Jamaica

 

(jəmā'kə) , independent state within the Commonwealth (2005 est. pop. 2,732,000), 4,232 sq mi (10,962 sq km), coextensive with the island of Jamaica, West Indies, S of Cuba and W of Haiti. Jamaica is the largest island in the Caribbean after Cuba and Hispaniola. The capital and largest city is Kingston.

Land and People

Although largely a limestone plateau more than 3,000 ft (914 m) above sea level, Jamaica has a mountainous backbone that extends across the island from the west and rises to the Blue Mts. in the east; Blue Mt. (7,402 ft/2,256 m) is the highest point. Rainfall is heavy in this region (where there are extensive timber reserves) but diminishes westward across the plateau, which is a rugged area deeply dissected by streams and underlain by subterranean rivers. The heart of the plateau, known as the Cockpits, is used mostly for livestock grazing. A narrow plain along the northern coast and several larger plains near the south shore are Jamaica's major agricultural zones. The north coast also has fine beaches and is the focus of the tourist industry. The Rio Grande and the Black River are the country's chief waterways, but neither is navigable for long distances. The coastal bands widened by broad river valleys, as well as the mountain slopes, support the bulk of Jamaica's export crops.

In addition to Kingston, important cities are Spanish Town and Montego Bay. Slightly more than one half of the population is urban, and migration to the cities continues; the greatest urban concentration is around Kingston. People of African descent predominate in Jamaica. The small upper class is largely of European descent. Afro-Europeans and such Middle Eastern and Asian groups as Lebanese, Syrians, Chinese, and Indians, make up the rest of the population. Although English is the official language, most Jamaicans also speak a creole English. The chief religion is Protestantism, although there is considerable religious variety (including Roman Catholic and spiritualist minorities) on the island.

Economy

Jamaica's most important export crop is sugarcane, from which rum and molasses are also made. The nation's other agricultural exports include the famed Blue Mt. coffee, bananas, citrus fruits, and yams. Most of these crops are grown on large plantations. Small farms also produce ginger, cocoa, pimento, ackee, chickens, and goats. Mining is a major source of wealth; since large, easily accessible deposits of bauxite were discovered in 1942, Jamaica has become one of the world's leading suppliers of this ore. Along with the alumina made from it, bauxite accounts for almost half of Jamaica's foreign exchange.

Tourism, centered on the north coast, is the biggest earner of exchange. Among Jamaica's internationally known resort areas are Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, and Negril. Clothing constitutes the chief export item of the manufacturing sector. Jamaica's other industries (mainly concentrated in the Kingston area) include oil refining, sugar and tobacco processing, flour milling, and the production of rum, metal, paper, chemicals, and telecommunications equipment. Since the late 1960s industry has generated a greater share of the national income than agriculture. Remittances from Jamaicans working abroad are also a major source of income. The United States and Canada, Jamaica's top trading partners, also provide much-needed capital for economic development.

Government

Jamaica is a parliamentary democracy governed under the constitution of 1962. It has a bicameral Parliament made up of a 21-member Senate and a 60-member House of Representatives. The prime minister is the head of government. The head of state is the British monarch, as represented by the governor general. The country has two main political parties: the Jamaica Labor party (JLP) generally favors private enterprise, while the People's National party (PNP) advocates a moderate socialism. Administratively, the country is divided into 14 parishes.

History

History to Independence

Sighted by Christopher Columbus in 1494, Jamaica was conquered and settled in 1509 by Spaniards under a license from Columbus's son. Spanish exploitation decimated the native Arawaks. The island remained Spanish until 1655, when Admiral William Penn and Robert Venables captured it; it was formally ceded to England in 1670, but the local European population obtained a degree of autonomy. Jamaica prospered from the wealth brought by buccaneers, notably Sir Henry Morgan, to Port Royal, the capital; in 1692, however, much of the city sank into the sea during an earthquake, and Spanish Town became the new capital.

