Global Criminal Links (Part2-Gangs of Jamaica by Donovan Reynolds)

Chapter5

Global Criminal Link

This chapter seeks to build on the understanding of how the Jamaican Gangs have extended their network and influences to the United Kingdom the United States and Canada. After the infamous 1980 General Election politicians in Jamaica disassociated themselves publicly with these criminal gangs while privately soliciting their assistance to maintain their political base in the garrisons. As a result the gangsters turned their activities to the global drug trade forging alliances with migrant communities in the above mentioned countries. The war on drugs spearheaded by the Regan administration had two effects the first was that the Seaga administration collaborated with the US government to undertake a massive cannabis eradication programme in Jamaica. This move hit especially the rural cannabis farmers hard in the pocket. Secondly the traditional cocaine transhipment port used by the South American drug lords were sealed off and an alternative route was found Via the Caribbean and as a result the Jamaican Drug Barons seized upon the opportunity presented and shifted their activities to cocaine smuggling. They formed a strategic alliance with their mainly Colombians and Panamanian counterparts and begun using the island as a passage way and transhipment port for the illegal but lucrative cocaine trade intended for the European and North American markets. One of the criticisms of the war on drugs spearheaded by the Regan administration was that it focused on supply reduction while the Americans appetite for drugs consumption remained the same.

By 1980 the gangsters in the garrisons recognised that the local political hustling was insufficient to go around more over the cocaine trade was a more profitable means of financing their activities lured by the lucrative lifestyles. They began to muscle in on the cocaine trade and venture out to the cities of North America and Europe to forge their vicious reputation and extend their influence. With cocaine awash on the island they began the process of recruiting mainly women from poor and vulnerable families in Jamaica as drug mules to the USA and Europe. On the back of this activates the Jamaican gangs created satellite networks in the major cities of North America and Europe. They wrestled the cocaine trade away from indigenous gangs and foisted their interest by vicious acts of gun violence, callus murders, extortion and racketeering.

The Jamaican Posse is a loose coalition of Gangs based predominantly in New York and Toronto Ontario. It is widely acclaimed that these gangs are affiliated to the two major political parties in Jamaica-The Peoples National Party and the Jamaica Labour Party. Their first involvement can be traced back to the 1980s where they began with gun running then extending to drug smuggling and racketeering. The Jamaican Possies are known for ferocious gun battles with the police. They have a reputation of committing drive by shootings stemming from disputes over drug turf. The Posse members are known for ritualised killings of members who steal drug proceeds or profits. Ritual violent acts have included the use of laundry irons, chain saw, hammer and nails to pulverise their assailants to death. They have and extreme violent code of conduct against their opponents or among those within their ranks that step out of line.

The most famous of all is the Notorious Shower Posse a JLP aligned gang with its head quarters in West Kingston run by Lester Lloyd Coke Alias “Jim Brown” a garrison Don and political enforcer. The international arm was run North America by a middle class Jamaican business man turned gangster called Vivian Blake.Coke was believed to have been responsible for the deaths of 68 alleged murders that included 13 police officers over a six month period in 1090.Coke was arrested on suspicion of 14 alleged murders but walked away scotch free by making witnesses disappear on his trial date. Lester Lloyd Coke and 60 of his hence men were cornered after and arrested after a blazing gun battle with the Jamaican Police. The arrest triggered extradition proceedings in the Jamaican court where he was wanted for murder and drug trafficking. While waiting to be extradited to the US his jail cell mysteriously caught afire and he was burnt to death. While Coke was awaiting extradition in prison his son Mark Coke took control of the gang and was cut down by a hail of bullets by a rival gangster this sparked a bloody feud for the control of the Jamaican drug market. Coke is survived by three sons that head the West Kingston gang but they maintain a low profile.

Coke counterpart Vivian Blake continue to deny that he is the leader of the North American Wing of the Shower Posse according to him his label stems from the constant stereotyping of Jamaican men. Prior to his entry into gang land activities he was described as a poet, writer and businessman. He is born of a union between a Jewish housewife and a Jamaican merchant tailor. He spent a part of his early years in London, United Kingdom attending a Catholic School. His family returned to Jamaica where he completed High School in Jamaica with   satisfactory academic credentials. It is widely believed that Blake used his upper class status and his political connections to steer attention away from the Shower Posse corrupt criminal activities. Blake turned his activities to get a piece of the American drug market by establishing a base in Miami which over time spawned the major capital of the US to include New York while back in Jamaica Lester  Coke ran the enforcement arm of the feared organisation back in Jamaica.

Over a period of eight years he expanded his influence in North America by wielding his sphere of influence backed up by acts of brutality. It is believed that he was responsible for about 1,400 deaths and the criminal empire was valued at about 2.5 billion US dollars. This drew the attention of the US Drug enforcement agency and the Federal Buro of Investigation( FBI) By 1989 Blake’s name headed the list of 38 members of the Notorious Shower Posse wanted on an indictment by the US authority on racketeering,smuggling and murder charges. He escaped being cornered by the US authority boarding a cruise ship destined for Jamaica. He remained free in Jamaica for five years fighting the extradition proceedings but he case was loaded against him as one of his lieutenants was a vital witness in the case. During his extradition proceedings in the Jamaican court Blake remained a legend of Robin Hood fame by the Jamaican people who organised rallies and protest demanding his release. The legal battle ended in 1998 when he was secretly handed over to the DEA in Miami. After a plea bargain arrangement in which Blake provided evidence against his accuser he received a 28 years sentence and released to the Jamaica in 2008 amidst a media fanfare and cheering from his West Kingston adorers.

Other members of the notorious Shower posse were caught by the US authority and are serving sentences in US federal Prisons. For example Richard “Story Teller” Morrison a high ranking aid of Cooke and Blake was extradited and sent to prison and is now serving a term of 30 years to life on murder and racketeering. Maxwell Bogle who had been listed as one of the world’s 100 most dangerous men in 2001and was sentenced to 58 years to life in absentia was caught in the same year and is behind bars. Another extremely low ranking lieutenant Rycliffe  Bruce on the FBI most wanted list for gunning down a DJ in a crowded dance with two automatic pistols in his hands.

Jamaican gang activities have extended itself to Canada the Malvern Crew and the Galloway crew wreaked havoc in the Scarborough area of Toronto committing random acts of violence gunning down innocent bystanders in an attempt to intimidate and assert their badness honour status. The terrorised the Toronto areas for about two years. One of the most feared gangsters that headed the Galloway Gang was Tyshan Riley a 23 years man of Jamaican descent. He was described by the Canadian Mounted Troupe as the worst killer that the City had ever seen. Things came to a head for the gangsters when they gunned down an innocent bystander in 2004.A joint Canadian Police Command was assembled code named Project Pathfinder. It consisted of officers from the Homicide Squad, the Special Investigation Service, the Intelligence Bureau and Prosecutors from the Attorney Generals Office. The officers swoop down on the gangs and Tyshan Riley and Phillip Atkins along with seven other gang members were arrested. Project Pathfinder according to a Canadian police source got its name from a Nissan SUV used by one of the alleged gangster who is from a Jamaican decent. Most of the men caught in the police sting are behind bars serving lengthy prison sentences for charges ranging from intimidating witness, gangsterism, robberies, and murder.

The United Kingdom and England in specific is vulnerable to the activities of Jamaican gangsters and their satellite network due to its large West Indian migrant population made up mainly of Jamaicans. The first wave of immigrants(492 persons)that formed the British African Caribbean community arrived in 1948 from Jamaica on a Ship known as the Empire Wind rush the first generation of these Caribbean immigrant are often referred to as the wind rush generation. They were for the most part hard working people who migrated to seek work and helped to rebuild the United Kingdom after the ravages of the Second World War. Most of these immigrants settled around South London and made Brixton their unofficial capital. The town of Brixton is often described as the soul of black Britain. It is famous for the Brixton riot of 1980, Nelson Mandela visited the town in 1996 and a street is named in his honour. A square in the centre of the town has been named and dedicated to the memory of the Wind rush Generation contribution to the development of the United Kingdom. This historic and proud contribution to the development of British life is now overshadowed by the activities of Jamaican Gangs who have stretched their influence across England and have forged their reputation by drug dealing and several episodes of gruesome blood -letting.

