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A young man, murdered Thursday for crossing the imaginary borderline between two warring factions in Gregory Park, Portmore, St. Catherine, became the fifth victim since Monday in a deadly gang feud in the community.

The 'Road-man' gang, situated along the Gregory Park main road, and the 'Gulf Man' gang from the 'Scheme' and 'Capture Land' areas, have been at each other since the start of the week, leaving residents to live in fear.

On Thursday when THE STAR visited the area, the tension was evident in the eyes of the few residents spotted. Despite the presence of police officers and soldiers, few were willing to speak, with one cookshop owner only commenting, "Is me u waa dem come shot a morning like di man dis (Thursday) morning."

The fear-stricken resident was referring to the latest victim, Kevin Bryan, 25, from the 'Scheme' area, who was shot off his bicycle along the Gregory Park main road about 7:15 a.m. His mother, Paulette Bryan, explained that he did not heed warnings about the new 'borderline law.'

"Him seh him a guh a road an mi tell him don't go because borderline set up, but him na hear mi. Likkle more is a woman a mi gate a tell mi dat mi son get shot," said a solemn Bryan.

A witness said Bryan was speaking to a friend in the 'Road-man' area when he was overheard by a thug saying, "me nah tek talk from nobody, worse how a dem kill mi cousin (Sheldon Philips)." He was shot repeatedly.

Although the borderline is now cause of bloodshed, some residents of Gregory Park road say it has helped to save many lives.

"Di Gulf Man dem start shot afta wi from wa day, suh wi afi institute a borderline fi protect wiself. A dem start di f....ry," lamented a resident from the 'Road-man' area.

It is alleged that an order issued by an incarcerated don from the 'Gulf Man' area to kill a man hailing from the opposing community triggered the war. Although the police seem unaware of the matter, residents on both sides of the battle confirmed this claim.

With the tension so high, head of operations for the St. Catherine South Division, Deputy Superintendent Clive Blaire, spoke of the police's long-term plan to regain peace.

"We have increased spot checks and special operations. We cannot give details on these at this time, but we are being supported by the Jamaica Defence Force and will be maintaining this strong presence in the community for as long as it takes," said DSP Blaire.

In the meantime, residents say they are not sleeping at nights with regular gunshots shattering their night's calm, and are pleading for a post to be set up in the area.

"Wi caa sleep, pickney caa guh school ... a nuh seh di man dem a shot di pickney dem, but sake a borderline, man caa guh a work suh lunch and bus fare money nuh deh deh fi dem reach a school. Wi a beg an a plead for a tent (police/soldier post) suh di place can get safe again," said a resident.

"Him call mi and say him inna waan house pin down and bare shot a fire and mi fi come and bring a JP (Justice of the Peace) and a pastor," she said.

She received that call at 12:30 p.m .when Sunday school ended and immediately left Spanish Town for Tivoli with her daughter, but they arrived too late. "Di last time me talk to him a when wi deh pan Weymouth Drive and him say mi mus hurry up and come," she said.

Although she and her daughter tried to get to the scene, they were barred by soldiers. She accused the lawmen of assaulting her daughter whom they took away in a police vehicle.

A confused and weeping Haughton said Cunningham was her first son and second child. After a resident squeezed $100 into her hand to pay her fare, she turned to the news team to find out what she should do next. "What I mus' do miss? Weh mi fi go?" she asked. A resident directed her to Madden's Funeral Home.

Later, when there was a mad rush to view the bodies at Madden's, one of Cunningham's sisters confirmed her worst fears and could hardly speak or stand after discovering her brother was truly dead.

Karl Angell, director of communication for the Jamaica Constabulary Force, said just before noon, police went into the area in search of men on the island's most wanted list when they were met with heavy gunfire. They returned the fire and when it was all over five men were dead and a solider and a police officer were injured.

Inspector Steve Brown, from the Constabulary Communication Network, said while he was not able to say if any of the dead men were wanted, none of those targeted in the operation were among the dead.

Residents, upset about the sudden disruption to their lives, claimed the men were murdered. One resident on Keith Avenue, where the shooting occurred, said a joint police military team entered the community around 11:30 am and started firing shots. "Dem just come een and dem say to di pickney dem, unnuh gwaan een and mi lock dem up and a pure shot start fire afterwards," one woman said.

Residents said soldiers barred them from leaving their homes and tear-gassed those who tried to get on the scene. Some residents also claimed that shots had also been fired from a helicopter circling the community before and after the shoot-out.

