#KINGSTON, February 4, 2020 — Parliamentary Secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, Senator Robert Morgan, says the Government is being strategic and deliberate in the design and implementation of eco-friendly and sustainable projects that will benefit all Jamaicans.
“We were the ones who said no port at Goat
Island; we were the ones who said we are going to ban single-use plastics and styrofoam,
and announced the proposed Cockpit Country Protected area,” he said.
Speaking
at the Houses of Parliament update meeting and tree-planting exercise at the
National Heroes Park in Kingston on January 30, Senator Morgan added that the
National Tree Planting Programme also forms part of environmentally sustainable
projects and aims to rebuild Jamaica’s contiguous forest, while building climate
resilience islandwide.
“It’s
not just because we are environmentalists at heart why we have made these
decisions, why the Prime Minister has led these decisions, it is because if we
do not make these decisions, then Jamaica as it exists now, the beauty of it,
the sustainability of it, will not exist for a future generation,” he said.
Senator Morgan argued
that the greatest threat to human existence is climate change, adding that
small island developing states, such as Jamaica, are even more vulnerable than other countries to
challenges ranging from the impacts of climate change to rising sea levels.
“So planting mangroves helps to protect the coast, it
also helps to build more land to create a kind of buffer between population
centres and people, but it also creates habitats for fish,” he noted.
Meanwhile, Senator Morgan said construction of the new
Parliament is necessary to improve the governance of the country, while
ensuring that it is accessible to all.
“I think twinning the
tree-planting exercise with the Parliament are two symbols of our development
as a mature country recognising the importance of doing the things that may not
necessarily, on the face of it, seem to be important… but recognising that
creating symbols of your maturity, symbols of your evolving nature as a country
are very important to young people and to old people, so that they can have
confidence in your society – that it is moving in the right direction,” he
said.
More than 1,000 trees
are expected to be planted as part of the National
Heroes Park Redevelopment and Government Campus Project.
For
his part, Senior Project Manager, Urban Development Corporation, Leighton White,
told JIS News that construction
drawings for the new Parliament
building should be completed by June of this year.
“We will take that to
tender and once we get a contractor that is prepared to undertake the project,
then we will have that person, that team start in January of next year,” he said.
The
construction is slated to last for 24 months.
During
the meeting, winner of the Government’s Houses of Parliament Design
competition, Evan Williams and his team, Design Collaborative, outlined the
concept for the structure,
Construction
of a new Parliament building forms part of the National Heroes Park
Redevelopment and Government Campus Project, which is a component of a master
plan to redevelop downtown Kingston.
It features an interconnected building with space to accommodate a football field and an area for outdoor movie watching.
PRESS RELEASE by Chris Patterson, JIS – Jan 30, 2020
Magnetic Media is a Telly Award winning multi-media company specializing in creating compelling and socially uplifting TV and Radio broadcast programming as a means for advertising and public relations exposure for its clients.
Words are in circulation in support for the establishment of an international tribunal, geared towards seeking reparations for centuries long transatlantic slave trade, after a CARICOM official made calls at the third session of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent (PFPAD) in Geneva, Switzerland.
During day two of the gathering held from April 16 to 19, 2024, David Comissiong, Barbados Ambassador to the Caribbean Community, stated there is a need for the tribunal as there is currently no international court to deal with the issues of reparations.
Commision, like the other members that support his view, according to reports, are aware this won’t be an easy feat, as he expressed that establishing the tribunal would require a “positive decision” by the UN General Assembly, further calling on the officials at the Forum and the UN, to come together through international collaboration and “make this happen.”
The idea creation of the tribunal was born last year 2023, suggested by the PFPAD, now reiterated by Comissiong.
Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary General, in a video, addressing the opening of the forum, supported the ongoing calls for respiratory efforts, a sentiment not shared by many.
Mentioning that racism is still an issue in today’s society, Guterres said, “ now we must build on that momentum, to drive meaningful change by ensuring that people of African descent enjoy the full and equal realization of their human rights; by stepping up efforts to eliminate racism and discrimination, including through reparations.”
The recent attack on the Sate of Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran, has delivered growing uncertainty across the Caribbean region, and the rest of the global economy.
