SUMMARY
Jamaica became fully independent from Great Britain in 1962, having previously been a Spanish colony known as Santiago before coming under British rule. The majority of the population was of African descent. The country had been a democracy since independence, with political life dominated by two large parties, the People's National Party (PNP) and the Jamaican Labour Party (JLP).
Since 1989, Jamaica experienced the non-state category of organized violence, as defined by UCDP.
2024
Gang related violence continued to affect Jamaica in 2024, with the country registering persistently high homicide rates across several parishes. Violence was no longer confined to the traditional hotspots of Kingston and Spanish Town, having spread into northwestern parishes including Hanover, Trelawny, Saint James, and Westmoreland, driven by gangs competing for revenue from the tourism sector and lottery scamming. Westmoreland recorded 100 murders in 2024, driven primarily by the ongoing territorial feud between the King Valley Gang and the Ants Posse Gang.
Persisting violence
The armed groups that had originally served as political instruments began to operate with increasing autonomy, financing their activities by trafficking cocaine and marijuana and establishing transnational criminal networks. Although their origins remained rooted in party politics, these organizations gradually transformed into criminal enterprises competing for control over drug markets and territory. Violence persisted in the following decades, being primarily driven by gang rivalries concentrated in the Kingston metropolitan area.
Pre-1989 conflicts
The roots of organized violence in Jamaica were deeply embedded in the country's political system. During the 1970s, both the People's National Party (PNP) and the Jamaican Labour Party (JLP) recruited gangs as a way to intimidate voters and consolidate support in poor urban neighborhoods, particularly in Kingston.
The parties supplied these groups with armaments, and the impoverished suburbs of the capital became divided along party lines. This political patronage system gave rise to armed groups whose loyalties were tied to the two parties, among them the Supporters of the Jamaican Labour Party and the Supporters of the People's National Party, whose territorial control over urban neighborhoods became a source of both political and economic power. The violence peaked during the 1980 election campaign, when more than 800 people were killed in clashes between rival political factions.
