Human rights lobby group Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) is raising concerns about the detention of more than a dozen men in Coopers Pen, Trelawny, ahead of a demolition exercise in the community on Tuesday. The men reported that about 20 to 25 male residents were picked up by the police at around 3:00 a.m. and taken to the Falmouth Police Station, where they were held for hours. According to them, they were told by the police that they were searching for guns. Yesterday, Opposition spokesman on human rights, Isat Buchanan, who, along with other People’s National Party officials, including party president Mark Golding, visited the community. Speaking with the media, he claimed that the detained men were fingerprinted, photographed and had personal items, such as cell phones, taken by the police. He argued that the circumstances raised questions about the residents’ right to privacy, as well as possible “false imprisonment and wrongful detention”. JFJ, in a statement on Friday, said the situation raises serious human rights concerns. It asserted that the detention, fingerprinting and seizure of personal property, such as phones, represent significant interference with constitutional rights to freedom of the person, movement, liberty and privacy. “Where such measures are taken, the State bears the burden of demonstrating that they were lawful, necessary, and proportionate,” JFJ said. The organisation added that the mere presence of police at a demolition exercise does not, on its own, justify the detention and processing of residents as though they were criminal suspects. JFJ also raised questions about the legal basis for the fingerprinting and photographing of the men, noting that the Finger Prints Act sets out circumstances in which such measures may lawfully be taken. The group said that, absent a court order following a formal charge, fingerprinting is permitted only where a person consents after being informed of the right to refuse, or, in the absence of consent, where an officer not below the rank of Superintendent gives written authorisation based on reasonable grounds to suspect the person's involvement in a specified serious offence, or where the person has given a false identity. JFJ said the Act does not permit fingerprinting simply as part of a “fishing exercise”. The organisation is calling on the Jamaica Constabulary Force to clarify why police were present as part of what appeared to be a private demolition exercise, whether the detention of the men formed part of the demolition operation or was connected to a separate police operation, and the legal basis under which the men were fingerprinted and photographed. JFJ is also urging the relevant authorities to ensure that future exercises, including court-sanctioned demolitions and law-enforcement operations, are conducted with due regard for the dignity, safety and constitutional rights of affected residents, including adequate advance notice wherever legally required. The group said it will continue to monitor developments and is prepared to assist affected residents in understanding and asserting their rights. Follow The Gleaner on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.