In 2003 things came to a head so much that the Independent a respected British news paper broke the story that around 200 “hard core yardies” are based in Lambeth South London. The paper recorded that they were operating as members of the “firehouse posse” or Brixton “Cartel crew”. Most of the gangs connected to the Jamaican Migrant communities in the united Kingdom are loosely called yardies the operate and integrate themselves across the UK among the migrant communities and have recruited their members from mostly recent Jamaican migrants and second generation Jamaicans living in the United Kingdom.Peter Walsh the author of Gang war makes an important point that term “yardie” has become so ubiquitous so that it means any Jamaican, African or black gang. These gangs are so entrenched in London that a famous estate in Brixton is referred to as “Little Tivoli” after Tivoli gardens a JLP garrison in Jamaica. Other prolific Jamaican influenced gangs are: the lock city crew, the much love crew in Harlsden,the Hackney posse in East London, The young Peck ham boys ,the Peck ham boys, the ghetto boys in Lewis ham, the murder zone crew, The poverty driven crew and the paid in full crew. Turf war is rife among yardie gangs and the recent trend is the younger gang members breaking of to form their own unit. For example the young Peckham boys broke away and form their own unit and were said to be involved in the murder of a ten year old African youth Damilola Taylor.

For both old and young Jamaican influenced gangsters automatic and semi- automatic guns is a necessity. They move from house to house at nights making it hard for the London Metropolitan Police to track them. This took place after a spate of shootings in the black community in London in the mid nineteen nineties. The Metropolitan Police launched Operation Trident consisting of an elite core of armed police officer to deal with the spate of shooting and gun related murders across London. At that time Cold Harbour Lane in Brixton was reporting three shootings per week along with a number of shootings in Lambeth and Brent. By 2001 things got out of hand so much that the police in a desperate bid to stem the escalation shot dead Derek Bennett a man of Jamaican decent after brandishing a gun shaped cigarette lighter in public. Despite wide spread outcry of murder by his relatives. A coroner’s inquest was held and a verdict of unlawful killing was handed down by the coroner and subsequently held upon appeal.

The killings continued unabated without the police making inroads with the recovery of firearms and operation Trident focused their swoop around the Broxton area in an attempt to deter gangsters from carrying firearms while appealing to the public for information this created a positive effect in terms of containment but by 2006 Brixton was again in the headlines. In September 2006 Brixton was the scene of a widely reported shooting of two boys in a McDonald Restaurant on Brixton Road Acre lane.

The new breed of Jamaican style yardie gangsters and “wannabees” in the United Kingdom is propelled by the growing availability of three commodities: greed, drugs and guns. The new trend is for the more powerful urban crew of gangsters to deliberately encroach in nearby northern cities. The headline making conflict that earned Manchester the infamous label of “Britain’s Chicago” in 2004- was a chilling episode aptly captured by Peter Walsh the author of Gangs War: The Inside Story of the Manchester Gangs and one of the authors of the book Cocky, about British drug baron Curtis Warren. Gangsters on mountain bikes chased each other down a Manchester hospital corridor as staff bravely tried to barricade doors and protect patience who were members of the Goosh Close Gang and their rivals the Long Sight Crew hunted each other through the wards masked in hoods, balaclavas and bandannas. The incident occurred because a member of each gang had been taken to hospitals with gun shot wounds in an incident that also involved the killing of Leon Johnson a Goochie member who had been mowed down in a hit an run attack. As a result of the incident ten young men were later jailed for either affair or pubic order offences. Things died down between both gangs but in July 2005 they were at it again: the Goosh and the Dooddington gang fought hand in hand and traded gun shots at each other in broad day light in the Manchester city centre.

The West Indian involvement has been key to the spread of gangs in many UK cities. A 2003 report suggested Jamaican Yardies had invaded Britain at an ‘alarming rate’ and their control of the crack trade had gradually spread north, reaching as far as Aberdeen. Of 43 police forces in England and Wales, 36 reported a problem with Yardie gangs. Yet in spite of their almost insane brutality, the Yardies have not always fared well against home grown rivals. In Birmingham, Jamaica interlopers were faced down by the ‘homeboys’ of Hands worth and Lozells: the Burger Bar Boys and the Johnson Crew. The Burgers and the Johnnies, however, then turned there guns on each other in a tit-for tat spiral. That culminating in the tragic killing of Charlene Ellis and Letisha Shakespeare at a New Years day party. Far from cowing the gangs, such high-profile incidents seem to heighten their bravado. The Birmingham gangsters have even made and distributed DVDs of their exploit

The city of Leeds was relatively free of violence until the murder of towering gangsters Clifton “Junior” Bryan in 2002 before that he survive a close assassination bid when he was lured in a house with another man, Dennis Wilson, who was shot in the head. Their bodies were bundled into the trunk of a car which was later found abandoned in a district in the outskirts of Leeds.

The clutches and influence of the Jamaican Yardie gangs which has its roots in the political garrisons of Jamaica have been exported and entrenched in the capitals and cities of North America and Europe. Hundreds of deportees have been repatriated by European and North American law enforcement agencies. Some of these deportees have found their way back to their point of deportation shortly after. Others continue to contribute to the burgeoning crime statistics in Jamaica yet a few have been rehabilitated and have turned their life around. The legend and reputation of Jamaican influence gang activity is etched on the mind of law enforcement agencies globally who often shudder and cringe when confronted by their fearless activities. 

 Donovan Reynolds is a British based Jamaican Social Worker who is a Human Rights campaigner,Independent Writer,Blogger and Author of" Poor and Boasy": a tour de force of Jamaican culture seen trough secular point of view.He also has an interest  in culture,politics and international development issuesThis is an edited version of chapter 5.Readers wanting to comment or critique this article can do so at the space provided for comments on this blog.Alternatively they may give their feedback at dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk, or on the facbook or  Twitter link.

Why I am asking you to Support “The Intisar Sharif Abdalla Appeal”

Whether you live in Kingston or Khartoum London or Lima the sentencing to death of Sharif Intisar Aabdalla a Young Female Muslim in North Sudan is a stark reminder why human rights is borderless vocation. She was sentenced to prison in April for Adultery waiting to be stoned to death under Sharia Law in Sudan. We know that her child is in prison with her but the government Ministry in Khartoum refuses to give information about her. From information received she needs psychological Therapy. Let us raise our voice in an attempt to secure her release. “Justice somewhere should be Justice everywhere”. Intisar Sharif Abdallah, whose age has not been determined but is believed to be under the age of 18, was sentenced by a judge on April 22, 2012, in the city of Omdurman, near Khartoum. Since her sentencing, she been held in Omdurman prison with her 5-month-old baby, with her legs shackled.

 Her sentencing has drawn condemnation human rights groups across the word and Amnesty International has launched an appeal for her release. Africa’s director of Human Rights Watch. Daniel Bekele  has lead the charge by demanding that:"Sudan should immediately reform discriminatory laws and abolish both the death penalty and all corporal punishments that violate the international treaty obligations it has promised to respect." According to Mr Bekele no one should be stoned to death - and imposing this punishment on someone who may be a child is especially shocking,"

According to credible sources in Khartoum Abdalla initially denied the charge of adultery but later confessed after she was allegedly beaten by a family member. The court relied solely on her coerced confession to convict and sentence her in a single court session, while the man alleged to have committed adultery with her denied the charges and was released. Sudan is one of only seven countries that provide death by stoning as a punishment. Sudanese judges have sentenced several women to death by stoning in recent years, but courts have overturned all the sentences on appeal. The vast majority of adultery cases and stoning sentences have been imposed on women, pointing to the disproportionate and unequal application of this law.

The crime of adultery under Muslim practiced Sharia Law has long been a bone of contention with Human Rights protagonist who regard it as draconian moreover it often attracts the death penalty which is ridiculous and cruel overreaction. On a purely human rights basis it, also violates guarantees of a woman's right to have control over and decide freely and responsibly matters related to their sexual autonomy. In other words it a private personal matter and the assumption therefore is that it’s not the courts prerogative.

