Jamaicans for Justice

Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) is a Jamaican non-profit and non-partisan human rights organization established in Kingston in 1999. It emerged in the aftermath of the Gas Riots of 16 April 1999, a period that highlighted public frustration with alleged abuses by security forces, weaknesses in accountability, perceived corruption, miscarriages of justice, and socioeconomic inequality. The organization was formed on 19 August 1999 and became a legal entity on 15 October of the same year. Its founding purpose was to provide an organized civil-society response to these concerns and to give affected people a route toward legal and institutional redress. JFJ is best known for supporting low-income people who have experienced alleged abuse by the state, particularly in cases involving the police, military, prisons, detention facilities, and other public institutions. Its work has included legal assistance, documentation of alleged violations, public advocacy, strategic litigation, monitoring, and engagement with Jamaican and international human-rights mechanisms. The organization has represented hundreds of victims and has pursued cases before Jamaican courts and international or regional human-rights bodies. Rather than operating as a commercial service brand, JFJ functions as an advocacy and accountability institution whose public standing is based on independence, casework, research, and pressure for institutional reform. The organization became associated with several prominent cases involving alleged unlawful or excessive use of force. These included the death of Michael Gayle after a police and army roadblock incident in 1999, the 2001 killing of seven young people in Braeton, the controversial death of 13-year-old Janice Allen during an exchange of gunfire in 2000, and calls for a full investigation into the killing of Dwayne Jones, a gender-nonconforming teenager, in 2013. In the Braeton Seven case, police officers were charged with murder and later acquitted; the case nevertheless remained an important reference point in debates about police accountability in Jamaica. Child rights became another major area of work. JFJ had monitored conditions affecting children in state care since 2001, and the issue expanded significantly from 2003 after members of the public brought concerns about children’s homes, places of safety, lock-ups, remand facilities, and correctional institutions to the organization. JFJ has gathered information, published or contributed to advocacy concerning children deprived of liberty or state protection, and lobbied for stronger safeguards for vulnerable children. JFJ has developed working relationships with organizations and institutions including Amnesty International, USAID Jamaica, The Carter Center, Article 21, Street Law, the Center for Justice and International Law, and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. Its founding leader, Dr. Carolyn Gomes, led the organization for more than a decade and received the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights in 2008. Horace Levy became executive director in 2016, retired in December 2017, and was succeeded by Rodjé Malcolm. Mickel Jackson assumed the executive director role in October 2021. JFJ continues to be identified with human-rights litigation, victim support, monitoring, and campaigns for reform of Jamaica’s justice and security institutions.

Jamaicans for Justice developed from the civic unrest and public concern surrounding Jamaica’s Gas Riots of 16 April 1999. The events exposed deep dissatisfaction with the conduct of public institutions and with the perceived inability of existing systems to address alleged abuses by security forces. Activists involved in forming the organization also identified corruption concerns, alleged miscarriages of justice, and social and economic imbalances as conditions requiring an organized human-rights response. JFJ was established on 19 August 1999 in Kingston and formally became a legal entity on 15 October 1999. Dr. Carolyn Gomes was among its co-founders and led the organization for more than a decade. From its beginning, JFJ adopted a non-partisan and non-profit model, emphasizing legal support, public advocacy, fact-finding, strategic litigation, and pressure for improved accountability. Its principal constituency has included low-income Jamaicans and other people who may lack the resources to challenge state institutions. The organization’s early public profile was shaped by cases involving alleged police or military abuse. It supported accountability efforts after Michael Gayle died from injuries sustained during an encounter at a police and army roadblock in August 1999. It also worked around the 2001 Braeton Seven killings, in which seven young people were shot by police under circumstances that generated significant public concern. Although officers were charged and later acquitted, the case remained emblematic of disputes over police investigations, use of force, and institutional accountability. Other cases associated with JFJ’s advocacy included the controversial death of 13-year-old Janice Allen in 2000 and the organization’s call for a thorough investigation into the 2013 killing of Dwayne Jones. Child protection became a major and sustained area of work. JFJ began monitoring children in state care in 2001, while reports from citizens in 2003 brought broader attention to the conditions faced by children in homes, places of safety, police lock-ups, remand facilities, and correctional institutions. The organization collected information, monitored facilities, issued advocacy material, and lobbied for stronger protections for children whose welfare depended on the Jamaican state. JFJ’s work has extended beyond individual cases. It has developed relationships with international and regional organizations including Amnesty International, USAID Jamaica, The Carter Center, Article 21, Street Law, the Center for Justice and International Law, and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights. These links have supported a model combining domestic advocacy with engagement before international human-rights mechanisms. Leadership changed over time. Carolyn Gomes’s long tenure was followed by the appointment of criminologist Horace Levy as executive director in 2016. Levy retired in December 2017 and was succeeded by Rodjé Malcolm. Mickel Jackson became executive director in October 2021. Across these transitions, JFJ has remained associated with victim support, documentation of alleged state violations, legal action, child-rights protection, and campaigns seeking reform of Jamaica’s security and justice institutions.

