Human rights lobby group Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) contends that human rights in Jamaica have deteriorated since the imposition and subsequent lifting of the State of Emergency on May 23.
JFJ also says extra-judicial killings and unlawful behaviour by the security forces are on the rise.
The findings of the lobby group are contained in a report which was presented to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in Washington on March 25.
The JFJ shared the contents of the report with the media on Wednesday and according to the human rights lobby group, the government's tough stance on crime has resulted in a limitation of peoples constitutional and human rights.
A limited State of Emergency was imposed during the West Kingston incursion as the security forces searched for then Tivoli Gardens strongman, Christopher "Dudus" Coke.
Crime bills have made things worse – IACHR
Providing figures to support their claim, Tamara Muhammad, the Senior Legal Counsel for JFJ, said the passage of the six crime bills last year, which placed power in the hands of the police, seem to have made the situation worse.
"It's with absolute dismay that we look at the statistics for 2010. There is a deteriorating human rights situation in Jamaica … 320 people were killed at the hands of the security forces during 2010. That means that one in five killings in Jamaica in 2010, were at the hands of the police and that does not include the 73 who purportedly died during State of Emergency," she said.
Ms. Muhammad added that the IACHR strongly believes that more than 73 people were killed in West Kingston during the State of Emergency and has again called for an inquiry into the incident.
Increase in reports of police abuses & detentions
Dr. Carolyn Gomes, the Executive Director of JFJ, also presented statistics indicating an increase in reports of abuses and detentions.
"In our files, we’ve recorded a 42% increase in the number of complaints of people being detained without charge over the numbers in 2009. Aside from the actual increase and the actual practices, the practices are in contravention of the Organization of American States American Convention on Human Rights," she said.
Dr. Gomes added that JFJ has asked the IACHR to demand accountability from the government regarding the worsening human rights violations and police practices.
JA not fully compliant with anti-human trafficking standards
According to the latest Human Trafficking Report released by the US State Department, the Jamaican Government has not fully complied with the minimum standards for the elimination of human trafficking, but is making significant efforts to do so.
The 2010 report also commended the government for strides made in victim support, the training of law enforcement officers and the conducting of anti-trafficking education campaigns in schools and libraries.
Issues such as forced prostitution in and outside of Jamaica, the forced labour of children in the form of street vending and involuntary domestic servitude are noted in the report.
And it further acknowledged the leadership which it said was demonstrated by the government in addressing human trafficking, noting it has made substantial strides in that regard.
However, according to the Americans, that progress was threatened by a lack of reporting on the punishment of convicted trafficking offenders.
Transit & destination country for trafficking
The report said Jamaica is a source, transit, and destination country for women and children subjected to trafficking, specifically conditions of forced prostitution and forced labour.
It said the majority of victims identified within the country were poor Jamaican women and girls, and increasingly boys, subjected to forced prostitution in urban and tourist areas.
Though not offering any direct evidence, the report said trafficking is purported to occur within Jamaica’s poverty stricken garrison communities, which it described as territories ruled by criminal dons that are effectively outside of the government’s control.
Forced prostitution of women & girls
The report also pointed to Jamaican women and girls subjected to forced prostitution in countries such as Canada, the United States, the UK and other Caribbean destinations as well as foreign victims who have been identified in forced prostitution and domestic servitude in Jamaica.
According to the US State Department, there is widespread belief among the non-governmental organization (NGO) community that many of the 1,859 children who went missing in 2009 were trafficked.
The report said NGOs and other local observers reported that child sex tourism is also a problem in Jamaica’s resort areas.
Expansion of victim identification
Among the recommendations offered by the US Department of State are: more vigourous investigation and prosecution of sex and labour trafficking offences, and the conviction and sentencing of trafficking offenders.
It also suggested that the country consider the expansion of victim identification and referral training to include a broader group of the police and other officials involved in the prosecution of trafficking offenders.