Maxine Henry-Wilson MINISTER OF Information, Senator Maxine Henry-Wilson, has called on leaders in the Jamaican community in the Los Angeles metropolitan area to redouble their efforts in forging links with groups and organisations in Jamaica, in pursuit of common national development objectives, and to continue their active promotion of Jamaica in the US
The Minister was speaking on Friday at a dinner hosted by the Jamaica Awareness Association (JAA) of Los Angeles.
Senator Henry-Wilson emphasised the need for a closer partnership between Jamaicans at home and abroad to provide effective advocacy for issues that were of importance to Jamaica's social and economic development.
She cited the recent passage of the Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) enhancement legislation in the US Congress, which would serve to increase access of textiles and apparel to the US market from Jamaica and the Caribbean region, as an example of one such successful campaign, where members of the Jamaican community throughout the US joined with their Caribbean counterparts in pressing for passage of this important bill.
Turning to Government's domestic policy priorities, the Minister outlined medium- and long-term strategies for social and economic development in Jamaica, and pointed to five key areas which have been designated priority investment sectors -- agro industry/agri-business, mining, tourism and the new sector of Information Technology (IT).
"Overall, our National Industrial Policy goals represent a concerted effort within the public sector to reposition our economy to participate in a global marketplace that is increasingly controlled by knowledge and service-based industries, rather than those that are commodity driven," she said.
She expressed optimism in Jamaica's growing IT sector and described the recent agreement between Jamaica and Cable and Wireless as "a key step which will undoubtedly facilitate growth and investment in an economic area which has great potential."
Combating crime
The Minister also addressed Jamaica's crime problem and reiterated Government's policy to expand existing initiatives as well as to implement new programmes to combat crime. Senator Henry-Wilson pointed out that the overall drive to reduce violent criminal activities was also linked directly to the fight against illegal firearms in Jamaica.
"Any successful strategy to decrease violence in Jamaica will be ineffective if there is not the concomitant goal to remove these guns from our streets.
"The Jamaican Government - both within and outside of the context of the Shiprider Agreement - has continued to appeal to the US Government and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (BATF) to assist us in stemming the flow of these illegal weapons from the United States into Jamaica," she said.
"Even with our limited resources, we are also seeking to apply even more modern technology in our drive to seek out these weapons and seize them. We are hopeful that our on-going co-operation with the American authorities will also enable us to have additional assets at our disposal which will help in the detection of illegal arms already in the country as well as illegal guns and ammunition coming into Jamaica," the Minister added.
Senator Henry-Wilson called on the Jamaica community in Los Angeles and Jamaicans throughout the US to assist the Government to demonstrate to US authorities the deleterious effects of the 1996 Immigration Bill which has significantly increased the number of criminal deportees repatriated to Jamaica.
She thanked members of the Los Angeles Jamaican community for their support and characterised their efforts in assisting healthcare and educational initiatives, particularly in Trelawny, as "a true manifestation of our concept of a nation without borders where needed social, intellectual and economic support, which is essential to our country's development, is provided by our fellow Jamaicans regardless of their geographic location."
The dinner which was held in central Los Angeles, was supported by several other community and philanthropic organisations in southern California, including the Jamaican Association of California (JAMCAL) and its local affiliate. The event was also attended by Members of Parliament in Trelawny, Wendell Stewart and Doreen Chin.
This function was the final event in the Minister's visit to Los Angeles where she was a guest of the National Democratic Institute (NDI), an affiliate of the Democratic Party of the United States.