Under Sudan's public order regime, women and girls may also face arrest and flogging, up to 40 lashes, if they violate article 152 of the Criminal Act prohibiting vaguely defined "indecent and immoral acts." Women have been sentenced to flogging for wearing trousers and knee-length skirts, among other acts. The Protocol to the Charter on Human and People's Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa explicitly prohibits all forms of cruel, degrading, and inhuman treatment of women. The African Commission on Human and People's Rights has declared that flogging violates article 5 of the charter, which prohibits "cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment."

It is for this reason that as a human rights advocate I have launched an appeal on Face book called “The Free Intisar Sharif Abdallah Appeal” and urge my friends on Google, Twitter and face book to support this valuable appeal. I have also written to President Omar al- Bashir asking him for her Pardon and release on the Grounds of Human Rights. I have initiated this appeal because I believe that Sudan should uphold international and African standards on Human Rights .It should ban death by stoning and other corporal punishment, and revise laws that discriminate against women and girls."

In closing my readers let me reveal a secret to you that is a factual irony that sheds light on why this case appeal is so close to my heart. I was born in Jamaica in 1963 to a mother while my father was married to another woman. Should he have been stoned to death? I leave the answer to my reader’s imagination. Imagination aside -it shows how Kingston and Khartoum seem to be on different planets in terms of human rights. Finally my valuable readers I am compelled to leave you this quote from the great African American feminist Anna Julia Cooper as an apt reminder of why we should all support this appeal:

“We takeout stand on the solidarity of humanity, the oneness of life, and the unnaturalness and Justice of all special favoritisms, ether of sex, race, color and condition”. end of Quote.

Donovan Reynolds is a London based Social Worker/Human Rights Campaigner and Independent writer who has an interest in politics, and International Development issues. Readers are invited to critique or comment on this Blog, Face book, Google network or Twitter. Alternatively they may e-mail him atdannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk

Exploring subtle resistance, oppression class prejudice intertwined in the fabric of the Jamaican experience

Chapter 3

Exploring subtle resistance, oppression class prejudice intertwined in the fabric of the Jamaican experience.

This section of the discourse seeks to highlight the extent to which our cultural liberation began during slavery through subtle beginnings and the extent to which it was smothered by slavery, oppression and class-prejudice. The vehicle of transmission was by social encounter, dance and protest songs on the plantations pre and post slavery. The ghosts of these negative social forces continue to represent themselves along our cultural journey. Evidence is presented to debunk the myth that dance hall queens and lewd music is a product of the musical revolution of the 1970s and 1980s. It is believed that these repressive forces are continually riding the waves of our cultural evolution. It maps the progress of our culturally rich heritage, the social actors, power relationships and the hegemonic masculinity, the devaluing of women’s contributions and homophobia. It also offers insights, suggestions and strategies for future socio-cultural progress.

In order for me to generate the discussion of our cultural evolutionary process it is necessary for me to digress briefly by giving definitions of race and class prejudice in order to press home the unfortunate fact of how these twin evils and their associated power relationships stifled our creativity as a people. Unfortunately there is still a trickle down effect on our cultural space. It is instructive to note that in post slavery, post colonial Jamaica racism is no longer being perpetuated in its purest form. However, it is replaced by a subtle form of bigotry where lighter shades of persons bearing closer biological traits of white persons receive favourable acceptance in relationships and social institutions

Michael McIntosh, a Social Worker and a black second generation Jamaican born in the United Kingdom summed up his frustration with the class bias that he experienced while on vacation in Jamaica as follows: “In the hotels we were snubbed by workers in favour of white tourists totally ignoring us as if we were not there. When we met our family it became apparent that those of us with lighter hue were treated more favourably. We could tell how they felt by their positive or negative body language. While hanging out with my relatives there I heard blatant self-hatred being perpetrated in patois such as “anything too black nuh good” meaning if your skin is too dark you are not good enough to succeed at anything. The words ‘Mi preffa brownin’, was used to indicate a preference for black women who were of lighter complexion. Political correctness went through the window when a middle class member of the family snobbishly remarked ‘den unnoh deh ah Inglan so long, how unoh nuh ketch likkle colour? This seemed to suggest ridiculously that because we were born in the UK they were expecting our complexion to be of a lighter hue. I observed while moving around that those Jamaicans who dressed in nice expensive clothes were treated more favourably. We got into trouble at our rich aunties house when we invited her domestic helper at the table to have a meal with us. She felt that the helper was not good enough to eat with us as she was of a low status”

Burke and Harrison (2000) define racism as: A multidimensional and complex system of power and powerlessness. It is a process through which powerful groups, using deterministic belief systems and structures in society, are able to dominate. It operates at micro and macro levels. It is perpetuated through policies and procedures of social institutions. Slaves in Jamaica experienced personal and institutional racism and were socially excluded from accessing services in health care, education and housing. They were not paid for their labour and were ill-treated by their handlers and their human rights as citizens were ignored.

There is a longstanding debate in social science about the definition of class. Roberts, (2001) rightly observed that there are two sets of ideas about defining the subject. Marxist scholars define class in relation to the ownership or control of the means of production in a society. The other set of ideas are promoted by Max Webber’s scholars- they relate class to buying power- in contrast to the Marxist notion of the production ownership hypothesis. Neither of those descriptions can aptly describe the class relationship in Jamaica as it is a more complex arrangement. As Jamaicans, class relationship occurs in a saga of relationship exchanges that are both implicit and explicit. Like racism class is institutionalised and sadly acted out in our relationship exchanges of snobbery and  through episodes of social exclusion, oral narratives and either negative or positive body languages.

There is an abundance of evidence that class prejudice is the main bug bearer that prevents social, economic and cultural progress in Jamaica. This class prejudice has its genesis in slavery with the plantation class foisting a misleading ideology that because of their wealth, land ownership and biology they were better off than the slaves. Along with these ideas social arrangements were forged in a hierarchical manner. For example, there were the plantation owners in England, The overseer in Jamaica that ran the plantation, there were supervisory staff on the plantation some of which were mulatos and slaves who was divided in working gangs on the plantation. There were slaves who worked as domestic help on the Great Houses where the owners and overseers lived. These slaves were exposed to more privileges than the slaves who worked in the fields.

The governors were sent from England and the local government system implemented used oppressive and coercive laws that were reinforced by locally appointed legislative councils across the Island. Discrimination was perpetuated at various levels and these levels reinforced each other. The slaves were at the bottom of the power relationship ladder that bore the brunt of dehumanising conditions, and verbal insult and beatings that affected their self-esteem and blurred their self-concept. An ideology of divide and rule was inflicted upon them and the social, economic and environmental setting that they lived. This created the structural template for an oppressive class system that was institutional. This class categorisation not only created differences, it implied and entrenched notions of superiority and inferiority reinforced by the rule of oppressive laws.

On a personal level, slaves were denied a formal education the philosophy behind it was intended to prevent them from rationalising and making sense of their oppression which would ignite a social upheaval that would affect the security and economic interest of the white status quo. Through language, false ideologies were forced upon slaves such as being black was ugly, and white was beautiful. This implied a biological social division that was used as a justification for discrimination and entrenched inequality. It was this psychologically enforced misnomer that saw majority of the slaves over time believing, internalising and perpetuating self-hatred. Those who protested by running away from the system faced several beatings, amputation of limbs or in some cases public hanging.

A more subtle form of protest took place culturally through dancing and singing during the major slave festivals at Christmas time. Altkink (2000) a PHD student at Hull University gave insights into how this subtle protest was communicated by slave women through dance and song. She opined that: slave dances were both functional and recreational. It provided an outlet valve for stress, community cohesion and communicated ideas about sexuality and gender roles. These dances were sanctioned by the slave masters who endorsed the activity in contrast with education that they saw as a threat to their interest.

The slaves performed the Johnkanoo dance brought from West Africa. Dressed in harlequins accompanied by two masked male dancers outflanked by women they would lead their dancing procession from their estate of origin to several neighbouring estates. It is well documented by several writers that the masked men teased and heckled their slave masters behind the mask without them knowing. The unsuspecting planters showed their delight and approval of this perceived adulation by giving presents and money to the dancers at their gate.

