JLP's plan on the table

The Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) last Sunday, November 2, 1997 presented its manifesto at its 55th annual conference held at the National Arena in Kingston. Below is a summary of the highlights of that document:

  • From two Jamaicas, one people:

"The final challenge for all of us, and one which we cannot do alone, is to be able to build bridges of understanding with each other - across social classes and political divides. This unity will not come if we do not build from the base. We must envision for a future Jamaica a broad-based development with broad-based benefits which will strengthen the foundation for a broad basis of justice for all". - E.P.G. Seaga

The vision

  • To strengthen the engines of growth on a base of economic and political stability.
  • To distribute equitably benefits derived through growth that is broad-based and deep.
  • The need to build from the base upwards to complement the conventional strategy of "trickling" down. This will be our fundamental mix of strategies to create a wealthier society in which the benefits of increased prosperity are experienced at all levels, not just at levels where wealth traditionally exists.
  • The process of "pulling-up" by creating new productive jobs and opportunities generating new incomes and wealth instead of "pulling-down" through distribution of existing wealth.
  • The building of a more educated and better informed population through the introduction of early childhood, compulsory primary and extended secondary training systems.
  • The expansion and access to efficient health care through more intensive preventative measures. This relates to an expanded primary care programme.
  • The inclusion of Jamaica into the new world of information processing and marketing through the birth of a tele-Jamaica strategy.
  • The restructuring and expansion of an effective land, rail, air and sea transportation system.
  • The identification and implementation of strategies to strengthen, expand and sustain our roads and water supply.
  • The introduction of legislative measures to protect the rights and freedoms of every Jamaican (Charter of Rights and Freedoms).

The mission

The establishment of stability and sustainable growth of both the macro and micro economies running concurrently and driven by an export-led strategy.

Strategies

  1. The exercise of fiscal restraint and improved debt management in order to return to a surplus of at least three per cent of GDP.
  2. The identification and support for new industries based on comparative export advantage, export earnings and substantial labour content.
  3. The establishment of special zones across the island to encompass:
    • processing and assembly of manufactured goods;
    • storage and distribution of consumer goods;
    • tourism shopping, duty free;
    • cultural and heritage tourism;
    • information processing;
    • low-cost electricity zones providing incentives for special manufacturing operations to improve competitiveness.

Special zones

These special zones will be multi-purpose in scope and will include such activities as tax free manufacturing/assembly of products, storage and wholesale distribution, duty free shopping for visitors, information processing and off shore financing.

Major heritage parks at Port Royal, Port Antonio, Seville, Rio Bueno, Falmouth and Spanish Town will be fully utilised.

Tourism

  • There will be greater expenditure on advertising and promotion of our tourism product. All attempts will be made to effect a shift in the strategy away from selling cheap, to the promotion of Jamaica as a quality destination. Support for the upgrading of the product and reduction of tourist harassment will come from the dedication of 75 per cent of the travel tax revenue from the industry for this purpose.
  • Cruise shipping will be expanded but in a disciplined manner with the introduction of designated markets. The promotion and support for a wider variety of merchandise will be introduced.
  • Added emphasis will be placed on the promotion and development of eco-tourism.

New industries

  • Emphasis will be placed on the promotion and expansion of the chemical industrial sub-sector. This will include the production of consumer goods and packaging materials.
  • New petro-chemical industries will incorporate Industrial Energy Chemicals Facility (IECF) which will produce cheaper electricity as part of the process.
  • The use of the red mud lakes for extraction of the iron content for the production of special steel will be examined.

Traditional sectors

Continued effort will be made to explore new product lines using local raw materials in agriculture where we enjoy comparative advantage. Our unique position in the production of premium agricultural products in citrus, coffee, cocoa, ginger, honey, pimento, peppers and other spices, offer great potential for growth.

Packaging

  • An Institute of Design specialising in packaging will be established in order to expand the range of products which utilise our cultural raw materials and offer great potential for export.
  • The development of our archaeological treasures derived from Port Royal, Seville and Spanish Town. Previously prepared studies which were undertaken, have confirmed the enormous potential for development. Other areas such as Port Antonio, Rio Bueno and Falmouth are also to be studied for development.
  • The Jamaica Festival movement will be revived.
  • Spanish Town square will be restored and the Georgian buildings converted into a national museum.

Manufacturing

  • Emphasis will be on the identification of areas in which we enjoy comparative advantage.
  • Support for plant modernisation will be expanded.
  • An interest rate regime will be introduced to enable our local manufacturers to better compete with their international competitors.
  • A reduction of bureaucracy and the establishment of marketing strategies designed to maximise international market penetration will be implemented.
  • Our foreign policy will focus on determining our best regional market options (CARICOM, the EEC or NAFTA) to synchronise with our potentials in manufacturing, agriculture and services.

Agriculture

  • A modern agro-industrial base will be developed for the export of a wide range of fruit juices, sauces, spices and other exotic formulations. The use of the Scientific Research Council as a vehicle for the introduction of new product development will be expanded.
  • Emphasis will be placed on the encouragement of the small farming community to produce higher value-added crops fetching premium prices for our unique produce supplied to the market place.
  • The promotion of non-traditional crops such as shrimps, abalone, scallops, sea-eggs, mushrooms and high cost vegetables for specialised export markets.
  • The "mother farm" concept will be encouraged to provide technology and other inputs to encourage expansion of production by satellite farms.

Standards compliance

Compliance with standards regulations will be strictly enforced for imports and exports in keeping with the requirements for international trade.

