Another Kind of Democracy

Democracy exists in various forms throughout the world.  This is how Jamaica exercises its democracy which is patterned on the British way of governing.

Transcript

The proverbial they, say never talk about religion or politics.  While I personally find politics interesting and believe a robust conversation on the subject of government healthy, I do recognize it’s not for everyone and can be considered a dry and even inappropriate conversation for others.

With that, welcome to Small Excellence where I discuss various nations around the world.  I’m your host Ngai.  This season we are speaking about my homeland, Jamaica.  In this episode, I’m about to break one of the cardinal rules of polite conversation and broach the subject of government and touch a little on politics in Jamaica.   The point of this particular episode is to bring awareness to another country’s system of government from an informative standpoint; nothing said here is meant to offend.

Following the transition from colony to sovereign state, Jamaica patterned its parliamentary democratic governmental system on the British Westminster model.  The Head of State is the British Monarch, who in 2023 is King Charles III, who is represented locally by the Governor-General of Jamaica, Patrick Allen, who was appointed by said monarch on the advice of the Jamaican Prime Minister.  The role of the Governor General is strictly symbolic and ceremonial in nature as the title carries no real power.  Jamaica also maintains a membership in the British Commonwealth.  According to Britannica.com, the Commonwealth is an association of countries across the world; historically connected to the British Empire [although] any country can apply to be a member of the Commonwealth, regardless of its intersection with Britain's colonial past. The Commonwealth consists of 54 countries, including the United Kingdom (https://www.britannica.com/topic/Commonwealth-association-of-states).

What exactly is a parliamentary democracy?  Constitutionus.com defines a Parliamentary democracy [as] a type of government in which the citizens elect representatives to parliament.  These representatives then vote on laws that affect the country (https://constitutionus.com/democracy/what-you-need-to-know-about-parliamentary-democracy/). This type of government is different from a presidential democracy, in which the citizens vote directly for the president (https://constitutionus.com/democracy/what-you-need-to-know-about-parliamentary-democracy/).  [In a parliamentary democracy] there are no set term limits as to how long elected officials can serve as prime ministers or other members of parliament.  [However,] in a presidential democracy, there are set term limits as to how long elected officials can serve as presidents or governors (https://constitutionus.com/democracy/what-you-need-to-know-about-parliamentary-democracy/).  Lastly, under a parliamentary democracy, the prime minister is appointed or selected from the majority party, the winners of the election.  The Prime Minister is typically the leader of the majority party.  There exist four branches of government in a parliamentary democracy consisting of the Head of State, the Parliament, the Government and the Court.  The Head of State is the monarch, a symbolic representative of their country, who is not actively involved in the government.

The Parliament is the legislative branch, comprised of elected officials who make laws on behalf of their constituency.  The Jamaican Parliament is bicameral, [meaning]...it consists of two Houses, the Senate, also called the Upper House, and the House of Representatives, otherwise known as the Lower House (http://www.caribbeanelections.com/knowledge/parliament/jm_parliament/default.asp).  The House of Representatives is comprised of officials elected by the people while the Senators are nominated by both the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition.  In the case of Jamaica’s parliamentary system, the Governor General appoints the 21 senators – thirteen candidates on the advice of the Prime Minister and eight candidates on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition.  In the event of any major constitutional amendment, both chambers of government must have at least a two-thirds majority vote.  The House of Representatives is a 63-member portion of the Parliament who are elected for five-year terms.  The government’s ability to make and pass laws center on the Prime Minister’s ability to secure the House of Representatives confidence or vote.  While both Houses of Parliament have political significance, it is the House of Representatives that possesses more power as it is the chief legislative body and boasts the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition as members.

The Government is comprised of the Prime Minister and the cabinet.  The Jamaican Constitution grants executive power to the cabinet which is led by the Prime Minister.  In the Jamaican system of government the Executive power lies in the hands of the government while the Legislative power is exercised by both the government and the parliament.  General elections are typically held every five years to determine which party will form the new government.  The Prime Minister, however, may petition the Governor General to call an election at any time within the five-year period.

Lastly, the Court is the judiciary branch which operates independently of both the government and the parliament.  The Courts decide if legislation is practicable, constitutional or illegal.  Courts can also overturn legislation…they feel should not have been passed (https://constitutionus.com/democracy/what-you-need-to-know-about-parliamentary-democracy/).  Jamaica’s legal system or jurisprudence is founded on English common law.