Sharon Bryant, (2006) an African American historian from North Carolina on her blog opined that Johnkanoo was very much alive in North America and drew parallels with Altkings writing. Her account is summarised as follows: “They gathered in the afternoon with musical instruments, gave thanks for a good harvest and made fun of the plantation owners. The ‘ragman’, (the leader) wore a colourful rag costume, considered to be the spirits of the plantation owners’ family. He was followed by the fancy man dressed in a dapper suit with a tall black hat. He collected money in a tin cup. The parade travelled through the plantation and continued to the slaves’ quarters until the participants were tired”. It was by her account an exercise to vent stress, make fun of the master and acted as a buffer to prevent slave revolts.

The spelling of Johnkonoo varied and its origin and meaning widely contested. However it was widely practiced in the Caribbean and North America during and after slavery. These descriptions were documented by white writers during the period of slavery.

Historian Edward Long and Clinton V. Black have recorded epic descriptions of a vibrant dance hall movement during slavery and a dance hall queen was described. It was written that she had to conform to the expectation of providing a graceful performance when presented to her master. By their account, dance was very important in slaves’ lives similar to the dance hall influence in today’s society. Slave women’s hip wriggling during the slave rituals clearly simulated love making. The male domination in the slave dances conveyed courtship and male supremacy. It generated ideas about sexuality and reproduction. According to J.P. Moreton (year) a Bookkeeper: “The best slave dancers on the plantation raise their status in the slave community. One of them was a female slave called Psyche she earned this accolade because she was good at wriggling her hips. When Planter Monk Lewis requested a performance from the slave community it was no surprise that Psyche was put forward by general acclamation. Not wanting to draw the irate of her master with her hip wriggling skills it was recorded that she gave a performance that was light, graceful and easy spirited. Psyche received a handful of silver from monk for her performance”.

Edward long commented in his writings that it was plain to see that the slave women were born with the gift of dancing by the skills that they displayed. However, he was less impressed by the fact that children started to wriggle their hips at an early stage so much that he felt that it affected their walking making them as he described it, “Walk with a swagger”. Moreton stated that: it was amazing to observe the agility with which they moved and twisted their joints. Mary Ann Reid a slave woman from Unity Hall held a dance. The guests had to pay a small entrance fee to dance all night. Entertainment was provided by fiddlers and the slave guests were served with pork, yam, and plantain. There was a combination of admiration and debasement of how women dance during slavery.

Women’s contribution to the development of the popular culture of Jamaica has been undermined and has not received the attention and respect that it deserves. The popular cultures in past and present times have been bedevilled by hegemonic masculinity. Like race, women’s sexuality has always seen a biological matter that hinders their progress in every sphere of life. The sex difference of women has always been used to screen out or unjustly perpetuate injustice against their rights in pre and post independent Jamaica. In the early recordings of the emergence of our popular culture they had to take a back seat role. The Jonkanoo dances were led by two masked men. Today the reggae industry is male dominated and the success of women in this genre of music often depends on them forging sexual liaisons with influential producers in order to get the exposure that they so rightly deserve. The emergence of reggae music and its focus on consciousness through writers give the misleading impression that it owes its success solely to the emergence of Rasta music of the nineteen sixties and seventies and again women have been omitted.

 The great icon the Honourable Robert Nesta Marley (Bob Marley) became famous internationally in part due to an emotionally moving rendition of “No Woman nuh Cry” this sang drew attention to the difficulty of women’s conditions in Trench Town Jamaica an urban blight community battered by poverty and social exclusion. But how can the female singers, songwriters and dancers of past and present wipe their tears when their contributions have been excluded by the producers, writers and consumers of this beautiful art form? During slavery, slave songs were customarily the domain of slave women. Slave men only took the lead in work and funeral songs. The playing of instruments was male dominated and the lyrics of the song composed portrayed a sense of community spirit. Slave women expressed through their songs features of history that affected them most such as the beatings they experienced, enforced separation and forced liaisons with their masters. They clearly described in their songs how male slaves on the instruction of their masters held them down, stripped and flogged them in a way that was below a dehumanising standard.

So the Jamaican culture is subtly represented along class lines the culture has straddled a number of social relations with a strong masculine overtone that continues to discount female contribution and degrade any other sexual identity or their contribution to national life. In fact it is illegal to be gay and socially dangerous to act out any semblance of males not being masculine enough. There is a pervading feeling among the masses that the colonial master has represented himself through the old boy net work that constantly perpetuate a class war trough wilful act or omissions in order to keep themselves in power. Garrison constituencies is one of such political arrangement that I will revisit from time to time during this discourse.

Much has been achieved despite the drawback mentioned Jamaica is often described as the cultural Perl of the southern hemisphere our music, sports and food speaks volumes to our achievement. A web of deceit in the form of classism is spun around the countries people and has impaired their social interaction and prevents social cohesion at a cultural level. It has created social tensions resentment and divisions among people. It ails for legislation in the form of an anti-discriminatory legislative framework to tackle these problems.

Donavon Reynolds is a London based Social Worker/Human Rights campaigner and Independent Writer. He is the Author of “Poor & Boasy”: which takes a humanistic view of Jamaica’s culture. The foregoing is an excerpt of chapter 3 of that book. Please feel free to send your critique or comments to dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk. You may also post your comments on face book, Twitter or at the section reserved for feedback on this blog.

A Tribute to Donna Summer / Kingston “Soul Boys” and Exploring the High Risk Lifestyles of Those Who Party Hard.

A Tribute to Donna Summer / Kingston “Soul Boys” and Exploring the High Risk Lifestyles of Those Who Party Hard.

Donna Summer, "the Queen of Disco Music," died on Thursday after a prolonged battle with cancer she tried to keep away from the public. Reports say that Donna confided in her friends that she believed her illness was caused by 9/11 dust she inhaled. However, her doctors believed she contracted the lung cancer from her smoking habit which she maintained for many years. But Donna insisted that her illness was the direct result of inhaling dust from the debris of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. People who suffer from terminal illness because of the stress accompanying the illness often have delusional thoughts .A good friend of mine had AIDS and before his death he swore on his mother’s grave that it was his ex-female partner who placed a voodoo spell on him.

Donna Summer’s death comes on the heel of a string of recent high profile deaths in the American Music industry Such as James Brown, Teddy Prendergast, Isaac Hales, Luther Vandross, Michael Jackson and Whitney Huston. I can’t help but to mischievously suggest that they should have traded place with lowlights such as Rick James, DMX, Ninja Man and “Vybes Cartel”. On a serious note though people in the Global entertainment industry are more at risk to die from lifestyle illness such as accidents, drug overdose and cancer due to the demands made on them by their fans and the pressure to remain on top of their profession. We seem mistakenly to think that famous musician’s recent death in The USA is a new phenomenon. Let’s not forget that Otis Redding Soul singer of the 60s fame died Plane crash in 1967 and famous Rock guitarist/singer Jimi Hendrix died of asphyxiation from sleeping pill overdose in1970.

The death of mega stars such as Donna Summer always refocuses our attention to the catastrophic consequences of the dreaded illness of cancer. According to the World Health organization cancer is the leading cause of death worldwide it accounted for about 7.6 million deaths globally in 2008. Cancer, known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a broad group of various diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumours, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the body through the lymphatic system or bloodstream.

Not all tumours are cancerous. Benign tumours do not grow uncontrollably, do not invade neighbouring tissues, and do not spread throughout the body. There are over 200 different known cancers that afflict humans. Determining what causes cancer is complex. Many things are known to increase the risk of cancer, including tobacco use, certain infections, radiation, and a lack of physical activity, obesity, and environmental pollutants. These can directly damage genes or combine with existing genetic faults within cells to cause the disease.

 Approximately five to ten percent of cancers are entirely hereditary. There numerous studies published in Psychiatric Journals confirm the fact that some patients in the advance stages of cancer like Donna Summer may sometimes experience delusional thoughts, visual and auditory hallucinations. Some of these psychotic episodes are also as a result of the side effects from the prescribed medication that cancer patients in treatment are taking.

A group of us Calabar old boys got together on face book this week had a moan over Donna Summer’s death and reminiscent about our Kingston teen age Soul Boy years when we dressed up as John Travolta and Michael Jackson look alike and dance to the music of these great American Music icons. For the benefit of my younger readers during the mid-seventies and early 1980s a group of young middle class rebellious teenagers from the prominent high schools across Kingston Jamaica- spurred on by the emergence of Disco Music in North America and a Programme called “Where It’s At on JBC” television started a cultural Movement call “Soul Boys “.If someone urinated on a Zinc fence and we thought that it was Disco Music we would dance to it.

