided one vital piece of evidence though. He said they are indeed supporters of the Opposition People's National Party. They had had a good relationship with the late JUTC chairman and did not wish him dead. Why would the JUTC Chairman have any relationship with a criminal gang is something that baffles me.

This Klansman press conference and the recent peace truce in August Town point to a growing willingness of the police to accommodate criminals. In other words, when one listens to Mark Shields, he seems to imply that half-peace, in the form of a signed commitment and no surrender of weapons, is not to be scoffed at because it is better than the alternative.

Gang members are notorious for recruiting young boys to carry out heinous acts. The assertion of raw brute power force has driven innocent people from their homes and cause mothers to lock up their little girls rather them expose them to the piercing eyes of the don. Can anyone explain why the police would go soft on these people?

Criminal activity

Had I been Commissioner of Police, every member of the Klansman group at that press conference would have been questioned about his knowledge of criminal activity. I would ensure that everyone of them was subjected to a forensic test to determine whether they had recently discharged a weapon and I would have conducted searches of their person and homes.

Here's the dilemma. Law enforcement experts say it could take up to 10 years to dismantle a gang. Most gangs are politically connected and it is nearly impossible to break that nexus. Communities are prepared to defend gangsters (currently demonstrating against the detention of Klansman leader) and witnesses disappear when they do come to trial. In the midst of this, we have civil society groups eager to challenge the creation of laws that allow the authorities to take a tougher stance against criminals.

In the end, the threat of violence, to each and everyone, continues to simmer on the burner with no resolution in sight. Poor Jamaica.