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Some areas of
Some areas of Jamaica
Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...
, particularly population centers such as Kingston, Montego Bay and Spanish Town, experience high levels of crime and violence. Jamaica has had one of the highest murder rates in the world for many years, according to United Nations
The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...
estimates. Former Prime Minister P. J. Patterson described the situation as "a national challenge of unprecedented proportions".
Murder rate
When Jamaica gained independence in 1962, the murder rate was 3.9 per 100,000 inhabitants, one of the lowest in the world. In 2005, Jamaica had 1,674 murders, for a murder rate of 58 per 100,000 people, the highest murder rate in the world. In November 2008, the Jamaican Parliament voted to retain the death penalty, which is performed by hanging. Jamaica recorded 1,680 murders in 2009. In 2010, there were 1,428, in 2011, 1,125. 2012 saw 1,097, 2013, 1,200. 2014 totaled 1,192, 2015, 1,450, 2016, 1,350 and 2017, 1,616. 1,287 murders were reported in 2018.Emergencies
On November 15, 2022, the JamaicanPrime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
Andrew Holness
Andrew Michael Holness, (born 22 July 1972) is a Jamaican politician who has been the Prime Minister of Jamaica since 3 March 2016, following the 2016 Jamaican general election. Holness previously served as prime minister from October 2011 to ...
declared a state of emergency for certain regions of Jamaica because of rising crime rates. Some areas affected by the measures include the capital Kingston, and the popular tourist destination of Montego Bay. This followed a travel warning from the U.S. State Department suggesting travelers to not travel to certain areas of the country due to crime rates.
See also
*Jamaican posse
Jamaican posses, often referred to simply as ''posses'', are a loose coalition of Jamaican gangs, based predominantly in Kingston, London, New York City and Toronto, first being involved in drugs and arms trafficking in the early 1980s. Jamaic ...
*'' The Harder They Come''
*Yardies
Yardie (or Yaadi) is a term often used, particularly within the Caribbean expatriate and Jamaican diaspora, to refer to people of Jamaican origin, though its exact meaning changes depending on context. The term is derived from the Jamaican pat ...
References
{{Americas topic, Crime in