The cultural craze that took traction among Teen agers and young adults at the time saw us dressing weirdly in black pants white shirts rolled up at the sleeves donning ballerina shoes and wearing a hairstyle called the Napoleon made famous by Soul crooner Lionel Ritchie. Our female teen counterparts from High Schools such as St Hughes’s Andrew High, Queens, Holy Childhood, Excelsior etc were called “Disco Girls”. Our Weird dress sense and dance craze in the 1980s was so frantic that even our parents rebelled against us. I got the first set of bags under my eyes from having to sleep in the garden for a few nights when my parents found out that I had sneaked off to a party in Meadowbrook Estate and passed around a bottle of Red Stripe among a dozen of us and danced all night until day light.

The Disco Music of that era was so powerful and alluring that we all were oblivious of the fact that about 800 persons died in the dreaded political election in 1980. It was either it blew over our heads or we skipped gunshots to gate crash parties in Meadowbrook Estates, Heaven dale or Elliston Flats. On weekends we went to day Disco parties held at Exodus, Phase2 or Tropics Club and several dance marathons and day fetes were held across the Girls High schools in Kingston. By the mid Eighties the soul boy movement waned and gave way to Jamaica’s real reggae pop star Pinchers who captured the attention of teen agers and shifted their focus to Reggae and dance hall music. Pinchers at that time was a self obsessed Young good looking reggae artist with a greasy Gerri curl and wore baggy clothes he once created a furore when he was spotted at Holy Childhood High School Gate one day and an entire group of tent and eleven graders got wind of his where about and mobbed him. This led to them being sent home and told not to return until they brought their parents. Pinches went on to self destruct and is an old shadow of himself due to his pre occupation of songs about his self but he was responsible in the main for popularizing reggae music among teenagers in Jamaica.

As for us Soul Boys and girls of the eighties we are scattered over the globe mainly in North America and Europe and we meet up in a fragmented way on Face book or at Waterfalls club in Kingston. We are an old shadow of ourselves we are in our late forties and early fifties. Our eyes are no longer on the Disco dance floor we are eying up our pension package. Some of us have a beer belly that makes us look like women in their early stage of pregnancy and the Disco Girls of that era are having regular breast screening for cancer or having an eye on their grand children. The one thing that we have in common is an enduring love for old school Disco music of the 1980s.

 When we grab our crotch nowadays its not to dance to a Michael Jackson Disco Music .It’s because like Donna Summers we are having delusional thoughts of having prostrate or testicular cancer from the nicotine habit that we contracted as Soul boys of the 1980s. The last time I went Disco dancing in London I almost toppled myself on the dance floor. Last year, while in Jamaica I went to Waterfalls Night club against the advice of my doctor and saw an old KC friend by the name of” Prendi” with a group of old 80s soul boys squaring off on the dance floor the almost put me off my supper-seriously they should give up the game. But the powerful allure of Disco music is a social drug that will be etched on our gravestones. As a mark of respect for our fallen music icons and the few remaining one we will be Retuning to Jamaica for the Jazz and Blue festival in 2013 to make a final stand before arthritis set in it gives me about a half a year to brush up on my “Break Dancing”. For now our thoughts are with the late great Donna Summer who was and still remain one of our greatest idols with her Whitney Huston and Michael Jackson heaven it’s no longer a quiet place.

Donovan Reynolds is a London based Social Worker Human Rights Campaigner. Readers of this blog are invited to post comments on the space provided at the end of this blog. Or alternatively, they may e-mail their comments @ dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk.

A Clarion Call for a Root and Branch Reform of the Jamaica Labour Party

Clarion Call for a Root and Branch Reform of the Jamaica Labour Party

This article seeks to supports in principle a clarion call for a much needed review of the Jamaica Labour Party. Among other suggestions it sets out a proposition for asking some key questions about its Organisational Structure and strategy on the back of two election losses and accusations of arrogance and a loss of credibility during its shot period of governance. The aim of the review should be to address to comprehensively address all the challenges faced by the JLP as it begins its recovery process. The Opposition Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) leader Andrew Holness this week announced a five-member Independent Strategic Review Commission (ISRC) which will, among other things, seek answers to the low voter turnout in the most recent elections, and articulate strategies to convert the "broad mass of disaffection" into JLP support. The commission, headed by professor of sociology, psychology and social work at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Mona, Bernard Headley, also include Rev Dr Maitland Evans, president of the International University of Caribbean and chairman of the Mel Nathan Institute, a 34-year-old inner-city empowerment project started in Hannah Town, West Kingston; Dr Marcia Forbes, communications specialist and media veteran; Dr Lloyd Waller, lecturer in methodology in the Department of Government at the UWI, Mona; and Professor Neville Swaby, a finance and banking expert who heads the University of Technology ,Jamaican Institute of Management (JIM) School of Advanced Management. The leadership need to put in place measures and take urgent steps to address its weaknesses. The leader of the party has to ask him-self the soul searching but relevant questions. What new capacity does the organisation require to lead this new phase of the struggle for survival and political relevance? And has he got the fighting spirit and the fire in his belly to implement the radical changes that are necessary?

In order to generate any meaningful discussion and analysis of the JLPs current state it is necessary for me to digress by delving into its history and pass achievements in government. Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) is one of the two major political parties in Jamaica, the other being the People's National Party. Despite its name, the JLP is a centre-right, conservative party, albeit one with ties to the Jamaican labor movement. The party was founded on 8 July 1943 by Alexander Bustamante as the political wing of the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union. It won the 1944 general elections with 22 of the 32 seats. It went on to win the 1949 elections with a reduced majority, before losing power to the PNP in the 1955 elections. It remained in opposition following the 1959 elections, but was victorious in 1962. In 1964 Bustamante retired from politics, he did not relinquish the title of party leader for several years, until the party gave him the honorific title of "The Chief" following its defeat in the 1972 elections. In the interim, the party was led by Donald Sangster (until 1967) and Hugh Shearer (until 1974), having the title of "First Deputy Leader “for the JLP.

In 1974 Edward Sage became the second leader of the party. The party lost the 1976 elections, but Seaga became Prime Minister after victory in 1980 when the party won 51 of the 60 seats. In an election boycotted by the opposition in 1983 the JLP won all sixty seats. They were defeated in the 1989 elections and went on to lose elections in 1993, 1997 and 2002. In 2005 Bruce Golding succeeded Seaga as head of the party, and led it to victory in the 2007 elections. Golding resigned as head of the party in October 2011 in the aftermath of a political scandal that affected the party image and credibility, and was succeeded by current leader Andrew Holness.The current leader Andrew Holness lost the general election in December 2011 to the PNP Portia Simpson Miller and by may 2012 the party again lost the Local Government elections. With the loss of the general Election in 2011 the JLP created history by becoming the first one term elected government in the history of post independent Jamaica

 The following is a list of the s achievement while in government: Under the JLP government in1948 The University College of the West Indies was established and the University College Hospital of the West Indies (UCHI) came into existence.In1952 The Jamaica Industrial Development Corporation (JIDC) and the Agricultural Development Corporation. In the same year The Jamaica Industrial Development Corporation (JIDC) and the Agricultural Development Corporation was born. In 1964 the National Heroes Park was constructed. Between 1965 and 1969 the Arawak and Port Royal Museums Established. In 1967 the Institute of Jamaica was established. In 1967 the reclamation and development of Ocho Rios Waterfront (Turtle Beach) was done.1968 ––Creation of National Heritage Week.1963 the National Arena was constructed .In 1971 the National School Feeding Programme was commissioned. In 1981 the National Development Bank (NDB) was established. In 1981The Agricultural Credit bank was established to provide loans for small farmer’s .In 1982 -The establishment of the Human Employment and Resource Trust (H.E.A.R.T.) opened up important new areas of practical skill training and employment opportunities for young people by taking a new and dynamic approach by focusing on the growth areas of the economy.