A huge, mostly African, slave population grew up around the sugarcane plantations in the 18th cent., when Jamaica was a leading world sugar producer. Freed and escaped slaves, sometimes aided by the maroons (slaves who had escaped to remote areas after Spain lost control of Jamaica), succeeded in organizing frequent uprisings against the European landowners. The sugar industry declined in the 19th cent., partly because of the abolition of slavery in 1833 (effective 1838) and partly because of the elimination in 1846 of the imperial preference tariff for colonial products entering the British market. Economic hardship was the prime motive behind the Morant Bay rebellion by freedmen in 1865. The British ruthlessly quelled the uprising and also forced the frightened legislature to surrender its powers; Jamaica became a crown colony.

Poverty and economic decline led many blacks to seek temporary work in neighboring Caribbean areas and in the United States; many left the island permanently, emigrating to England, Canada, and the United States. Indians were imported to meet the labor shortage on the plantations after the slaves were freed, and agriculture was diversified to lessen dependence on sugar exports. A new constitution in 1884 marked the initial revival of local autonomy for Jamaica.

Despite labor and other reforms, black riots recurred, notably those of 1938, which were caused mainly by unemployment and resentment against British racial policies. Jamaican blacks had been considerably influenced by the theories of black nationalism promulgated by the American expatriate Marcus Garvey. A royal commission investigating the 1938 riots recommended an increase of economic development funds and a faster restoration of representative government for Jamaica. In 1944 universal adult suffrage was introduced, and a new constitution provided for a popularly elected house of representatives.

An Independent Nation

By 1958, Jamaica became a key member of the British-sponsored West Indies Federation. The fact that Jamaica received only one third of the representation in the federation, despite its having more than half the land area and population of the grouping, bred resentment; a campaign by the nationalist labor leader Sir Alexander Bustamante led to a 1961 decision, by popular referendum, to withdraw from the federation. The following year Jamaica became an independent member of the Commonwealth. Bustamante, leader of the JLP, became the first prime minister of independent Jamaica. The party continued in power under Donald B. Sangster after the 1967 elections; he died in office and was succeeded by Hugh Shearer.

In 1972 the PNP won an impressive victory, and Michael Manley became prime minister. Although the PNP administration worked effectively to promote civil liberties and reduce illiteracy, economic problems proved more difficult. In 1976 the PNP won decisively after a violent election contest between the two parties. The PNP continued to promote socialist policies, nationalizing businesses and strengthening ties to Cuba. Lack of foreign investment and aid continued to hurt the economy.

In 1980 the JLP returned to power, with the moderate Edward Seaga as prime minister. Seaga's administration favored privatization, distanced itself from Cuba, attracted foreign investment, stimulated tourism, and won substantial U.S. aid. However, two major hurricanes (1980, 1988) during Seaga's tenure set back prospects for substantial economic progress. In the 1989 elections the PNP ousted the JLP, and Manley returned as prime minister; he chose to continue the policy directions taken by Seaga. Manley was replaced by P. J. Patterson in 1992. The following year Patterson and the PNP were returned to office in a landslide. Patterson led his PNP government to a third term in 1997 and a fourth term in 2002, although the PNP majority was reduced in 2002. Patterson retired as prime minister in 2006 and was succeeded by the PNP's Portia Simpson-Miller, who became the first woman to hold the office. In the Sept., 2007, parliamentary elections, the PNP narrowly lost to the JLP, now led by Bruce Golding, who became prime minister.

Bibliography

See E. Brathwaite, The Development of Creole Society in Jamaica, 1770–1820 (1971); F. Cundall, Historic Jamaica (1915, repr. 1971); R. M. Nettleford, Identity, Race and Protest in Jamaica (1972); I. Kaplan et al., Area Handbook for Jamaica (1976); E. H. Stephens, Democratic Socialism in Jamaica (1986); R. E. Looney, The Jamaican Economy in the 1980s: Economic Decline and Structural Adjustment (1987).

