PM Jaimaika Implements Emergency Conditions At Clarendon After Armed Attacks That Killed 8 People

JAKARTA - Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness declared a state of emergency at Paroki Clarendon after eight people were killed in a separate gun attack on Sunday night.

"This is an opportunity for the government to carry out full mobilization to pay serious attention to gangs," Holness told a news conference at his office.

"We cannot allow murder to become normal in our country," he added.

The prime minister did not specify what regulations would apply, but this usually includes a curfew, a longer period of detention without official demands, and the police's ability to search property without a warrant.

Holness hopes the imposition of the state of emergency will prevent retaliatory killings, and says intelligence has warned there is a very high possibility for retaliatory attempts.

Five people have been arrested in connection with the shooting on Sunday, August 11.

Jamaica last year was ranked second most deadly country in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to a study by Insight Crime, with 60.9 cases of murder per 100,000 people, number two after the small island countries Saint Kitts and Nevis.

Holness noted that although the number of gangs estimated to be active in the country has shrunk from 400 to 185 in five years, the figure is still very high.