The Constitution Amendment Bill: Perpetuating an Undemocratic Jamaica Senate Rosalea Hamilton, PhD (24 February 2025) — The Constitution (Amendment)(Republic) Bill, 2024 tabled in Parliament on December 10, 2024 addressed, among other things, the composition of the Senate (s.7) as guided by the Final Report of the Constitutional Reform Committee (CRC) (May 2024). The Bill retains and expands an appointed Senate, consistent with the legislative objective to “retain the Parliamentary...
Ukraine v. Russia — Who gets to decide? Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (22 February 2025) –– President Donald Trump’s position on the Russia-Ukraine war, simply put, is ‘Putin gets what Putin wants.’ Trump’s complete U-turn on U.S. policy of holding Putin responsible for the illegal invasion and territorial aggression completely reverses US support for Ukraine and awarding Putin’s tyranny. The Trump-Putin discussions on the future of Ukraine are set in defiance of...
Finally, a Presidential Pardon for Garvey Ambassador Curtis Ward (23 January 2025) — On Sunday, January 19, 2025, President Joe Biden, on his final full day as president of the United States, issued a long sought after pardon for Jamaica’s first National Hero, the Rt. Hon. Marcus Mosiah Garvey. Acclaimed in civil rights history and literature as the first leader to organize Black populations in America and globally on a mass scale, evidence overwhelmingly suggests Garvey’s prosecution...
Honoring our fallen heroes (07 January 2025) –This compelling story, “WAR HERO RESCUED After 107 years: Private Robert Theophilus Downer”, narrated with passion and compassion by Dr. Goulda Downer is not just about one forgotten Jamaican soldier. The resurrection of Robert Theophilus Downer, her great grandfather, whose ultimate sacrifice in the cause of freedom versus tyranny, forgotten and ignored for over a hundred years, calls upon Jamaicans and other Caribbean people, and the...
A clash of interests and ideology of a future Trump administration Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (03 Decenter 2024) — The Trump presidential campaign brought together a collection of individuals who saw an opportunity for power but their reasons for supporting Trump were at variance. They had different objectives for a future Trump administration. There were those driven by greed, wealth accumulation and power. They bought influence and used their wealth to significantly impact the outcome of...
Peace not Possible if Ukraine & Palestine are Occupied Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (08 November 2024) — There are few political leaders who are proponents of Ukraine ceding a part of its territory to Russia to end the war in Ukraine. Those who do are on the wrong side of settled international law and norms. This shattered peace in Europe was the direct result of Russian aggression, invasion, seizure and occupation of large swathes of Ukraine’s territory. Seizing another country’s...
Will Trump’s Administration reflect the Darkness of his Campaign? Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (08 November 2024) — We have been here before with Donald Trump’s victory in 2016. The chaos in the White House began the day he took the oath of office on January 20, 2017. His inauguration then marked the day when domestic and global uncertainty became a real challenge. The threats posed by Trump’s first presidency rattled the diplomatic community in the U.S. capital and in capitals...
End of a Campaign of Hope, Harris out and Trump in Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (07 November 2024) — Hand wringing and critical post-election analyses are the expected reaction to an unsuccessful election campaign. Most of the post-election analysts would have been among most who in the immediate pre-election period were saying Vice President Kamala Harris had ran a brilliant campaign and had done everything right. Now many have opposite views. Very few analysts and commentators were bold...
Trump & Project 2025, Our greatest threat yet Ambassador Curtis A. Ward 28 October 2024 — Early voting in the U.S. elections is well underway in many states but most Americans will vote on Tuesday, November 5, 2024. Many critical issues are on the ballot, but democracy is paramount for the future of America and for liberal democracies around the world. The threat to democracy is a threat to the underlying guarantees of rights and freedoms — for the rule of law and the freedoms we...
Is our Prime Minister upholding the Ministerial Ethical Standards? Professor Dr. Trevor Munroe, C.D. (29 September 2024) –– A little over four years before the September 17th, 2024 publication of the Integrity Commission’s Investigation Report relating to “concerns that he [PM Holness] owns assets disproportionate to his lawful earnings;” our Prime Minister told us: “As Head of the Government of Jamaica, I am committed to ensuring the highest standards of accountability...