A large contingent of soldiers remained in the area covering every entrance to Tivoli. Angell said they would remain as long as is necessary to ensure calm remains.

Desmond McKenzie, councillor for the Tivoli Gardens Division, said he was there to ensure that residents respected the officers and that the operation was conducted professionally.

Following the fatal shooting of five men and seizure of nine guns in the garrison community of Tivoli Gardens in West Kingston on Sunday, police islandwide are now on high alert and say they will be ready if cronies of the dead men seek to avenge their deaths.

The police say they recovered an Intratech submachine gun, an M16 assault rifle, an AK47 assault rifle, a Mack 11 submachine gun, a shotgun, two Taurus 9mm pistols, a .44 Magnum revolver, a .38 revolver and 481 assorted rounds of ammunition.

A police constable and a Jamaica Defence Force soldier were shot and injured during what the police said was a shoot-out with gunmen.

Two of the dead men have been identified as Kwesi Cunningham, 24 and Roland Wellington, 20, while a third has only been identified as 'Andre'. At press time the other two men remained unidentified.

Last night, the police said that the 53 persons, including two women, who were taken into custody, were released.
Head of Operation Kingfish, Assistant Commissioner Glenmore Hinds said the police were aware of the possibility of reprisal attacks and were prepared to take on all comers.

"We always encourage police to be on extra alert, especially after incidents like these," said Hinds. "Vigilance is what we encourage, and at this time we need to be more vigilant."

In May 2005, days after police had cut down Tivoli Gardens residents, Christopher 'Chris Royal' Coke and a man identified only as 'Jello', their cronies led an assault against the cops which ended with three cops and a security guard dead and another cop shot and injured.

Coke and Jello had attacked and killed Corporal Hewitt Chandler at the intersection of West King's House and Waterloo roads when they were cut down by cops who were travelling in an unmarked vehicle. The two men were allegedly carrying out the attack on Chandler in reprisal for the death of former Tivoli Gardens 'community leader', Donovan Griffiths also called 'Zion Train', who was killed by the security forces a month earlier.

Angered that two of their own had been cut down, the following morning their cronies shot up the Cross Roads Police Station and murdered District Constable Canute Brown. Minutes later the same car load of gunmen shot dead Inspector Lascelles Walsh as he sat on his service motorcycle at Barry Street in downtown Kingston.

The men also killed Marksman security guard Richard Adams as he drove along East Avenue in Greenwich Town. Another cop who worked at the Hunts Bay Police Station was also shot and injured by men who drove up beside him.

"We will not sit back and wait like sitting ducks," one homicide detective said. "What happened in 2005 must not happen again. I personally am taking every precaution to stave off any attacks and I urge all police officers to be on red alert."

Yesterday, tension filled the atmosphere in Tivoli Gardens as police and soldiers patrolled the community. Some residents hit out at the action of the security forces, claiming that the killings were carried out in cold blood.

"Dem kill the youth dem unjust and we know say the police don't like nobody in this community," one woman said.
The residents also said they were abused by the police and soldiers.

"Dem fire a barrage a shot and tear gas from the helicopter, kick off whole heap a people door and damage dem things. Dem beat up a lot of people too," another woman said.

But the police are adamant that they acted professionally and say they had gotten wind of the presence of men on their most wanted list in the community. The police say none of the men killed were among those being hunted.

"It seems they (the dead men) were acting as decoys and started shooting at us to give the wanted men time to escape," one cop said.

Yesterday Hinds, like his colleague, Inspector Steve Brown, on Sunday, declined to confirm reports that the wanted men were members of the feared Stone Crusher Gang based in St James.
"We are not going to make anyone who is wanted any wiser," said Hinds. "I can tell you that we were after people out of
St James."

In a story carried in the Observer last December, it was revealed that the Stone Crusher Gang had compiled a list of police who were marked for death. Police sources say the gang has ties to a criminal organisation based in Tivoli Gardens.

Five men were shot dead by members of the security forces while a soldier and a policeman were injured in what the police said was a firefight with gunmen in Tivoli Gardens yesterday.

At the same time, the police reported that they seized nine illegal guns from the community, triggering comments from crime watchers last night that this was probably the biggest ever gun find in Tivoli, an area normally perceived as being heavily armed.

Up to press time last night, the police had not released the identities of the five men killed. Neither did they name the injured cop and soldier, offering only that they were receiving treatment in hospital. It was not immediately clear what condition they were in.



