Prime Andrew Holness has declared Savanna-la-Mar South in Westmoreland as a Zone of Special Operations (ZOSO).
The zone will cover the communities of Russia, Dalling Street and Dexter Street for an initial period of 60 days.
There has been several calls for a ZOSO or state of emergency to be declared in Westmoreland, where several double murders have occurred since the start of the year.
Speaking at a virtual press conference on Sunday morning, Holness said the ZOSO is needed in that section of the parish where barbaric gangsters are executing brutal terror.
“I am aware of the conditions of terror that the people endure. I feel their fear and I know the vast majority of residents in those gang-captured communities, whether in Central Kingston, August Town or Sav South, are peaceful, law-abiding citizens who simply want to live in peace,” said Holness.
According to the prime minister, some people are puzzled as to “why some people who hold political power do not recognise the state of emergency that exists in some of these areas.”
Savanna-la-Mar South joins Parade Gardens, Central Kingston; Denham Town, West Kingston; Norwood and Mount Salem, St James; and Greenwich Town and August Town in St Andrew, as the ZOSOs now in force across the island.
The zones have transitioned into different phases of the Clear-Hold-Build strategy, National Security Minister, Dr Horace Chang, told Parliament last December when the zones were extended for another 60 days.
Mount Salem and Denham Town, which were the first two ZOSOs that were declared in 2018, continue in the build phase, August Town and Greenwich Town are in the hold phase, while Norwood, which was last year declared a ZOSO, and Central Kingston, which was declared a ZOSO last Sunday, remain in the ‘clear phase’ of the strategy.
The Law Reform (Zones of Special Operations) (Special Security and Community Development Measures) Act is a component of a suite of legislations geared towards fostering sustainable development and community renewal in the designated areas.