Jamaica
Flag Coat of arms
Motto "Out of many, one people"
Anthem "Jamaica, Land We Love" Royal anthem "God Save the Queen"
Capital (and largest city)		Kingston 17°59′N, 76°48′W
Official languages		English
Demonym		Jamaican
Government		Constitutional monarchy (Parliamentary democracy)
-	Monarch	Elizabeth II
-	Governor-General	Kenneth Hall
-	Prime Minister	Bruce Golding
Independence
-	from the United Kingdom	6 August 1962
Area
-	Total	km² (166th)  sq mi
-	Water (%)	1.5
Population
-	July 2005 estimate	2,651,000 (138th)
-	Density	252/km² (49th)  /sq mi
GDP (PPP)		2005 estimate
-	Total	$11.69 billion (131st)
-	Per capita	$4,300 (114th)
GDP (nominal)		2005 estimate
-	Total	$9.730 billion (101st)
-	Per capita	$3,658 (79th)
Gini? (2000)		37.9 (medium)
HDI (2004)		0.724 (medium) (104th)
Currency		Jamaican dollar (JMD)
Time zone		(UTC-5)
Internet TLD		.jm
Calling code		[[+1 876]]

Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, 234 kilometres (146 mi) in length and as much as 80 kilometres (50 mi) in width situated in the Caribbean Sea. It is about 620 kilometres (385 mi) northeast of the Central American mainland, 145 kilometres (90 mi) south of Cuba, and 190 kilometres (120 mi) west of the island of Hispaniola, on which Haiti and the Dominican Republic are situated. Its indigenous Arawakan-speaking Taíno inhabitants named the island Xaymaca, meaning either the "Land of Springs," or the "Land of Wood and Water".^[1] Formerly a Spanish possession known as Santiago, it later became the British West Indies Crown colony of Jamaica. It is the third most populous anglophone country in the Americas, after the United States and Canada.

History

Main article: History of Jamaica

The original Arawak or Taino people from South America first settled on the island between 4000 and 1000 BC. Although some claim they became virtually extinct following contact with Europeans, others claim that some survived for a while. There is very little trace of the Arawak culture, and the Jamaican National Heritage Trust is attempting to locate and document any evidence of the Arawaks [1].

Jamaica was claimed for Spain after Christopher Columbus first landed there in 1494. Columbus used it as his family's private estate. The English Admiral William Penn (father of William Penn of Pennsylvania) and General Venables seized the island in 1655. During its first 200 years of English (then British) rule, post Spanish rule, Jamaica became one of the world's leading sugar exporting nations and produced over 77,000 tons of sugar annually between 1820 and 1824, which was achieved through the massive use of imported African slave labour. After the abolition of the slave trade the British imported Indian and Chinese indentured servants in the early 1800s as more cheap labour. Many of the descendants of the Chinese and Indian indentured servants continue to reside in Jamaica today.

By the beginning of the 19th century, the United Kingdom's heavy reliance on slavery resulted in blacks (Africans) outnumbering whites (Europeans) by a ratio of almost 20 to 1, leading to constant opportunities for revolt. Following a series of rebellions, slavery was formally abolished in 1834, with full emancipation from chattel slavery declared in 1838.

During the 1800’s a number of botanical gardens were established. These included the Castleton Garden in 1862 (set up to replace the Bath Garden which was established during the late 1770s and where breadfruit brought to Jamaica by Captain William Bligh was planted but which was subject to flooding), the Cinchona Plantation in 1868 and the Hope Garden during 1874.

In 1945, Sir Horace Hector Hearne became Chief Justice and Keeper of the Records in Jamaica and sat in the Supreme Court, Kingston between 1945 and 1950/1951 before going on to become Chief Justice in Kenya.

Jamaica slowly gained increasing independence from the United Kingdom. In 1958, it became a province in the Federation of the West Indies, a federation among all of the British West Indies. Jamaica attained full independence by leaving the federation in 1962.

