Prime Minister Bruce Golding last night announced that Justice Minister and Attorney General Dorothy Lightbourne will sign the authorisation for the extradition process to begin against West Kingston strongman Christopher 'Dudus' Coke who is wanted in the United States for alleged gun- and drug-trafficking between Jamaica and that country.
The Jamaican Government's handling of the Americans' extradition request for Coke, submitted last August, has soured relations between both countries in recent months.
But in a solemn address to the nation last night Golding maintained that the Government has never refused the request for Coke's extradition, but simply wanted additional information from the US to enable the justice minister to issue the authorisation in compliance with the terms of the treaty.
Golding said the opinion of eminent constitutional lawyer Dr Lloyd Barnett was sought and he advised that the issues were not sufficiently settled in law, therefore the attorney general should seek a declaration from the Court before exercising her authority.
"I wrestled with the potential conflict between the issues of non-compliance with the terms of the treaty and the unavoidable perception that because Coke is associated with my constituency, the Government's position was politically contrived," Golding explained.
He said he felt the concepts of fairness and justice should not be sacrificed in order to avoid that perception.
"In the final analysis, however, that must be weighed against the public mistrust that this matter has evoked and the destabilising effect it is having on the nation's business," said Golding. "Accordingly, the minister of justice, in consideration of all the factors, will sign the authorisation for the extradition process to commence."
Last night, Tom Tavares-Finson, the attorney representing Coke, said the matter is to be fought the courts and he was in the process of assembling a three-man legal team to begin proceedings on his client's behalf.
"We have heard that the authority to proceed has been signed. We are challenging it in court. To all concerned, we are using the courts," said Tavares-Finson.
"I do not want anyone to use this as an opportunity to go into the community and attack the law-abiding citizens, and kill off babies. The recent past as well as experience suggest that. That experiences tell me that force may be used, that is why we are using the courts," he said.
Tavares-Finson's reference was to previous assaults on Coke's Tivoli Gardens base by police and soldiers which have resulted in the deaths of civilians and members of the security forces.
This matter of the extradition, Golding said, has consumed too much of the country's energies and attention and has led to a virtual paralysis that must be broken.
Meanwhile the Observer has learnt that the US Embassy yesterday advised its citizens in Jamaica to stay close to home and take all necessary precautions in light of any public unrest which may result from the prime minister's announcement.
Since last August the United States has been trying to get Coke, who they claim is the leader of an international criminal organisation, extradited to that country to stand trial on allegations of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and marijuana, as well as trafficking in weapons.
According to the indictment filed in the US District Court Southern District of New York, Coke and others known and unknown, "unlawfully, intentionally, and knowingly combined, conspired, confederated, and agreed together and with each other to violate the narcotics laws of the United States" in the Southern District of New York and elsewhere.
The alleged acts, the US said, were committed "from at least in or about 1994, up to and including in or about October 2007".
The indictment also accused Coke and others of unlawfully, intentionally, and knowingly distributing and possessing with intent to distribute, 1,000 kilogrammes and more of mixtures and substances containing a detectable amount of marijuana, and five kilogrammes and more of mixtures and substances containing a detectable amount of cocaine in violation of Sections 812, 841(a) (1), and 841(b) (1) (A) of Title 21, United States Code.
The indictment also accuses Coke of illegally importing guns into Jamaica "via a wharf located adjacent to Tivoli Gardens" and outlines telephone conversations the US authorities say were conducted between Coke and a number of unnamed co-conspirators regarding the shipment of guns and narcotics.
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