Chief among the many concerns, is the free flow of oil from the Middle East, which stands at 31% of daily production for the global economy. At minimum, shipping costs are likely to increase based on the increased risk of military action in the Persian Gulf.
Pressure is also building on US and European insurance clubs to avoid any transaction, including those with China, that involve Iranian crude and additional rerouting of oil and gas shipments in response to Houthi threats, or Allied responses.
According to the Caribbean Community Council of Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR), “these developments not only exacerbate the already tense situation but also pose significant threats to regional stability and international peace,” the group warned in a media statement.
It added that the continued cycle of retaliation, including the recent attack on Israel by Hamas, Israel’s “disproportionate response” in Gaza, and the “alarming new dimension of direct confrontations between Israel and Iran, leads to an untenable situation fraught with potential for greater regional conflict and global instability.
“The human toll of this conflict, highlighted by tragic incidents such as deaths and injuries to children, demand an immediate and empathetic response from the global community. It is imperative that there be no further escalation that can lead to more suffering and instability,” it said.
While calling for an immediate cessation of hostilities between Israel and Iran, the regional body underscored that it strongly urges both nations to halt any further military actions that could worsen the situation, endangering not only their own populations but also the broader international community.
“We implore all parties to consider the severe consequences of further conflict and to commit to diplomatic solutions that ensure the safety, sovereignty, and dignity of all people involved,” the CARICOM statement said.
On October 6, 2023, the day before Hamas attacked Israel, the international benchmark Brent crude was trading at $85 per barrel and has been fluctuating at up to $96.
On Thursday, it traded at $91 per barrel. With the exception of gas-rich Trinidad and Tobago, the 14 other countries of CARICOM, are energy importers.
Approximately 93 percent of the region’s energy needs are met by oil imports, which average 13% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Hon. Olivia Grange, says the Jamaican Government remains committed to seeking reparations for the prolonged period of chattel enslavement endured by the African forefathers on the country’s plantations.
Minister Grange said that the historical events of the transatlantic slave trade continue to have a lasting impact on Black communities to this day.
She contended that the ongoing struggles to finance education and healthcare, address poverty and housing issues, respond to economic shocks and climate change impacts, and foster peaceful societies are all rooted in the historical legacy of enslavement.
Minister Grange was addressing a church service on Sunday (April 14) at the Webster Memorial United Church in St. Andrew, where an apology was issued on behalf of the United Reform Church (URC) in the United Kingdom (UK) by Moderator of the Assembly of the URC, Reverend Tessa Henry-Robinson, for the church’s historical involvement in slavery.
“We, the general assembly of the United Reform Church, mindful of our own history and that of our antecedent bodies, wish to confess and apologise for our role in transatlantic slavery and the scars which continue to blight our society, our church and the lives of Black people in our midst and around the globe today,” the apology read.
Minister Grange, in accepting the apology, urged UK churches, particularly those whose representatives were present for the historic apology in Jamaica, to communicate to their government the ethical imperative of admitting culpability through an apology and working with Jamaica to discern the potential avenues for reparations.
She said that the church’s role in the transatlantic slave trade has had significant and enduring effects on Black communities, impacting society, the church itself, and the lives of Black individuals worldwide.
“It is this complicity of the church that gave solace and comfort to the citizens and governments of UK and Europe as they endorsed and defended with their military project, that saw the capture, the torture, the dehumanisation, and devaluation of African people, legacies of which we experience today as racism, white supremacy, and discrimination,” she stated.
“We struggle to build peaceful, stable societies because of the perpetration of violence which was the platform on which enslavement was executed yet, in spite of this, we have been good converts to these same religions. Our people have adopted and adapted the doctrines and rituals of these new religions and in many instances have energised and revitalised them with cultural practices of African spirituality,” the Minister emphasised.
The URC is a community of Christians gathering in local churches across England, Scotland, and Wales, and is part of the global family of Reformed Churches, comprising more than 70 million Christians.
With approximately 42,000 members in around 1,200 congregations, supported by more than 600 ministers, the URC plays a significant role in the spiritual and communal life of its members and the broader community.