On Monday evening Police Commissioner Severin Monchery and his deputy Milton Desir appeared as guests on the weekly TV show Police Insight at a time when the number of homicides for the year stood at 43. With a new year close on the horizon, host Zachary Hippolyte asked Monchery what he considered to be the police force’s greatest achievement for 2019. The ebullient Commissioner took his time answering. Finally he said that there were “so many of them” that he had to be careful not to congratulate one department over another that was just as applause-worthy.
One endeavour that stood out, Monchery observed, was the funding of school fees for eight students. Then there was the recovery of some 75 firearms, as well as community relations projects. He sounded especially proud of the recently formed Rising Stars Police Youth Club in the south of the island. “I think we had a very good 2019,” said Monchery. “I’m happy about that and I want to thank the hard-working officers because, without them, we could not have achieved those things.”
Deputy Desir concentrated on police training; on how during the year officers had benefitted from instruction in such areas as human rights, first-responder and customer service. He was hopeful that all officers would receive such training, keeping in mind related complaints from the public. Desir revealed plans to address the shortage of officers. A manpower audit had recently been completed which he said would “drive the way forward in addressing needs.”
The fallout from the IMPACS report has been a cloud over the force for many years. The most recent word on the subject from National Security Minister Hermangild Francis is that the United States wants prosecution before the 2013-imposed Leahy Law sanctions can be removed. The law prohibits the US from providing assistance to the force. According to the US Department of State this law is imposed when there is “credible information” implicating units such as police departments in the commission of “gross violations of human rights”.
Monchery shied away when invited to comment on IMPACS, except to say the consequences were “very painful” to him, and to the force generally. He said his job was to support his colleagues as much as possible. “Like they say in kwéyòl, I don’t want to be ‘blasaying the bobo’. I wish I had a magic wand with which I could make IMPACS disappear but it’s out of my hands.”
The concerning issues of the May 22 fatal police shooting of 17-year-old Arnold Joseph, the December 7 alleged suicide of Shem Sinaise while in police custody, the unexplained disappearance of Michael Blaze allegedly minutes after he was released from police custody, were all side-stepped in favour of a hoped-for brighter 2020. “The main thing I would want to see happen,” said the Commissioner, “is greater co-operation between the public and the police, and a restoration of public confidence.”Discussing the murder rate might have been a good place to start.
In closing, the Commissioner said: “I look forward to working with the public in the new year so that we can at least continue to keep those thugs at bay and continue to make our citizens safe. I urge our citizens to work with the police. It is our duty to serve and protect and we will do that, whatever it takes.”
