JAMAICA | Holness at "daggers drawn" with Maroon Community

KINGSTON,  January 9, 2022 - Jamaica's Maroons have historically maintained that they are a sovereign state within the Jamaican State, the result of the 1739 treaties with the British colonial government, which has entrenched distinctions between Maroons and other enslaved Jamaicans.

The British used the Maroons whose states had defined boundaries, to track down and capture future runaways and to aid in the suppression of slave insurrections.

The deep divisions and resentments caused by the post-treaty Maroons' willingness to cooperate and work with the British in this way, continued to haunt popular thinking, both on an official and as well as conventional platform,about Maroons today.

This thinking was the subject of a personal tirade by prime minister Andrew Holness, who today angrily declared that the only State in the country is the politically elected Government of Jamaica.

Responding to a question posed by a journalist at a press conference called by Prime Minister Holness today (Sunday, January 9, 2022) to announce the creation of a Zone of Operation in Central Kingston, the Prime Minister asserted that Jamaica's duly constitutionally elected Government is the authority.

His comment came against the background of a recent media report citing a leaked Cabinet Office document, which indicated that Jamaican Government ministries, departments and agencies were urged not to engage with or fund secessionist Maroons who are asserting sovereignty from the Jamaican state.;

The report said "There must be no acceptance of, or acquiescence to, any language or suggestion regarding sovereignty or indigenous rights, and no funds must be placed at the disposal of any person or entity claiming such," said the document, as was carried in the media report.

The reporter questioned Holness about the report in relation to the Traditional Maroon celebration on January 6, and the reluctance of the government to fund the historical event.

Responding to a question raised at yesterday's press briefing about whether the Government sought legal advice on its decision to disengage with “sovereign maroons”, and if the Government would not be derelict in refusing to finance projects in such territories, Holness asked whether the expectation was that the Government would continue using “taxpayers' money and grant funds to fund another government”.

UPDATE: PM @AndrewHolnessJM confirms no state funding for sovereignty-claiming Maroons.

Holness: There is no other sovereign authority in Jamaica other than the government of Jamaica.

Under my leadership, not one inch of Jamaica will come under any other sovereign authority https://t.co/8IZKeTtUjg pic.twitter.com/5OA2g63fWN

— Jovan Johnson (@jovanthony) January 9, 2022

“There are some threats that the average citizen looking on might think it is innocuous, it is popular and take a liking to it. Because the discussions that are held in places that should know better, does not highlight the threat.

Jamaica is a unitary sovereign state. There is no other sovereign authority in Jamaica other than the Government of Jamaica. I want that to be absolutely clear. None!” declared Prime Minister Holness.

The Prime Minister continued: “Under my leadership not one inch of Jamaica will come under any other sovereign authority. What you are asking is for the Government of Jamaica to take taxpayers money and grant funds to fund another Government.;

“This is not a Government that is saying it is a local Government or a parish council Government which is under our constitution.

“This is how guerrilla wars come about and how States break down. Wake up Jamaica. Don’t court foolishness and problems.

“Wake up. People have died as a result and you expect me to stand here as Prime Minister and fund activities that could lead to the breakdown of our state. Never!”

On Thursday, at the traditional Maroon celebration in Accompong Town, St Elizabeth, there was  a shooting incident involving the police,  in which a man died and five other persons, including two boys, were injured.

Media reports indicated that the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM) had granted permission for the event to be staged, at the request of Culture Minister, Olivia Grange.

However, it is understood that the reported ODPEM approval of the event may not have been communicated to the police.

Reports say that the police had issued a warning that the Maroon celebrations were not to be staged, as it was in breach of the Disaster Risk Management Act (DRMA).

However, the organisers of the event went ahead, with Currie contending that the event was in celebration of the Maroons’ spiritual and traditional rituals.

The Maroon community and the Government have not only been at loggerheads over the age-old sovereignty issue, but also with respect to issues involving the Cockpit Country, where a bauxite company was recently granted permission to mine in a defined section of those lands. The Maroons contend that the lands in the wider Cockpit Country also form part of their ‘sovereign territory’.

In the meantime, head of the Accompong Town Maroons, Chief Richard Currie, has fired back at Prime Minister Holness claiming that "Jamaica is not a unitary sovereign state," claiming that "(Queen) Elizabeth II, of the House (of) Windsor, is your Queen and Sovereign. Jamaica is simply fully responsible in (Queen) Elizabeth's Commonwealth."

Currie said "The Jamaican Government is a professional at begging the world. We are selling out our natural resources, (and) we are selling out our lands," declared Currie.

"These are regular day to day conversations that permeate the island, as the Government does not own its roads nor its air space, among many other things, which is why Maroons will not subject themselves to a municipality, because Mr Holness and his cronies will try to take away our ancestral estate, the Cockpit Country, and sell it to the highest bidder," he continued.

Currie further said if Jamaicans choose to understand their true history and stop labelling the Maroons as traitors, "then the truth will be able to surface for the multitudes to see".

Currie said he was reminding Holness of "a few things": "You are a signatory to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous people. Please go read this, you are an intelligent man," he said.

"Jamaica has an extensive external debt and is constantly begging, so you rely on other sovereign nations. In other words, you are receiving funding from others, so please consider human and indigenous rights before you end up defunded as well," the Maroon chief continued.

"Jamaica as a Government entity, begged for independence, whereas the Maroons waged war for 83 years. The war is now over.

In closing, Currie advised Holness to: "... Please, please, let good sense prevail. Do the right thing and please be guided accordingly. Thank you."

Earlier, the Maroon leader had posted a letter dated July 5, 1962, in which a British Member of Parliament (MP) purportedly said if Maroons are deprived of their treaty rights, they could appeal to the British Crown for assistance.

"Mr Holness, I implore you to seek legal advice from your attorney on the following Government documents archived in the British records and sent to us by our British friends," Currie said in reference to the letter.

Since coming to office eleven months ago, the Maroon leader has maintained  that Accompong is sovereign territory and its inhabitants are collectively a sovereign people. His premise is predicated on a peace treaty signed 284 years ago with the British, who were the colonial rulers of the island at the time.