"The operation started just before midday today, we came into the area in search of wanted men, including some of those on the police most wanted list," said police spokesman Inspector Steve Brown. "And upon approaching one of the communities we came under gunfire from a group of men. That triggered a gun battle between the security forces and the gunmen.

Two members of the security forces have been shot and wounded .five gunmen were also shot and killed. We also seized illegal firearms and a quantity of ammunition."

The operation, he said, was ongoing "as we intend to get the men who we came for".

Brown said he could not say whether the men the police went in search of were among the five killed. He also said a number of men were detained, although he could not give an exact number.

"I cannot give you the quantity now because of processing, but as soon as they are processed they will be released, I am almost certain about that," he added.

Brown also declined to divulge the names of the men the police were looking for.

Asked to address a rumour that the raid was conducted specifically to flush out members of the Montego Bay-based Stone Crusher Gang, Brown was very evasive in his response.

"If you get the rumour on the ground, then the rumour on the ground must come from the people," he said. "If they told you we are searching for members of the Stone Crusher Gang, then it could well mean that members of that gang are here, but what we are telling you is that we are searching for wanted men in the community."

Tivoli Gardens, a community that is fiercely loyal to the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), has been the focus of a number of police raids over the past 10 years, with the most memorable being that of July 7, 2001 when 27 people, including a policeman and a soldier, were shot dead.



At the time, its political representative, Edward Seaga, claimed that the violence was orchestrated by the then ruling People's National Party (PNP) to rekindle the perception of Tivoli as a violence-riddled community, thereby painting Seaga as a man of violence and not fit to lead Jamaica.

Yesterday, however, there were no shrill protests of political motivation from the JLP, as Desmond McKenzie, the mayor of Kingston and the JLP councillor for the Tivoli Gardens Division in the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation, said the raid was carried out in a professional manner.

"I would say that the security forces in part conducted themselves in a professional way," McKenzie said. "It is unfortunate that persons have lost their lives, but we support the work of the security forces as long as it is done in a professional manner and the rights of the residents are respected. And in this case there were one and two isolated incidents of abuse by some members but I can't say they acted unprofessionally."

He said, too, that some residents complained that their homes were vandalised by members of the security forces. "Persons have lost personal belongings. We have in fact made contact with the police high command and have learned that an effort is being made to investigate the circumstances under which the things were removed from the homes in question," McKenzie said.

He also told the Observer that despite the loss of five lives, the presence of Bruce Golding, the prime minister and member of parliament for West Kingston - in which Tivoli Gardens is located - was not yet necessary.

"I don't think this would necessitate the prime minister coming down here," McKenzie said. "As the councillor for the area I think I am probably capable enough to deal with what is happening on the ground."

Last night, Opposition spokesman on national security Dr Peter Phillips voiced his support for the security forces involved in yesterday's operation, while expressing sympathy to the policeman and soldier who were injured.

Phillips also urged the citizens of West Kingston to support the security forces in their attempt to restore order in the communities affected by the operation.

Just a note to you my friend....Those flash players are awesome, and by now I am sure we all realize where and how to get them as no matter how many times we delete them off our pages, you put a new one back!!!! We also see them here in the blogs over and over again.  Great idea, and way to market a product you are awesome. You are very persistent, with what you are promoting...maybe you should speak to the management here at Janadians, help them out and promote this wicked site...I am positive you would do a great job!!!! Also, then you might give the flash players a break.

Did you know.....

* Einstein was four years old before he could speak.

*Isaac Newton did poorly in grade school and was considered "unpromising"

* Beethoven's music teacher once said of him, "As a composer, he is hopeless"

*When Thomas Edison was a youngster, his teacher told him he was to stupid to learn anything.

* Micheal Jordan was cut from his highschool basketball team.

A person may make mistakes, but isn't a failure until they start blame someone else.  Failure does not mean that you won't succeed, only that you may not have succeeded this time!!!!!

Keep on trying!

35th Wedding Anniversary

A married couple in their early 60s was celebrating

their 35th wedding anniversary in a quiet, romantic little restaurant. Suddenly, a tiny yet beautiful fairy appeared on their table saying, ....."For being such an exemplary married couple and for being loving to each other for all this time, I will grant you each a wish." 

"Oh, I want to travel around the world with my darling husband," said the wife.

The fairy waved her magic wand and -- poof! 
 Two tickets for the Queen Mary II appeared in her hand.

The husband thought for a moment, and then said, 
 "Well, this is all very romantic, but an opportunity like this will never come again. 
 I'm sorry my love, but my wish is to have a wife 30
 years younger than me." 
 