Strong economic growth averaging about six percent per annum marked its first ten years of independence under conservative governments led successively by Prime Ministers Alexander Bustamante, Donald Sangster and Hugh Shearer. The growth was fueled by strong investments in bauxite/alumina, tourism, manufacturing industry and to a lesser extent the agricultural sector. However, the initial optimism of the first decade was accompanied by a growing sense of inequality and a sense that the benefits of growth were not being experienced by the urban poor. This, combined with the effects of a slow-down in the global economy in 1970, prompted the electorate to change the government, electing the PNP (People's National Party) in 1972. However, despite efforts to create more socially equitable policies in education and health, Jamaica continued to lag economically, with its gross national product having fallen in 1980 to some twenty-five percent below the 1972 level. Rising foreign and local debt accompanied by large fiscal deficits resulted in the invitation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) financing from the USA and others, and the imposition of IMF austerity measures (with a greater than 25% interest rate per year).

Economic deterioration continued into the mid 1980s, exacerbated by the closure of the first (Alpart) and third (Alcoa) largest alumina producers, significant reduction in production by the second largest (Alcan), the exit of Reynolds Jamaica Mines Ltd from the Jamaican industry and reduced flows from tourism. During the 1980s Jamaica was still a prosperous country though increases in crime and petty theft began to weigh on the island.

The early capital of Jamaica was Spanish Town in the parish of St. Catherine, the site of the old Spanish colonial capital. The Spanish named the town Santiago de la Vega. In 1655 when the English captured the island, much of the old Spanish capital was burned by the invading troops. The town was rebuilt by the English and renamed Spanish Town. It remained the capital until 1872, when the city of Kingston was named the capital under questionable circumstances.

Government and politics

Main article: Politics of Jamaica

Jamaica is a constitutional monarchy with the monarch being represented by a Governor-General.^[2] The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who officially uses the title "Queen of Jamaica" when she visits the country or performs duties overseas on Jamaica's behalf. See Jamaican Royal Family. The Governor-General is nominated by the Prime Minister and the entire Cabinet and appointed by the monarch. All the members of the Cabinet are appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Prime Minister. The monarch and the Governor-General serve largely ceremonial roles, apart from their potent reserve power to dismiss the Prime Minister or Parliament.

Jamaica's current Constitution was drafted in 1962 by a bipartisan joint committee of the Jamaican legislature. It came into force with the Jamaica Independence Act, 1962 of the United Kingdom Parliament, which gave Jamaica political independence. This was followed by a reformation of the island's flag.

The Parliament of Jamaica is bicameral, consisting of the House of Representatives (Lower House) and the Senate (Upper House). Members of the House (known as Members of Parliament or MPs) are directly elected, and the member of the House of Representatives who, in the Governor-General's best judgement, is best able to command the confidence of a majority of the members of that House, is appointed by the Governor-General to be the Prime Minister. Senators are appointed jointly by the Prime Minister and the parliamentary Leader of the Opposition.

In February 2006, Portia Simpson-Miller was elected by delegates of the ruling People's National Party (PNP) to replace P. J. Patterson as President of the Party. At the end of March 2006 when Patterson demitted office, Simpson-Miller became the first female Prime Minister of Jamaica. Former Prime Minister Patterson had held office since the 1992 resignation of Michael Manley. Patterson was re-elected three times, the last being in 2002.

On 3 September 2007, Bruce Golding of the Jamaica Labour Party was voted in as Prime Minister-Designate after achieving a 33 - 27 seat victory over Portia Simpson-Miller and the PNP in the 2007 Jamaican general election. Portia Simpson-Miller conceded defeat on the 5 September 2007.^[3]On 11 September 2007, after being sworn in by Governor-General Kenneth Hall, The Hon. Bruce Golding assumed office as Prime Minister of Jamaica.

Jamaica has traditionally had a two-party system, with power often alternating between the People's National Party and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP).However,over the past decade a new political party called the National Democratic Movement [NDM] emerged in an attempt to challenge the two party system. However, the NDM has almost become irrelevant in the two party system as it garnered only 540 votes of the over 800,000 votes cast in the September 3 elections. Jamaica is a full and participating member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).

