EYES IN THE SKY
Residents welcome surveillance as Gov’t moves to install 3,000 cameras in targeted communities to tackle crime
Published:Monday | February 17, 2025 | 9:40 AMAndre Williams - Staff Reporter
The Government is rolling out some 3,000 cameras in mainly low-income communities across the island to enhance surveillance with the aim to reduce crimes in these spaces.
National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang confirmed to The Sunday Gleaner that 1,000 of these devices have already been installed as the modernisation and digitalisation of the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) continues.
“We are one of the most digital forces in the Caribbean and Latin America, and can be compared to others in the Western Hemisphere,” Chang told The Sunday Gleaner, quickly pointing out that the cameras are just one element of the broader crime-fighting strategy, noting the importance of “real-time information that can give you real-time reaction”.
He indicated that the infrastructure has been completed in Olympic Gardens, St Andrew, where cameras and mounts have been installed, and that Portmore, St Catherine, will be the next area to benefit.
“A thousand are out, the other 2,000 are [being bought]. We’ll buy about another thousand this year and complete the 3,000 next year … . We’re not rushing, because the cameras alone add real little value,” Chang said, adding that the intent is to complete the C5 centre.
Command and control centres – usually called C2, C4 and C5, according to their infrastructure and operations – or monitoring and control centres are crucial public safety hubs responsible for managing information related to operations, decision-making, and emergency response. These centres have become essential in coordinating the actions of various organisations that protect society. The concept, which originated in military organisations in North America, has been adopted by many law enforcement agencies to enhance efficiency and public safety. In Jamaica, the JCF is integrating these systems to enable a quick and effective response to crime.
“You are talking millions of dollars to install something that is not only adequate now, but will have some future-proofing features in there … . It’s a systematic operation and we have been continuing and introducing technology along,” Chang, who is also the deputy prime minister, told The Sunday Gleaner.
The ongoing transformation of the JCF is highly tech-driven, with Chang stating that they are nearing the completion of the visible portion of the project.
“ ... All the stations will look like [those in] Hopewell, Rockfort or Harbour View. When you walk in, the person taking evidence is in a console and it goes into a database,” Chang said, adding that the JCF’s digitisation programme is way ahead of all other government agencies in Jamaica.
For residents in communities in Kingston Western, the installation of these cameras is seen as a timely addition.
“Is a good thing, but it a go good and bad. What I mean is, it nah go wait pon you to call no police. Say you deh out a road and a mistreat a woman (domestic violence), the camera a go just pick you up and a just police a go come,” a male resident from Gem Road told The Sunday Gleaner.
He said he liked the idea of the cameras.
“Certain people not going to like it because dem nah go have no privacy, but there is no privacy on the road. [It’s ok] from it nah cover in your house. To how me see it, right, is not everybody gonna agree, but it should be there. Mi a wonder why it take so long because me see a couple of them put up in other places,” another resident said, hoping the cameras will help to prevent abductions and motor vehicle theft.
The Sunday Gleaner noticed camera mounts placed along Greenwich Street, West Road, Collie Smith Drive, Upper Regent Street and Spanish Town Road.
Female residents in a section of Arnett Gardens commonly referred to as ‘Bottom Jungle’ told The Sunday Gleaner that they, too, welcome the cameras.
“My only thing is that they are probably too low and people may trouble it. I would recommend they put them up higher,” said Karen Newby. “But then again, the higher up it go, it may violate people privacy and can reach in your backyard.”
Newby believes that with the cameras in place, women will feel safer walking the streets.
“When I travel abroad, I see the cameras on the street in the Bronx and it help with crime. It alone won’t [fix the problem], but it will make people think twice before committing certain wrongs,” she said.
Last November, Chang revealed that a significant number of JamaicaEye closed-circuit television cameras, installed in towns across Jamaica, are out of service due to a technical issue with maintaining the surveillance network.
He said then that the Government was in negotiation with a Jamaican company to establish an effective islandwide maintenance system for the cameras.
He told The Sunday Gleaner last month that the system would move from partial to full rollout in the coming months, with the necessary back-end infrastructure being developed simultaneously.
Police Commissioner Dr Kevin Blake has not responded to questions sent to him by The Sunday Gleaner more than two weeks ago.