KINGSTON, Jamaica — A state of public emergency (SOE) has been declared in Rockfort and its surrounding areas within the Kingston East Division. This follows the fatal shooting of five people at a football match in Rockfort on Monday evening.

The SOE was declared after thorough assessments by the security forces which indicated that the elevated levels of violent criminal activity within the designated areas were of such severity and scale that they pose a significant threat to public safety, according to a government release.

The boundaries of the state of public emergency are defined as follows:
West: On the western side, the boundary extends in a northerly direction from the intersection of Michael Manley Boulevard and South Camp Road, then continues north-easterly along Vineyard Road then on to the end of Diana Drive;

North: The northern boundary extends in an easterly direction from Diana Drive to Lexington Avenue, then on to Deanery Road to the intersection to Mountain View Avenue.  The boundary then extends easterly along an imaginary irregular line to the shared parish border of St Andrew and St Thomas;

East: The eastern boundary extends in a southerly direction along the shared parish border of St Andrew and St Thomas to the coast; and

South: The southern boundary extends westerly along the coast of St Andrew, then along the Kingston coastline to the intersection of South Camp Road and Michael Manley Boulevard.

“The safety and security of our citizens is our top priority. This act of terror in Rockfort is a grave threat to the peace of our nation, and we will not allow criminal elements to destabilise our communities. The security forces have been fully mobilised, and we will use all available resources to bring the perpetrators to justice and restore calm,” added Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Security, Dr Horace Chang. (jamaicaobserver)

Photo: Prime Minister Andrew Holness and National Security Minister Dr Horace Chang condemned the slaying of five men at a football match in Pleasant Heights, Rockfort.(Jamaicaobserver)

WASHINGTON – A weak yen is beneficial for Japan’s economy as the boost to exports exceeds the increase in cost of imports, the International Monetary Fund’s Japan mission chief Nada Choueiri told Reuters on Friday.

“Japan is a very outward-oriented economy, and a very open economy,” which means on a net basis, the benefit from rising exports from a weak yen exceeds the rising costs in imports, she said. “So, the yen depreciation on net benefits growth in Japan,” Choueiri said in an interview.

“It’s important to recognize that the Japanese authorities are committed to a flexible exchange rate regime,” she said, when asked whether rapid yen moves would justify Tokyo intervening in the currency market.

The yen has resumed its declines recently against the dollar on expectations that the U.S.-Japan interest rate divergence will remain wide, posing a headache for Japanese authorities who fret of the hit to households and retailers from rising import costs from a weak yen.

On monetary policy, she urged the Bank of Japan to tread cautiously in raising interest rates, as risks to inflation were balanced and there was high uncertainty on the outlook.

“The first priority is to remain data-dependent and analyze all the data that comes, and to be very, very gradual in the process of raising the policy rate,” she said. “But we do see that the path will be towards rate increases over the policy horizon,” she said. (Reuters)

Photo: A banknote of Japanese yen is seen with a currency exchange rate graph in this illustration picture taken. (Reuters)…[+]