In 1984 Establishment of Food Stamp Programme for elderly poor and nursing mothers across the Island. In1985 Export – Import Bank (Exim Bank) was established. In 1986 there was the establishment of the Office of the Contractor General, originally proposed in 1979 to ensure equity and reduce corruption in the awarding of government contracts. In 1987 Tourism surged forward to bring in, for the first time (1987) one million visitors in a year. This industry was set on the high road of increasing growth and achieved a position of leadership as an earner of vital foreign exchange1In 1988 a large construction of residential halls was done by the government for UWI, UTECH and Cultural Training Centre placing student social and educational needs at the forefront. In2007 when the Bruce Golding led government took over the reins of government the greatest revolution in health care and education took place: free Primary and secondary education and free health care at the point of delivery.

 The history of political parties in a plural democracy is not a process of linear progress. Any political part that is serious about state governance has a history has ebbs and flows, ups and downs -successes and setbacks, moments of victory and those of defeat. The History of the JLP is no exception. The resilience of any organisation is illustrated by how it has been able to handle moments of setbacks and internal problems- in order to safeguard the cause of the people. In the JLP case it has a mandate by its founding father Bustamante: to seize opportunities and ensure victory for the Jamaican people’s struggle against economic hardship and social exclusion. On balance the JLP has a fairly good record of managing the economy with very limited resources. However the party have a poor history of getting the Jamaican electorate to buy into its Ideology of being a serious fiscal conservative organisation that cares about the poor. As a consequence the party has always struggled to shake off its arrogant uncaring way in which it communicates its policies and political agenda.

At the end of both post election concession of defeat speech the leader of the JLP narrowed the chance of making a progressive appeal pitched to the party’s faithful and sympathisers that he was remorseful of the losses and wanted to regain confidence and trust among the disaffected electorate. As a matter of fact -on the last concession of defeat speech -he made it clear to the media that he would entertain only three questions from the press. This ad hoc way of presenting political unscripted speeches seemed wholly unprofessional at the time and may have confirmed the arrogant hypothesis.

 Many political leaders of the past have see their political dreams shattered as General election results come in the late Hon. Michael Manley Was one of them. In 1980 as the loosing PNP supporters stared into political oblivion at the PNP head quarters, Michael Manley left his fingerprints on history and inspired hope among the party faithful with a memorable concession speech in the aftermath of the devastating 1980 election defeat. Defeat has inspired candidates of all stripes to deliver great moments of poetry that renewed their member’s belief in the political organization.

So the JLP clearly has a problem of delivery and presentation both internally and externally. In addition there were growing pains at an individual leadership level leading up to the loss of the general election. Its parliamentarians such as Mr Evrald Warming ton and former Parliamentarian Mr Ernest smith and other functionaries such as the Leader of the Generation 2K (Its youth Organisation) have long been a hindrance with their foot in mouth uttering’s that often smacks of colonialism. Senator Dwight Nelson could not distinguish Monday from Friday. Andre Franklyn was a disorganised General Secretary; Daryl Vaz had several arrogant cat fights with the media. In the heat of the election campaign Mike Henry the Construction minister lost his Cabinet post because of a political scandal. The party leader misread the pulse of the electorate hurriedly called a December election with getting the party’s prospective voters on the list. To top it all off -at the end of both election defeats the leader narrowed the dialectical space between himself and the public not once but twice in his concession of victory speeches. So the review is timely and necessary however, it should not be an exercise where high flouting academics come up with mumbo Jumbo solutions that are not in line with modernising the party. In order to unearth the weaknesses and failings of the organisation it is imperative that the following questions are asked:

(1)What has caused the Party’s core to shift from its base?

(2) Is the method of selecting candidates and the monitoring of their conduct working?

(3)Why is the JLP the “ugly Betty “of Jamaican Politics and what can be done to improve its image and likability?

(4)What does the Party need to do to attract and retain new supporters and membership?

(5)Is the Party’s Ideology and core message at odds with the current politic and domestic climate?

(6)Is the JLP centralised way of structuring its organisation working?

(7) Is the current leadership adequately trained and motivated sufficiently to lead the changes that the organisation needs?

(8) Are the JLP delegates and Party functionaries sufficiently trained and motivated to attract new supporters?

(9) Is the party’s candidates and leaders selected fairly by their local delegates and are they representative of the general population?

(10) Is the Party serious about tackling corruption and has the determination to uproot corrupt official from its leadership and distance itself from criminal activity and garrison politics?

 

Finally the success of the Jamaica Labour Party must come from a deep honest re-examination of its strategy and processes. The party must grow out of the conscience and participation of grass root Jamaicans not out of the arrogance of its leaders as it stands now. The Leader has to be the beacon of the reclamation he is a nice man but he comes over as boring and need to get a spring in his step and a new sparkle in his eyes. Leadership is for the bold and not the faint hearted. He should head Napoleon Hill’s advice that” every failure and heartache carries with it a seed of an equivalent or greater benefit.”The recommendations of the review is not a tool of appeasement .It will have to be taken seriously as its the JLP last straw of hope as the Party is in decline. The label of a one term government has shaken the party’s supporters and financial backers about its future. it’s time for the leadership of the JLP to show guts and determination by rallying this once great organisation to a bold and radical departure Jamaica needs a strong Labor party as it stands now it’s a  shadow of its old self.

 Donovan Reynolds is a London based Human Rights Campaigner/Social Workerand Independent Writer with an interest in politics and international development.Feedback and comments can be posted on this blog or you may e-mail comments at dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk

Endorsing the Nigeriean Candidate for Head of the World Bank-by Donovan Reynolds

This article seeks to make a contribution to the on-going topic of debate concerning the appointment of a new candidate to be selected by the World Bank directors for the role of president of the World Bank.  It comes amid a call for reform of the selection process of how Presidents of the bank is selected and the call for a global policy shift of the way in which the bank currently operates. Barrack Obama has fired the bow over the salvo by announcing his preference of candidate Jim Yong Kim an American Health Professional this week in a high profile press conference in the US this week. It is widely seen by international commentator to be pandering to voters with an election year looming in the back ground. It is widely believed that this move will shore up positive perceptions with voters that the President is safeguarding the US international interest by maintaining the American status quo. This writer broadly supports the candidacy of Nigeria’s current Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala a previously managing director of the World Bank on the basis of qualification and experience. However, it is broadly anticipated that the American candidate Jim Yong Kim will get the job based on an international sweet heart deal agreed by the US and Europe in 1944.

The World Bank was set up in 1944 with a charter to drive post-World War II reconstruction. It evolved from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, but its present day mandate is much wider: worldwide poverty alleviation in conjunction with its affiliate, the International Development Association. Since its inception, the World Bank has lent and given grants and credits worth $400 billion. Its money is spent on specific projects such as freeways and dams. In addittion the Bank employs economists and policy people to tackle the causes of poverty in the poorest nations. Other issues on the World Bank's agenda include the reduction of corruption, and the promotion of education and health care in developing countries. The bank has a board of 24 executives. Five of these come from its biggest donors (the US, Japan, Germany, France and Britain), while the rest are chosen by its remaining member countries. The 19 executive directors represent groups of countries. For instance, Australia's executive director also represents Cambodia, South Korea, Kiribati and other Pacific nations. By convention, the US has always nominated the president of the World Bank (the Europeans choose the head of the International Monetary Fund under this handshake agreement). In recent years, developing nations have been highly critical of this process because they say it means the bank becomes the tool of developed countries, not those for whom it was set up to benefit

There are three candidates for the next president of the World Bank. They are Jim Yong Kim from the US, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala from Nigeria and Jose Antonio Ocampo from Colombia. The Nigerian finance minister has been endorsed by three African countries - South Africa, Angola and and Nigeria - and is seen as a very serious candidate. However, Jim yong Kim has received the powerful endorsement of US President Barak Obama and base on the history selection process he is widely expected to get the top Job despite him having a lack of banking and financial experience.

On record all three candidates come highly recommended and all have core competence in international development issues that is required for the job. Mrs Okonjo-Iweala, 57, was previously a managing director at the World Bank, appointed by Robert Zoellick in October 2007, a role she held until last year when she took up her government position. She is in her second stint as finance minister, having also served under former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo .She studied at Harvard and earned a PhD in regional economics and development from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) .The married mother-of-four has won many awards, including Time magazine's European Hero in 2004, Euro money Magazine Global Finance Minister of the Year in 2005, and the Financial Times/The Banker African Finance Minister of the Year in 2005.

