by Howard Campbell
FORT LAUDERDALE – Jamaican Prime Minister Andrew Holness made his first official visit to South Florida since he was elected to office in February, 2016, last week. On November 18, he addressed the Jamaican-American Bar Association at Westin Hotel in Fort Lauderdale.
A diverse audience attended the function and heard Holness speak on a number of issues affecting Jamaicans at home and the Diaspora. Those issues include the perennial problem of crime and sensitive issue of Jamaicans abroad being able to vote in elections back home.
Indeed, Holness earned sustained applause when he spoke about the latter. He said he supports amendment to the Jamaican Constitution which would allow people in the Diaspora to run for public office in their homeland.
“I think that would be a very progressive step in terms of Jamaica’s own development,” he stated.
Wayne Golding is president of the Jamaica Diaspora Advisory Board for the Southern United States. That bloc represents over 700,000 Jamaicans who live in 13 states, and presents their concerns and ideas to Jamaica’s foreign ministry.
He attended the function and described Holness’ speech as a “call to action in how the Diaspora can help build Jamaica outside of remittances.”
In terms of voting in elections and running for office, Golding said that, “There is confusion among persons in the Diaspora about voting and running for office and he was very clear about that. Once you are enumerated and have proper documentation, you can vote. But the Constitution states that if you have allegiance to another country you can’t run for office.”
Golding, a criminal defense attorney who practices in Orlando, points to data that shows not a lot of interest among Jamaicans abroad to run for elected office in Jamaica. Those who chose to do so, including current Member of Parliament Ian Hayles, had to renounce their US citizenship.
Others who live in Jamaica and have dual allegiance to the US, Canada and United Kingdom, have also done so. In a by-election for parliament last month, Shane Alexis who ran for the parliamentary Opposition People’s National Party, had his commitment to Jamaica questioned because he also has Canadian citizenship.
Crime was another key segment of Holness’ speech. Over 1,400 persons have been murdered in Jamaica this year, surpassing the 1,350 homicides of 2016. The Prime Minister conceded that crime is a deterrent to economic growth, but stressed that this is another area where his administration has reached out to Jamaicans overseas.
Last October, a task force comprising Jamaicans who work in law enforcement in the US, Canada and UK, was formed to dialogue with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to help fight crime throughout Jamaica.
Golding, who is part of that initiative, said the team has made two fact-finding trips to Jamaica.