Parishes

<imagemap> Image:Jamaica parishes numbered2.png|center poly 70 15 84 44 64 38 53 34 29 34 19 43 7 43 7 33 32 14 Hanover poly 88 61 75 90 95 97 98 111 115 128 146 128 135 73 135 58 106 52 Saint Elizabeth poly 72 19 81 8 97 3 117 5 108 51 91 55 Saint James poly 120 4 167 9 170 19 160 61 147 54 137 55 112 53 Trelawny Parish poly 7 45 1 51 27 65 61 64 61 72 77 84 88 57 80 42 63 42 50 35 33 35 Westmoreland poly 158 60 178 97 185 128 215 155 228 152 227 123 209 65 182 60 Clarendon poly 147 126 182 129 174 88 152 57 135 57 Manchester poly 172 11 237 24 248 53 214 63 164 58 Saint Ann poly 211 64 228 118 244 131 259 132 277 101 267 93 273 75 254 52 Saint Catherine poly 238 22 268 24 300 49 290 70 270 70 259 51 248 51 Saint Mary poly 280 104 297 104 311 110 319 122 304 148 261 134 Kingston Parish poly 300 49 368 68 383 98 351 94 330 93 314 82 306 81 302 86 291 73 Portland poly 274 72 288 72 296 86 304 83 312 85 314 107 294 102 278 101 270 93 Saint Andrew poly 314 88 317 101 313 110 322 121 335 130 397 117 387 101 351 96 Saint Thomas </imagemap>

Main article: Parishes of Jamaica

Jamaica is divided into 14 parishes, which are grouped to three historic counties that have no administrative relevance.

• Surrey (county) in the east, containing the following parishes:
  • Kingston
  • Portland
  • Saint Andrew
  • Saint Thomas
• Middlesex (county) in the centre, containing the following parishes:
  • Clarendon
  • Manchester
  • Saint Ann
  • Saint Catherine
  • Saint Mary
• Cornwall (county) in the west, containing the following parishes:
  • Hanover
  • Saint Elizabeth
  • Saint James
  • Trelawny
  • Westmoreland

Geography

Main article: Geography of Jamaica

Jamaica is the third largest island in the Caribbean, and the most populous English speaking island there. The island of Jamaica is home to the Blue Mountains inland and is surrounded by a narrow coastal plain. Most major towns and both cities are located on the coast. Chief towns include the capital city Kingston, Portmore, Spanish Town, Mandeville, Ocho Rios, Port Antonio, and the city of Montego Bay.

The climate in Jamaica is tropical, with hot and humid weather, although higher inland regions have a more temperate climate. Some regions on the south coast, such as the Liguanea Plain and the Pedro Plains are relatively dry rain-shadow areas.

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of Jamaica

Ethnic Origins

Jamaica's population consists mainly of people of West-African descent, comprising about 90.9% of the demographics. The Akan people of Ghana's influence is evidenced by the town of Accompong (Achiampong is a common family name in Ghana). Other populations on the island are as follows: East Indian 1.3%, White 0.2%, Chinese 0.2%,Lebanese 0.1%,Multiracial 7.3%. Immigration from countries such as China, Colombia, St. Lucia and many more areas of the Caribbean and South Asia have seen a steady rise.

Skin Complexion

The motto of Jamaica is 'Out of Many, one people' And, in terms of genetic inheritance, there is much evidence that many 'African-Jamaicans' also have European ancestors ^[4]. This is primarily due to the widespread practice of white British plantation owners and overseers engaging in (often forced) sexual relations with African women ^[5] during the era of slavery and colonialism (or Maafa) (as well as the much less common practice of African men having sexual relations with British women). As a result, any well-travelled visitor to the island will immediately notice that the African-Jamaican population has many more people of a brown or light-brown complexion than is found in those regions of West Africa which provided the main sources of enslaved labourers (such as Nigeria or Ghana) ^[6]. Many (not all) of the African-European children of planters and overseers were given favoured status compared with African plantation slaves/workers. This included greater access to education, capital and land, as well as 'social acceptance'. This however was a common practice in countries involved in the slave trade ^[7] .

Language

The official language of Jamaica is