WESTERN BUREAU: Opposition spokesman on human rights, Isat Buchanan, has raised serious questions about the treatment of residents during the demolition operation at Cooper’s Pen, Trelawny, alleging that up to 30 men were detained for approximately 13 hours as authorities moved into the informal settlement early Tuesday morning.

Buchanan, who accompanied Opposition Leader Mark Golding and other members of his team on a visit to the community on Thursday, acknowledged the rights of private property owners but insisted that those rights did not remove the State’s obligation to observe due process.

“Notwithstanding that there are private property rights, there is process and procedure,” Buchanan said.