SUMMARY

In the 1970s the JLP (Jamaican Labour Party) leader, Edward Seaga, as well as his opponent from the PNP (People’s National Party), started to enlist gangs from different parts of the poor areas of Kingston. The result was that the city became divided between areas supporting one or the other of the leaders. In the 1980 electoral campaign more than 800 people were killed as a result of the rivalry. It was also during that period that the gangs started to move into more lucrative business, such as trade of drugs.

In 1997 a “declaration of political tolerance” was signed. The process of achieving the agreement had been sponsored by Jimmy Carter and US Gen. Colin Powell. Though the agreement aimed to decrease the political violence, and thus the connection between the parties and the gangs, the gangs continued to exist and the rate of murders, many of them gang related, increased. Since then it has also been harder to see any direct leadership over the group at large. Instead there are a number of gangs in the JLP dominated areas who, on several occasions, have acted united. Most of the violence seems to be related to control over territory or markets rather than to politics.

The supporters of JLP have been involved in non-state category of UCDP organised violence.