• 2021

  Mickel Jackson assumed executive leadership

  [1]Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org

  Mickel Jackson became executive director in October 2021.

• 2016

  Horace Levy appointed executive director

  [1]Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org

  Criminologist and civil-society organizer Horace Levy took over executive leadership.

• 2008

  Carolyn Gomes received UN human-rights recognition

  [1]Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org

  Co-founder Carolyn Gomes received the United Nations Prize in the Field of Human Rights.

• 2001

  Child-rights monitoring began

  [1]Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org

  JFJ began monitoring the rights and welfare of children in the care of the Jamaican state.

• 1999

  Organization founded

  [1]Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org

  Jamaicans for Justice was established in Kingston on 19 August 1999, following the Gas Riots and widespread concern about accountability and alleged state abuse.

• 1999

  JFJ became a legal entity

  [1]Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org

  The organization formally acquired legal-entity status on 15 October 1999.

An independent Jamaican civil-society organization positioned as an advocate for victims of state abuse and a watchdog on policing, detention, justice, and child protection.

• Legal assistance · 1999

  Victim legal support

  JFJ provides or supports legal assistance for people affected by alleged state abuse, with particular attention to people who may not have the financial means or institutional access to pursue remedies independently.

• Research and monitoring · 1999

  Human-rights monitoring and documentation

  The organization documents allegations involving policing, detention, public institutions, and vulnerable groups. Monitoring and evidence-gathering support public reports, advocacy, litigation, and engagement with oversight bodies.

• Child protection · 2001

  Child-rights advocacy

  JFJ monitors conditions affecting children in state care, including children’s homes, places of safety, lock-ups, remand facilities, and correctional institutions, and advocates for safeguards and institutional reform.

• Public-interest litigation · 1999

  Strategic human-rights litigation

  JFJ pursues selected human-rights matters through Jamaican courts and, where relevant, international or regional tribunals. Litigation is used alongside public advocacy to seek remedies and clarify institutional obligations.

• 2013Dwayne Jones investigation advocacy

  Jamaica

  JFJ called for a thorough police investigation into the killing of Dwayne Jones, a cross-dressing teenager, highlighting concerns about violence and discrimination.

  Source
• 2001Braeton Seven accountability campaign

  Jamaica

  The organization campaigned around the police shooting deaths of seven young people in Braeton and raised broader concerns about investigations, use of force, and accountability.

  Outcome. Police officers were charged with murder and later acquitted; the case continued to influence public debate about security-force accountability.

  Source
• 2001Children in state care monitoring

  Jamaica

  JFJ began monitoring children in state care and subsequently expanded its attention to children’s homes, places of safety, police lock-ups, remand facilities, and correctional institutions.

  Source
• 2000Janice Allen case advocacy

  Jamaica

  JFJ was associated with advocacy concerning the controversial death of 13-year-old Janice Allen during a crossfire involving police and alleged gunmen.

  Source
• 1999Michael Gayle accountability campaign

  Jamaica

  JFJ supported accountability efforts concerning the death of Michael Gayle, who died after suffering severe injuries during an encounter with police and army personnel at a roadblock.

  Source

• 2001

  Expansion into child-rights monitoringStrategy

  Background

  Concerns about children in state care and later reports from citizens drew attention to vulnerable children in residential and custodial settings.

  Action taken

  JFJ expanded monitoring, reporting, and lobbying focused on children’s homes, places of safety, lock-ups, remand facilities, and correctional institutions.

  Aftermath

  Child protection became one of the organization’s continuing areas of advocacy.

  Source

• 1999

  Adoption of a non-partisan human-rights modelStrategy

  Background

  The organization was created amid public frustration with alleged security-force abuse, perceived corruption, miscarriages of justice, and institutional weakness.

  Action taken

  JFJ established itself as a non-profit, non-partisan organization combining victim support, legal advocacy, monitoring, public education, and litigation.

  Aftermath

  This model became the basis for its subsequent work on state accountability, child rights, and engagement with domestic and international human-rights bodies.

  Source

1. 1Jamaicans for Justiceen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Jamaicans for Justice official websitejamaicansforjustice.org