Jamaican Chief Justice slams PSOJ’s holiday proposal

The Private Organization of Jamaica (PSOJ) recently presented a proposal to the Ministry of Culture, Entertainment, Gender, and Sports arguing that there be a merging of two significant holidays, the celebrations of Independence Day and the celebration of  Emancipation Day, allowing this to become a single extended weekend holiday. In this case, amalgamating both holidays into what would be called emancipendence day.

In response to the PSOJ proposal, Chief Justice Bryan Sykes voiced his opinion while speaking last week at the Trelawny Circuit Court Michaelmas term kickoff ceremony at the William Knibb Baptist Church in Falmouth.

The event commemorated the passing of the Emancipation Act on Aug. 1, 1834, which freed enslaved Africans. The Chief Judge stated that commemorating freedom from slavery should not be seen as a business opportunity.

“For us here in Jamaica, the Emancipation Act was perhaps the first significant legislation that removed Black Africans from property to person,” the Chief Justice commented.

In emphasizing the issue, Justice Sykes noted that Aug. 1, 1834, is not about an increase in domestic travel…it is not solely about an organized weekend-long celebration that could attract tourists to participate in cultural events, concerts, and festivals, thereby boosting revenues across various sectors.

“I would have thought that the emancipation of enslaved persons of African descent, which was, in our case, the antecedent to independence, would warrant more analysis than to be described as mere five days,” Justice Sykes indicated.

He added, “The Emancipation Act’s passage should not be marginalized on commercial grounds.”

Justice Sykes continued, “Without Aug. 1, 1834, none of what we are doing here would likely be possible. Without freedom, it is difficult, if not impossible, to own property and begin the process of elevating oneself and one’s family from being an ex-slave to a free person.”

The idea has drawn some criticism from both the private and civil society areas of the country.

Former Jamaican Prime Minister P.J. Patterson. REUTERS/Andrew Winning

Former Prime Minister of Jamaica, PJ Patterson, also called the proposal a “retrograde step,” noting that Emancipation Day is an important part of Jamaican culture and that changing it would cause chaos in the community and impede Jamaica.