 The wife, and the fairy, were deeply disappointed, but a wish is a wish. 
 
So the fairy waved her magic wand and -- poof! 

The husband became 92 years old 
 
 The moral of this story: 
 
 Men who are ungrateful bastards should remember fairies are female. 

 
 
 
 

If you enjoy history.....Canada has an extensive one...check out the following link

http://www.canadahistory.com/Index.htm

I. Pre-Colombian Jamaica
Prior to the arrival of Columbus in 1494, Jamaica was inhabited by Arawaks, living in simple communities based on fishing, hunting, and small scale cultivation of cassava. The impact of the contact with the Spanish was traumatic, and these communities disappeared in 70-80 years. Plunder, disruption of economic activities, new diseases, and migration decimated the indigenous population. Only a few artifacts-facts, examples of which are on display at the small museum at White Marl, and a few Spanish corruptions of place names (such as Ocho Rios) remain from this period. Otherwise, there is no Arawak influence on the subsequent development of life on the island.

II. The Spanish Occupation, 1494-1655
Disappointed by the absence of gold on the island, the Spanish used Jamaica as a base for supporting the conquest of the Americas, particularly Mexico with its treasures of gold and silver. The population of the Spanish settlement, including their slaves, was never large. It was administered from the Town of Santiago de la Vega, now called Spanish Town, and much of the architecture of the original buildings is still evident today in the town square. Economic activity consisted primarily of production for domestic consumption, and to a lesser extent the supply of Spanish ships.

In 1655, it was captured by the British expedition led by Admirals Penn and Venables, following their unsuccessful invasion of Hispaniola. By this time, the island was of little significance to the Spanish crown, and accordingly, very little was done to defend it against the British. As with the previous period, the influence of the Spanish settlement on the subsequent social, economic and political life of the island was marginal. Apart from remnants of buildings with the distinct

Spanish colonial architectural styles, and names of places, there is very little visible evidence of the Spanish occupation.

III. The Slave Economy, 1655-1838
After a brief period of experimenting with indentured European labor, the British turned to large scale importation of Africans to be used as slaves on the sugar plantations. In its hey-day, Jamaica was one of "the jewels in the English crown" because of the fabulous prosperity it brought to the English plantation owners directly, and indirectly to those cities, such as Liverpool and Bristol, which serviced the trade with Jamaica and the rest of the British Caribbean (West Indies). Plantation slavery was based on the Triangular trade among England (manufactured goods), Africa (slaves), and the Caribbean (sugar), which itself was the basis for what later emerged as the international economy. International trade was so important to the Jamaican economy that when the American war of independence disrupted trade between what was then the "North American colonies" and the Caribbean, 15,000 thousands of slaves died of starvation in Jamaica alone.

The plantation dominated economic life in every sense. It occupied the best lands, the laws supported the slave system, and in general all commercial and other economic activity depended on the rhythm of activity of the plantation. Some slaves inevitably ran away from the estates to live in small bands in the mountains as Maroons.

In recognition of her leadership in the Maroon wars against the British, Nanny was eventually named a national hero. Except for the Maroons, all agricultural activity took place on the plantations. The towns served as the commercial sites for the export of sugar and the importation of the inputs for production.

The political system consisted of a governor and his executive council, and an assembly of representatives elected on a limited franchise determined by property ownership. The politics of this period was characterized by an uneasy alliance between the governor as the representative of the crown, and the Assembly of planters, against the slaves. Frequently, the alliance broke down, invariably over taxation of the plantations.

By the close of the 18th century, sugar was losing its economic preeminence because of competition from beet sugar as well as rising production costs. In 1838, the slaves were Emancipated and the plantations had to begin paying wages to its workers. One of Jamaica's national heroes, Rev.Sam Sharpe, after whom Montego Bay's city square is named, is celebrated for his leadership role in the famous Christmas rebellion of slaves in 1831, a few years before Emancipation.

IV. The Development of the Peasantry. 1838-1938
After Emancipation, many of the ex-slaves settled down as small farmers in the mountains, cultivating steep hill slopes far away from the plantations. Still others settled on marginal lands in the plains nearby the plantations on land leased or bought in various land settlement schemes organized and sponsored by Christian groups such as the Baptists.

Struggles over land were central themes in the history of this period, culminating in the Morant Bay rebellion, for which two of Jamaica's national heroes, George William Gordon and Paul Bogle paid with their lives.