 Jim young Kim the US candidate was born in Seoul, he moved with his family to the US at the age of five and grew up in Muscatine, Iowa. In high school, he was valedictorian and president of his class, played quarterback for the football team and point guard for the basketball team. He attended Brown University before going on to Harvard where he earned his medical doctorate in 1991 and a PhD in anthropology in 1993.He became president of Dartmouth College in 2009, where he made a memorable appearance as a rapping spaceman, complete with white, studded leather jacket, at a college talent show. Married to a fellow doctor, and with two young sons, Dr Kim said he joined Dartmouth "to be more effective at making the world a better place". He will hope to do the same at the World Bank. Though a surprise choice, he is still the favourite for the top job, given the US holds the most votes at the World Bank.

Mr Ocampo is best known as the former finance minister for Colombia - though he has also held other posts in government, including agriculture. He is well respected for a series of policies that helped his nation avoid the worst of the financial crises that have struck Latin America over the years. Currently, he is professor of professional practice in the International and Public Affairs department of Columbia University in New York. He has also been a visiting fellow at Oxford and Yale. Mr Ocampo has held a number of positions in the United Nations, including as UN Under-Secretary General for Economic and Social Affairs. He also took charge of the UN's Economic Commission for Latin America and turned it into a regional development powerhouse. He received his BA in economics and sociology from the University of Notre Dame in 1972 and his PhD in economics from Yale University in 1976.

 According to Deepak Nayyar a well-known Indian professor and global economic commentator four developing countries – “China, India, Brazil and South Africa (CIBS) - are poised to become new southern engines of global economic growth with increasing potential to provide prosperity to other developing countries. The economic clout of these four countries will also create new realignments in the international governance architecture providing policy space for developing countries to pursue economic development. India, China, Brazil and South Africa have a potential collective voice in the world of multilateral institutions and rules and an enormous potential for exercising influence in these institutions and rules which might shape policy space for countries that are late comers to development”. These four CIBS countries- account for 40 % of the world's population and 60 % of that of the developing countries. They account for about 10 % of the world’s GDP and more than 40 % of that of the developing world. These countries represent a beginning in the shift in the balance of economic power and also a shift in the balance in political power and in my opinion deserve a bigger voice in global governance and development issues.

 Major critics of the World Bank and IMF point to their failure since the Post Bretton Wood Convention to alleviate poverty especially in the global south. The world has more poor people than ever: 1.3 billion people -- over a fifth of the world's population -- now live on less than $1 a day and a further 1.6 billion -- another quarter of the world's population -- survive on between one and two dollars. According to the UNDP, financial volatility, job and income insecurity, crime, threats to health, food insecurity, loss of cultural diversity, community disintegration and environmental degradation have all increased since the setup of World Bank and the IMF. The greatest losers from all these trends are the poor in the global South. The predicament of these countries is exploited to exert enormous control over their governments which is used to ensure the bulk of public expenditure and economic activity is channelled into debt repayments to Northern banks and investors. In the process, once again, the poor are hit the hardest, as jobs are cut, health and education budgets slashed, price supports removed, and food and natural resources exported abroad.

 One of the World Bank's central roles is to ensure developing countries have the physical infrastructure necessary to facilitate their integration into the global economy. What it does by intentional default enable the exploitation of their resources, cheap labour, and consumers by Northern multi-national corporations .The word bank provides loans for the construction of roads, ports, mines, hydroelectric dams, oil wells and pipelines, and coal-fired power stations, mostly built, once again, by Northern corporations -- who received nearly billions of dollars in direct loans and guarantees for this purpose from the Bank's private sector collaborators. Revenues generated rarely reach the poor. Instead, the poor are often displaced from their homes, suffer loss or damage to their natural environment, and are placed in the front line of climatic destabilisation that the Bank's support for fossil fuels is wholly unhelpful. The World Bank and the IMF also provide loans to debt-ridden or near-bankrupt developing countries in exchange for the introduction of structural adjustment reforms that remove all constraints on Northern corporations seeking to export/import raw materials, and invest or locate there. The financial difficulty of these countries is exploited to exert enormous control over their governments which is used to ensure the bulk of public expenditure and economic activity is channelled into debt repayments to Northern banks and investors. In the process, once again, the poor in recipient countries are hit the hardest. As a result of austerity measures jobs are cut, health and education budgets slashed, price supports removed, and food and natural resources exported abroad.

Perhaps the most contentious issue of the World Bank has been the curry favoured manner by which its president is selected.The former Presidents of the Bank are mainly white, male and Americans, The current President Robert B. Zoellick, is responsible for chairing the meetings of the Boards of Directors and for overall management of the Bank. Traditionally, the Bank President has always been a US citizen nominated by the United States, the largest shareholder in the bank. The new nominee for the role of President of the bank is subject to confirmation by the Board of Executive Directors, to serve for a five-year, renewable term. The role of president and chairman of the board of directors seem to me to be a conflict of interest. While most World Bank presidents have had banking experience, some have not. The proposed president Jim Young KIm being put forward by President Obama is an Asian American with impressive experience on global Health issues and appears to be a very charismatic fun loving person- but he lacks global financial management or Banking experience. The Vice Presidents of the Bank are its principal managers, in charge of regions, sectors, networks and functions. There are 25 Vice-Presidents, three Senior Vice Presidents and two Executive Vice Presidents. She insists that she is, by far, the most qualified candidate, having worked at the World Bank for decades, including a stint as its second in command. She has adoring fans globally and has garnered support from opinion leaders such as the editors of the Economist and PIMCO head Mohamed El-Erian. The New York Times editorial board, which has called for a more open selection process, urged the World Bank’s board to “take a serious look” at Okonjo-Iweala. Most World Bank affiliates who have spoken out publicly on Okonjo-Iweala’s behalf this includes 39 former staffers who wrote an open letter praising her “deep experience in international and national issues of economic management” . Among other things, she co-authored an influential report on how the bank should operate in fragile states that have been racked by conflict (known as “low-income states under stress”), where the bank’s government partners were either dysfunctional or non-existent.

 The details of Okonjo-Iweala’s life story go a long way toward explaining why she generates such enthusiasm. She was born in 1954, when Nigeria was still under British colonial control, and reportedly learned English by reading books such as “Treasure Island.” After the British left in 1960, her life grew tumultuous. In 1967, the south eastern provinces of Nigeria, including Okonjo-Iweala’s home Delta State, declared independence as the Republic of Biafra. A bloody, three-year civil war ensued, leaving 1 million dead. Her father, a distinguished economist, joined the Biafran army and her family subsisted through the war, she said, on one meal a day. In a 2005 interview with the Guardian, Okonjo-Iweala recounted how, when she was 15, she carried her malaria-stricken 3-year-old sister four miles to find a doctor. The details of Okonjo-Iweala’s biography go a long way toward explaining why she generates such enthusiasm. She was born in 1954, when Nigeria was still under British colonial control, and reportedly learned English by reading books such as “Treasure Island.”

After the British left in 1960, her life grew tumultuous. In 1967, the south eastern provinces of Nigeria, including Okonjo-Iweala’s home Delta State, declared independence as the Republic of Biafra. A bloody, three-year civil war ensued, leaving 1 million dead. Her father, a distinguished economist, joined the Biafran army and her family subsisted through the war, she said, on one meal a day. In a 2005 interview with the Guardian, Okonjo-Iweala recounted how, when she was 15, she carried her malaria-stricken 3-year-old sister four miles to find a doctor. In an interview on Aljazeera television Oknojo The details of Okonjo-Iweala’s biography go a long way toward explaining why she generates such enthusiasm. She was born in 1954, when Nigeria was still under British colonial control, and reportedly learned English by reading books such as “Treasure Island.” After the British left in 1960, her life grew tumultuous. In 1967, the south eastern provinces of Nigeria, including Okonjo-Iweala’s home Delta State, declared independence as the Republic of Biafra. A bloody, three-year civil war ensued, leaving 1 million dead. Her father, a distinguished economist, joined the Biafran army and her family subsisted through the war, she said, on one meal a day. In a 2005 interview with the Guardian, Okonjo-Iweala recounted how, when she was 15, she carried her malaria-stricken 3-year-old sister four miles to find a doctor .When she was 18, Okonjo-Iweala moved to the United States to study economics at Harvard and MIT. She went on to join the World Bank in 1982, climbing through the ranks by shifting between jobs and across regions: as an agricultural economist focusing on Africa; country director for Mongolia, Malaysia, and Cambodia; and deputy vice president for the Middle Eastern region. Perhaps the most compelling reason to elect Ngozi (as she is affectionately called) is her personal experience of poverty. During an interview recently on Aljazeera television she boldly exclaimed:. “I know what it means to go to the stream to fetch water. . . what it means when people are poor and don’t have enough to eat. It’s not enough to say you know about poverty,” Okonjo-Iweala said recently, explaining why she should lead the World Bank. “You have to live it.” Those of us who live in the global south can identify with this statement.

