Friend or foe?
Did you know that 76 people in Jamaica were gunned down in the last week? Are you aware that 700 Jamaicans have been detained since the government’s attempt to arrest Christopher Coke started? You may know this information from following the news, but there is one piece of information that seems to remain unanswered: Who is the real threat in Jamaica? Is it Coke and his supporters or is it the government? I certainly do not have the answer to this question, but there seems to be some sort of cover-up.
Michael "Dudus" Coke
I first heard of Jamaica being under a state of emergency last Monday. I had just gotten home from school, and wasn’t paying much attention to the story until I heard the reporter say, “Some people look at him [Coke] as a Robin Hood.” That statement struck me as odd because most neighborhoods don’t care for people who are the source of trouble in their neighborhood. I know Jamaica is different from the United States, but I thought to myself that there must be more to this story, and sure enough, there was.
According to a New York Times article, Jamaican politicians ally with drug lords for political reasons. Because these drug lords supply the people in their neighborhoods with the food and resources that the government fails to provide, they have the influence over the people that Jamaican politicians need to win votes. The United States attempted to expedite Coke previously, but the Jamaican government refused to cooperate. What made the government suddenly change its mind? Why is it now ready to turn Coke over and why is it so desperate to do so?
In a recent TimesOnline article, Coke stated that the government, particularly Prime Minister Bruce Golding, is trying to kill him in order to prevent him from exposing Golding. Coke stated that if he is arrested by the Jamaican government, he will be killed just as his father was. Coke is allegedly trying to seek political asylum overseas as a result.
Is the Jamaican government hiding information or is Coke trying to come up with a plan to flee? According to CNN.com, Jamaican residents told reporters that the government had been burning citizens. In a different news story, the residents of Tivoli Gardens tried to get journalists to investigate a cemetery, where they said the government forces secretly buried some of the people they had killed during the upheaval. The government denied both the claim of a cemetery and burning people. Some Jamaican citizens stated that the people of Tivoli Gardens began shooting at the cops first. With all of these stories, it’s hard to determine who’s responsible for all that’s happened. Who do you think is the real bad guy?
It sounds to me that the government is corrupt. Jamaica is not a rich country and whenever there is someone within that country that is helping their own people, unlike the government, the people will gather around that person and protect them. I would do the same thing. What happens to ‘us’ if they take him away. Who will help now??? Coke is their “Hope” right now because the government is not helping those in need. When it comes to politics; you don’t know who to trust because they are all corrupt.
I’m not saying Coke is the innocent party here, because I don’t believe selling drugs is a good thing. But when you help people in need and your government only helps those that could benefit only the gov’t, then who else do you turn to when you have nobody else?
Thank you for your comment and you brought up a good point. The people could be protecting Coke out of fear of losing necessary resources.
I live in Kingston. Please don’t believe for one moment that Dudus Coke or any other Don provides any worthwhile service to their communities that wasn’t obtained by illegal means and are offered only in exchange for sinister “favors.” Jamaica does not need these Robin Hoodlums who obtain massive wealth through extortion, racketeering, theft, duress, attacks on the state, murder, illegally tendered govt contracts and brute force. Forget the illegal gun trading and drugs to/from the US, Coke and many other Dons are plenty guilty of disturbing civilian life and harming innocent people for personal gain right here in Jamaica.
That said, it is true that there are deep bonds between the political parties and the gangs. It is also true that many of the impoverished “garrisons” have been neglected for decades by the government which in turn created a vacuum that was filled by the dons. But the answer is not crime. The answer is not to rob Peter to pay Paul. A thorough cleansing of the entire political landscape is necessary, but this cannot be done because law-abiding citizens have no voice in government, nor will they be willing to stand up for change until the streets are safe from reprisal and revenge attacks from the monsters that control the country.
Thank you for clearing up this misconception. I hope that as a result of this mayhem, there will be some positive changes in Jamaica.