In this period, sugar continued its secular decline, but peasant exports of logwood, coffee, and eventually bananas grew steadily. In this way, the economy began to be diversified away from its traditional dependence on sugar alone.

V. The National Movement and Decolonization, 1938-1962
The roots of the national movement for independence reach back into the struggles for land in the 19th century. More immediately, it was inspired by the political ideas and agitation of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, one of Jamaica's national heroes, and precipitated by the reaction of the sugar and dock workers to the economic crisis spawned by the Great Depression. It emerged as a political force in the context of the rebellion in 1938. Its most enduring political institutions, are the two major political parties, and the labor unions affiliated to them. Both the founder of the Jamaica Labor Party (JLP) and the Bustamante Industrial Trades Union (BITU), Alexander Bustamante, and the founder of the People's National Party (PNP) and the National Workers Union (NWU), Norman Manley, have been declared national heroes for their individual and combined efforts in securing political independence from England. The constitutional change that facilitated the emergence of these parties was the granting of adult suffrage and a measure of self-government in 1944.

The period 1944- 1962 not only saw major political changes, but also major transformations of the structure of the economy. From a monocrop export economy, the economy became diversified around the export of sugar, bananas and other agricultural commodities, the export of bauxite and alumina, and the tourist industry. These in turn, stimulated a vibrant construction industry, and an import substituting manufacturing sector. The USA displaced the UK as Jamaica's principal trading partner. There was also a tremendous migration of labor to the UK and the USA which needed labor for the post-war reconstruction and expansion of their economies.

VI. The First Decade of Political Independence, 1962-1972
Political Independence was granted in 1962, following Jamaica's rejection, by referendum, of membership in the Federation of the West Indies. Jamaica was given a Westminister style constitution, with a Governor-general as the representative of the British Crown, and a bicameral Parliament. There is a House of Representatives consisting of elected representatives and a Senate appointed by the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition. The government is headed by a Prime Minister, who is required to consult with the Governor General and the Leader of the Opposition on certain matters. The first two governments were formed by the JLP, which had opposed membership in the Federation.

The post-war boom in the economy continued through the 60's, though it gradually slowed down, with the completion of the investment cycle of the bauxite/alumina industry. By the end of the decade, there were well established mining, tourism, manufacturing, and construction sectors, alongside the traditional agricultural and distribution sectors.

VII. The Second Decade of Political Independence
Between 1972 and 1980, the PNP, the other major political party, held political office and initiated a shift in major economic policies. Most notable was the imposition of the Bauxite Levy in 1974, in order to increase Jamaica's share of the income in that industry. The government positioned the state in the leadership role within the process of economic development, with a view to attenuating and rectifying the inherited economic inequalities.

Related to this was an ideology of social reform to protect the weakest sections of the population, and to promote the welfare of the poor through subsidized food, housing, education, health, and other important social services. In international affairs, Jamaica opened up relations with many non-capitalist countries, and promoted the solidarity of the Third World in international negotiations with the advanced countries.

The international economy was quite unfavorable for a number of reasons. The main ones were the weakness of the aluminum market, and hence, the bauxite industry, the inflation of oil and food prices, and the decline and reversal of capital inflows for private investment.

All of this contributed to the decline in the economy, with the attendant problems of unemployment, inflation, and growing external indebtedness. By the end of the decade, the government sought assistance from the IMF and the World Bank, and since then these two institutions, along with the USAID, have determined the policy framework of the government.

VIII. The Third Decade of Political Independence
From 1980 to 1989, the JLP held political office. They were committed to the same free market development policies as the IMF, the World Bank, and the USAID. Because of a special political relationship with the Reagan administration, Jamaica benefited from generous USA assistance in the first half of the decade. The economy was substantially deregulated, the currency was devalued, and many public enterprises were divested in the process of adjustment, which has now been on-going for some 14 years.

The eighties saw the development of Free Zone manufacturing especially of garments for export to the USA, the gradual recovery of bauxite/alumina production, and the rapid growth of tourism from North America. In the process, the traditional international economic relations, particularly with the USA, were strengthened at the expense of regional relations, such as Caricom trade.

The eighties also saw large volumes of emigrants, primarily to the USA, swelling the ranks of established overseas Jamaican communities, and creating new ones. Jamaicans are contributing in every sphere of human activity, and distinguishing themselves in cultural activities, such as music, and sports. In addition, Jamaicans have been accumulating significant quantities of wealth in assets in the USA and other countries.

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