While we in the global south are hopeful that the World bank receive the reform that it so rightfully deserve  we remain pessimistic and sceptic of its history of neo-colonial and ultra conservative groundings that is skewed in favour of the Global north and its multinational allies. One of the strongest criticisms of the World Bank has been the way in which it is governed. While the World Bank represents 186 countries, it is run by a small number of economically powerful countries. These countries (which also provide most of the institution's funding) choose the leadership and senior management of the World Bank, and so their interests dominate the bank. The call goes further than revamping the way in which candidates are rubberstamp and selected to ensure US hegemony and the safeguard of an unfair washing consensus that drains the economic life blood of developing countries who are clients of the World Bank. The changes should extend to a client centric model as it stands now it donor- centric. The selection of  Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala Nigeria’s current Finance Minister as a candidate who is eminently qualified for the job by academic, work and life experience represents for the global south a bigger and more influential voice in global governance. Critics like former World bank Economist Joseph Stiglits rightfully argue that the so-called free market reform policies which the World Bank currently Bank advocates are often harmful to economic development if implemented badly, too quickly ("shock therapy"), in the wrong sequence or in weak, uncompetitive economies. The candidacy of Okono-Iweala represents a fresh new start to a more equitable way in which global finance is govern in a post Bretton Wood era where the global tectonic spheres of economic influence is shifting southwards.

Donovan Reynolds is Human Rights Activist and a London based independent writer of Jamaican decent with an interest in human rights and International Development Issues. Readers are invited to comment on this blog or  to e-mail their comments to dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk

Revisiting the Concept of National Security in a Jamaican Context: by Donovan Reynolds Human Rights Activist and Independent Writer

In 2005, Jamaica had 1,674 murders for a murder rate of 58 per 100,000 people. That year, Jamaica had the highest murder rate in the world. In November 2008, the Jamaican Parliament voted to retain the death penalty, which is performed by hanging. Some areas of Jamaica, particularly cities such as Kingston, Montego Bay and Spanish Town, experience high levels of crime and violence. Jamaica has had one of the highest murder rates in the world for many years, according to UN estimates. It is estimated that currently Jamaica  has the seventh highest murders rate per 100,000 population in the world. Former Prime Minister P. J. Patterson described the situation as "a national challenge of unprecedented proportions.

 Over the past two years there has been a minuscule decline in the domestic murder mainly attributed to window dressing or a robust reactive response to crime as a consequence of external pressure.  Statistics have shown that over the first quarter of 20 12 that there has been an increase of murders by 12% over the corresponding period of last year.These frightening statistics for an island with a small population of 2.7 million people hails for a radical reworking of its crime reduction strategy. This writer suggest that there needs to be paradigm shift from a centralised crime strategy to a community based response here citizens of communities set their crime reduction strategy and are incentivized  by the government of Jamaica for meeting or exceeding their targets.

The concept of national security and crime prevention in Jamaica has long been viewed by politicians and Jamaican law enforcement practitioners in a narrow framework of policy response that is mainly militarised. The burgeoning murder rate poses a threat to our acquired democratic values and sullies our international reputation. The constant indiscriminate loss of lives pose a continuous challenge to our collective safety and traumatises our communities. Increased criminal activity prevent the inflow of direct capital investment from external sources and smothers our economic growth.

The blame for this burgeoning murder rate has been squarely place at the feet of an unrelenting criminal class of violent gangs obsessed with the acquisition of guns and the cruel use of it. This top-down vantage point of viewing the crime problem often excludes the contribution of poverty, corruption, social exclusion and post code prejudice as a contributory factor to our increasing criminal sub culture . The response to crime in Jamaica has always been a centralised military approach the assumption seems to suggest that communities are constantly screened out from taking responsibility and participating in formulating their local crime reduction strategies. The first quarter of 20 12 has seen the gruesome killing of ten children and thirty women and the militarised response to these gruesome murders there  has been an extrajudicial killing by the police of over twenty persons. This drew criticism from Amnesty International a respected  and influential international human rights organisation. Jamaica has long been under the radar of a number of human rights organisations who have viewed their crime fighting strategy with a bevy of disdain.

 According to Amnesty international Jamaica has the highest rate of police killings per ca pita in the world. In April 2001, Amnesty International launched a world-wide campaign to highlight the pattern of extra-judicial killings and other human rights abuses committed by members of the Jamaican security forces - the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) and the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF), with the launch of its report, JAMAICA: Killings and Violence by Police - How many more victims? The report cited the loss of life at the hands of the Jamaican Constabulary Force (JCF) borders on a human rights emergency. The rate of lethal police shootings in Jamaica is one of the highest per capita in the world. More than 1,400 people have been shot dead by police over the past 10 years in Jamaica; in a country whose population is only 2.8 million. Amnesty International has made this assessment purely on the valuation of Jamaica’s human rights record but locally it’s an open secret that these killings are a frustrated response to an ill-conceived crime strategy response. The twisted assumption is that if you liquidate trigger happy criminals the crime rate will reduce.

The ministry of security and justice under who’s the crime portfolio at a policy level is crafted is hampered by a lack of resources. Despite the introduction of useful initiatives such as community policing, neighbourhood, restorative justice and community peace initiatives though well intentioned have been implemented in a fragmented and incremental way. So the policy response to crime has been centralised and has a long history of top down approach. The social services that should provide a safety net for vulnerable youths at risk of participating in crime are residual and woefully lack the necessary investment. There is a basic gap in understanding by the policy directorate that crime is a community problem and the solution to crime must come from working in partnership with communities to empower them to seek solutions to their own collective security- crafted at a community level and fed into a parish divisional command and trough to a central command and policy directorate.

This is a proposed radical re working of the current strategy that would put the onus on communities to  set and own their crime reduction strategies and be incentivised by increase investment . In the form of social amenities to their communities on a priority needs basis. This new proposed approach to crime prevention should be facilitated trough and supported by divisional community safety units drawn from existing local professionals and NGOs a multi-agency approach to crime. With the use of existing professionals such as Education practitioners, the local police, the SDC, local Magistrates, health professionals, mental health services, faith based communities and other civic organisations. This approach of utilising existing professional resources to support the local crime strategy would prevent the need for a huge capital investment that the country can’t afford in a rigid financial environment.

It is quite obvious that the system of a top down crime fighting strategy is not working it has failed us for the past forty years. As a consequence there is an alarming high murder rate and ugly statistics of police extra judicial killings has damaged our human rights credentials as a decent democratic nation state. Every life that is loss matters and something radical has to be done to reverse this malaise .It is almost as if we are imploding the statistics suggest that we are at war with ourselves but in a paradoxical state of denial.

 That is why I am proposing a neo-realist response that places communities at the heart of involvement in planning and taking responsibility of their personal safety and security. The overarching philosophy of this proposed radical response is the decentralisation of Jamaica security and safety strategy. The assumption is that in the long term it will create safer communities who are accountable to themselves and the nation-state by setting targets that will improve their security and safety at the community level. These targets will be backed up by government incentives in terms of improved social amenities and the focusing of scarce resources on persons at risk and vulnerable to committing crimes. So the government role will be to collate these agreed targets set benchmarks and identify investments and allocate resources efficiently in order for the overall strategy to work. Crime is devastating for any countries prosperity but what is even more devastating is a continuous failed policy response to it.

Donovan Reynolds is a human rights activist,independent writer and has 23 years of experience working in the criminal justice system.Readers are invited to comment on this blog in the space provided or to give feedback at dannygerm63@hotmail.co.uk