Education

  • An integrated process of educational reforms dealing with early childhood to secondary level for all children starting at three years of age. This process will include:
  • Full enrolment in basic schools;
  • Compulsory attendance in primary schools;
  • Testing of primary school students for grading of students and schools;
  • Equalisation of funding for basic and secondary schools;
  • Extension of the period of training from age 16 to 18 years;
  • A more intensive curriculum in mathematics and English;
  • There will be a move to reduce costs as fully and quickly as possible to ensure that every child will be properly educated to age 18 years.
  • Full and free education will be the responsibility of the state to age 18 years.

Information

  • Existing licences awarded to Telecommunications of Jamaica in 1988 will be honoured but will review the provisions of the Telecommunication Bill of 1994.
  • The work of the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) will be enhanced by the enactment of legislation to quicken the approval of licences to connect telecommunication services. This body will also ensure that commercial use of the network will not be carried out without fair compensation to TOJ. It will also ensure that connection charges by TOJ are fair to users.
  • The OUR will also ensure that rates are fair and reasonable.
  • Any barriers not related to technical competency of the proposed service will be removed. The market for wireless telephones is limited by the available spectrum, and the Office of Utilities Regulation will be responsible for managing and selling the use of the spectrum range so that the maximum returns are obtained.
  • It is intended to develop a tele-Jamaica concept through the establishment of a high tech media laboratory to explore ways of merging communication forms such as television and radio broadcasts, cable television, wire and wireless telephony, satellite links, internet traffic and pager transmission.
  • Full computer literacy in our schools is our goal.

Health

  • There will be a focus on family planning, childhood immunisations, improved nutrition, infectious disease control, improved primary health care and most importantly, preventative and promotive health care.
  • Drugs will be sourced and delivered to the consumers at least 40 per cent cheaper than presently obtains.
  • Special care facilities for the treatment of the mentally ill will be established.

Water

Projects to be undertaken/developed will include:

  • The Yallahs River Project to serve the Kingston Metropolitan Region
  • The Harkers Hall Dam to serve St. Andrew and St. Catherine and the Clarendon plains
  • The Rio Minho River Basin serve sections of Clarendon, particularly the May Pen area
  • The Great River water treatment to serve the coastal area and Negril
  • Ocho Rios Cave River system to serve the Ocho Rios to Port Maria area.

Christiana/ Spaldings/Albert Town

Areas where existing water supply would be improved include:

  • Southern St. Elizabeth taking water from the Black River.
  • St. Ann's Bay to Discover Bay taking water from the Roaring River just below the Hydro-Electric Station, to provide this section of the coastal zone with an adequate supply.
  • Other small towns and villages throughout Jamaica presently experiencing inadequate water supply would be surveyed with a view to determining the short, medium and long terms solutions needed to rectify the problems.

Equal rights and justice

The JLP is determined to fight all forms of injustice through the reduction of conditions which breed crime: unemployment and poor education.

In pursuit of equal rights and justice we believe that this is best promoted through constitutional and electoral reforms. The proposed Charter of Fundamental Rights and Freedoms should be included in the human rights section of the Constitution. This would give the following:

  • protection against discrimination from victimisation by reason of race, social class or political preference;
  • protection of the right to be treated equally before the law; and any public authority;
  • protection against violations of the due process of law;
  • protection against unfair and inhuman treatment;
  • protection against abuse while in custody of the police by denial of the right to communicate with legal adviser, medical practitioner, religious counsellor, family or partner;
  • protection of the right of every citizen to participate and vote in free and fair elections.

These provisions will prohibit political victimisation which is at the heart of tribalist politics.

  • The establishment of a Citizens Protection Bureau will deal with complaints of abuses and violations of human rights.
  • A new post of Public Defender will be established to prosecute cases of human rights abuses and violations at public expense to ensure a high quality of legal advocacy.
  • Impeachment Proceedings will be introduced to deal with Members of Parliament and senior officials charged with:
  • non-performance of a duty with which the person is charged;
  • abuse of the privilege of office, statutory power or official authority;
  • conduct demeaning to office;
  • corruption or misappropriation of public funds or property.
  • An Ethics Committee of Parliament will be established to consider all proposed dealings of Members of Parliament with Government and to act on any complaints made to the Commission or on any failure by persons reporting to the Integrity Commission who fail to provide information lawfully requested.

Our Concerns

  • An emergency rehabilitation plan will be undertaken based on a comprehensive survey of all communities to list the basic amenities which are lacking or in need of improvement. From these a master plan for the rehabilitation of innercity communities will be developed.

The rehabilitation plan will include:

  • installation of basic infrastructure;
  • sanitation;
  • development of functioning community centres;
  • expansion of HEART;
  • development of small business enterprises through a revival of the Solidarity Programme.

Housing

  • Special focus will be placed on re-building the inner cities to replace blighted areas with modern communities, creating a base for organised community development and removing conditions which encourage anti-social and criminal activity.
  • Rural development will include the upgrading of new settlement areas to provide the basic infrastructure, roads, water, lights and drainage where necessary.
  • The availability of new building materials which would dramatically reduce the cost of constructing houses and other community buildings such as basic schools, clinics and community centres, are being explored. Voluntary effort at the community level would also be encouraged.

The Environment

The priority environmental issues which will receive urgent attention are: deforestation, petroleum dependency and pollution - especially our harbours.

Sports

A national programme of sports development including the appointment of qualified national coaches and completion of Parish Sport complexes for football, cricket, netball and basketball, will be implemented.

Women

  • Special emphasis will be placed on the employment of young women, especially those under 25 years of age.
  • The enactment of family law legislation will be given special attention.
  • Support for battered women in need will be strengthened through collaboration with women's organisations and the churches by providing easier access to shelters.
  • Day care centres will be established for working women in appropriate locations.

For more information about the Jamaica Labour Party, visit our website at www.jlpnet.com