Gay man accuses police of harassment

Jerome, a gay Jamaican man visiting home, claims that he and his partner were stigmatised and harassed by some members of the security forces on the weekend.

Jerome, who lives in Europe, said that he and his partner landed in Jamaica on November 26. Last Saturday, they were driving in a section of Kingston when they were signalled to stop by a security team. He said they were given 'attitude' by the lawmen from the start.

"They told us to put our hands behind our heads and while I was doing it, one of the police who was wearing a ski mask at the time began hurling insults at us. My partner is feminine so they were calling us all type of names and one of them used his gun to push me," he said. "We were discriminated [against] because we are gay. They were very hostile after they told us to step out the vehicle. They were calling us 'b****yman', among other things, and I kept asking why they were treating us like that because we weren't being disrespectful."

The 29-year-old law student said the police asked him for his documents but when he submitted his Europe driver's licence and passport, they told him that the documents were fake and said he would be arrested.

"By this time they would have searched up my belongings and saw that I had money. The officer who took my documents went inside a tent and came back and whispered 'Yuh know how di ting set'. I asked him what he meant and he said, 'Gi we 200 euros and we let yuh gwaan'," he said. Jerome said he refused to pay and the cops threatened to arrest them and impound the vehicle.

Jerome also alleged that when passers-by became aggressive toward him and his partner, the police did not intervene. He said that it was only after he started to record the events on his phone and threatened to file a lawsuit that the lawmen began to act professionally, but not before asking again for a 200 euros 'tip'. He said he and his partner were eventually released without charge. Jerome vows never to return to Jamaica.

"I had left Jamaica seven years ago because of the discrimination I faced as a gay man, but I thought it was different now. I have been stopped by the police before but I was never discriminated by them until Saturday. Not only did I feel really embarrassed but I felt really afraid," he said.

Jerome said that he reported the matter to the police's Inspectorate and Professional Standards Oversight Bureau and showed THE STAR a copy of the police receipt.