State of American politics, the fall of the Republican Party Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (03 July 2024) — The Republican party has lost its way. That’s grossly understated. The Republican party is on a path to self-destruction. It is now subsumed by the Trump-led MAGA movement. Most republicans know this. Most Americans see this happening in real time. Every news cycle brings new evidence to support this premise. Most don’t seem to know how to respond. Some Republicans serving in or...
Democracy or Democratic Process without the dividends Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (04 June 2024) — For a long time, I have exalted Jamaica as an example of democracy that other countries should want to emulate. The Jamaica democratic process, despite its faults, represented a system of government which operates on the presumption that power is vested in the people to choose their leaders and for those chosen to be accountable to the entire nation. It exemplified a form of governance that...
No bastard Citizens of Jamaica at home and abroad Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (24 May 2024) — We are joined by the spirit of the land we call the “Rock”. We are bound by the country of our heritage, where ours or our ancestors’ umbilical cords, our navel strings, are buried. We are bound by being Jamaicans by birth or descent. Being Jamaicans by birth or by descent make us no less Jamaican. And whether living in Jamaica or abroad we are all Jamaicans Most importantly, we are bound by...
Tourism earnings vs. Diaspora remittances impact on Jamaica Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (13 May 2024) — Discussions on the contribution of tourism sector earnings vis-à-vis diaspora remittances to Jamaica’s economy continue to be topical, at least for members of the Jamaican diaspora who demand fulsome, meaningful engagement with the Jamaican government. The tourism sector has a public advantage, not because of the real impact, but because of the perceived impact. Tourism visibility, the...
Conduct of international relations not for amateurs and neophytes Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (29 April 2024) — Some behaviors are now amplified by social media thus causing a great deal of misinformation and drivel to spread unchecked. An example is the stupid error on the part of the junior minister of foreign affairs which has triggered a discussion on social media platforms about the foreign policy records of two of Jamaica’s former prime ministers, P. J. Patterson, and Portia...
Republicans ‘House of Cards’ is crumbling Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (08 April 2024) — The Republican Party built an image of a political party which believed in law and order and somehow has exploited American voters belief in American superiority to perceive the Republicans as best equipped to govern and preserve U.S. supremacy. They stridently advocate interpretation of the U.S. constitution based primarily on so-called strict constructionist intentions during the framing of the...
The Road to Ending Illicit Firearms Trafficking to the Caribbean Ambassador Curtis Ward (03 April 2024) — Jamaican and Caribbean societies are ravaged by higher-than-normal homicide rates. Guns have, for many years, been the weapon of choice in the commission of violent crimes in the region, and Jamaica is reputed to have one of the highest homicide rates not only in the region, but in the entire world. Social and economic conditions, ineffective law enforcement and security capacities...
Haiti, Kenya, the Court, and the Haitian Diaspora Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (04 February 2024) — The recent High Court ruling in Kenya which declared that deployment of a Kenyan police mission abroad is in violation of the country’s constitution, though creating headlines around the world, does not infer an end to the UN Security Council-authorized Multinational Security Stability (MSS) mission in Haiti. While some alarm may be justified, at least for now, this ruling of the lower court...
ICJ decision on South Africa vs. Israel draws broad support Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (02 February 2024) — While some may argue that the provisional decision of the International Court of Justice (the Court or ICJ) did not go far enough in this provisional decision, I am of the view that it was a smart decision. Support for the Court’s decision is broad-based. In its provisional decision, the Court inferred that acts of genocide were occurring in Gaza by the Israeli government, but...
Corruption, the thief in the night Ambassador Curtis A. Ward (29 January 2024) — Governments and private enterprises that engage in corrupt practices reduce resources available for the public good. That is why everyone should be concerned. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) describes corruption as “a complex social, political and economic phenomenon that affects all countries. Corruption undermines democratic institutions, slows economic development and contributes to...