From 1938 through 2019, Jamaica had two major political parties which were in existence from the country’s colonial era - the People's National Party (PNP) founded by Norman Manley in 1938 and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) formed on July 8, 1943 by Sir Alexander Bustamante.  The PNP is a social democratic and social liberal Jamaican political party and claims a bright orange as the party’s color.  The JLP is a conservative party, believing in a market-driven economy and individual personal responsibility and is represented by a bright green color.  The United Independents' Congress of Jamaica (UIC) became the first new (post-colonial) registered political party on December 7, 2019.

Jamaica also has a number of minor political parties.  The following is a list of these Minor parties and their coinciding political ideologies: 

United Independents’ Congress of Jamaica (UIC), Libertarianism

Revolutionary Konservative Movement (RKM), Right-wing Populism

National Democratic Movement (NDM), Conservatism

New National Coalition (NNC), Nationalism Social Democracy

Left Alliance for National Democracy and Socialism (LANDS), Socialism

Marcus Garvey People's Political Party (PPP), Socialism and Pan-Africanism

There is an even longer list of defunct political parties such as the Workers Party of Jamaica which was a Marxist party, the Jamaica We Party, the Agricultural Industrial Party and the Imperial Ethiopian World Federation Incorporated Political Party to name a few.  As a side note I’d like to highlight that Marcus Garvey, a national hero, formed Jamaica’s first modern political party called the People’s Political Party (PPP) in September 1929.  The PPP’s political ideologies were socialist, republican and Pan-Africanist in nature.  This PPP party is defunct and not to be confused with the minor party listed earlier bearing his name.

There are some like the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) which is the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, providing forecasting and advisory services through research and analysis, such as monthly country reports, five-year country economic forecasts, country risk service reports, and industry reports, who consider Jamaica a flawed democracy.  According to populismstudies.org political scientists Wolfgang Merkel, Hans-Jürgen Puhle and Aurel S. Croissant sought to add subtext to already existing political systems at the start of the 21st century.  These scientists argue that flawed democracies aka defective democracies are nations where elections are fair and free and basic civil liberties are honoured.  These same nations however have significant faults in other democratic aspects, including underdeveloped political culture, low levels of participation in politics, and issues in the functioning of governance. They further suggest that there are additional issues such as infringement on media freedom and minor suppression of political opposition and critics. 

Although Jamaica’s political system is democratic, and there are regular elections, with orderly transfer of power as required, corruption continues to be a serious problem. There is a long-standing relationship between politicians and organized crime.

Jamaica’s political conflict between right-wing and left-wing elements along political party lines boil over into high level violence from time to time. The two major political parties, the People’s National Party and the Jamaica Labor Party have fought for control of the country for many years. This fight for control has caused serious war in the country, especially in Kingston. Both parties have had powerful international backers and supporters over time. 

Jamaica’s former Prime Minister Bruce Golding in addressing the issue of political transformation at the third biennial Jamaican Diaspora Conference on June 16, 2008, said that political tribalism and some of the ugly manifestations of it, had contributed to the genesis of the criminal activity that the country was experiencing. Simply put, politics is a contributor to the crime problem in Jamaica. 

The man in the street is aware that Jamaica’s crime problem is made worse by some policemen who act as agents of criminality carrying out the dirty work of politicians by protecting ghetto enforcers, trafficking guns, and acting as political muscle (http://jablogz.com/2017/06/).  Politicians sometimes create crimes by default.  An example of this is seen in the build housing schemes for loyalty votes.  The residents of these housing schemes are expected to demonstrate their devotion to the party through how they cast their votes in general elections. 

In 1980 there was almost a civil war in Jamaica in which guns were provided by politicians and countries which chose to align themselves with Jamaica’s left-wing or right-wing political contingents. These same weapons were then used in the local drug war in later years in the inner cities. 

Politicians support criminality because the criminals keep the politicians in power and make some of them rich via bribes.  Construction projects in the form of public and private projects, road work, etc. is an example of an industry which supports corruption as it serves as a source of kickbacks for politicians. The contractors are awarded construction projects and in turn bequeath the politicians a predetermined percentage. This practice continues, notwithstanding its illegality because it is lucrative to both parties. At times when other parties do not receive a portion of the kickbacks conflicts escalate. 

As a nation, Jamaica has so much potential with its best resource being its people.  I’m not sure if I will see Jamaica turn itself around in my lifetime but my optimism leads me to believe we can.       

I hope you garnered some knowledge from this episode.  Tune in next time to learn more on Small Excellence.  Walk good, my friends.