Garth Rattray | The anthropomorphisation of Jamaica

During her foetal developmental stage, Jamaica was called Xaymaca by the Taino Indians who migrated here from the northern coast of South America (circa 600 AD). Xaymaca meant, ‘land of wood and water’ in their Arawak language. She was a pristine, lush land that shared her bounty and beauty with a peaceful people who took only what they needed from Xaymaca in order to survive, have young and raise them into adults that contributed to their various settlements.

It was an idyllic paradise for the Tainos until that fateful day when Italian-born Cristoforo Colombo (who changed his name to Cristóbol Colón when he migrated to Spain) arrived on the island in May of 1494 and declared that he ‘discovered’ it in the name of Spain. Because of Christopher Columbus (as he came to be known by the English), Spain settled Jamaiqua (as he called it) in about 1510.

The invasive and cruel Spanish forced the peaceful Tainos into slavery. They were brutalised and most succumbed to the demands of slave labour and European diseases for which they had no immunity. The Spanish settlers spread themselves throughout Jamaica, but their time here was relatively short-lived as, in 1655 a British expedition headed by Admiral Sir William Penn and General Robert Venables took Jamaica by force and expelled the Spanish within five years.

Whereas Jamaica did not possess precious minerals or stones, her soil produced bountiful crops. In order to work the land, the British made use of slave labour. These slaves were men, women, and children, who were abducted from rival tribes by [local] African kings.

The British traded baubles, metals, fabric, beads, and eventually guns and ammunition for the captured slaves. More and more were captured from opposing tribes and eventually, when supplies ran low, others were hunted and sold (traded) into slavery. They were packed into the bellies of slave ships that transported them across the Atlantic to a new and hostile world as victims of that economic boom.

LARGEST IMPORTER OF SLAVES

Jamaica was one of the largest importers of slaves. Between1533 and 1807 (when the transatlantic trading in slaves was officially abolished by Britain) about 600,000 slaves came here. Slavery itself was effectively abolished in 1834. The Slavery Abolition Act outlawed the ownership of, purchasing, or selling of humans as property throughout all British colonies. Then came the so-called emancipation of the slaves. Full freedom from slavery was granted on August 1, 1838.

Jamaica was a British colony (still a foetus with a population of about 1,684,000) at her independence (birth) on August 6, 1962. It was a strange birth. Although free from the British womb, Jamaica retains remnants of the umbilical cord. Now withering with time, she yearns to sever that cord completely and become her own person … a republic … no longer associated with the British Crown administratively.

Neonatal Jamaica was thrust into divisive and violent politics as the two main factions vied to control her. They competed for the fealty of her inhabitants. It was tribalism all over again; the same kind of tribalism that got her main inhabitants here in the first place. And just like before, as the two factions warred, others who had ulterior motives of once again enslaving the children of slaves into a new kind of slavery, took advantage of the disunity.

These two political tribes were scattered across Jamaica. Dependent communities were wooed with just enough money to fulfil the barest minimum of their needs and promises of a better life. They were pitted against one another and supplied with guns and ammunition to ‘defend’ themselves and to enforce the allegiance of the citizens under their ‘care’.

TRIBAL WAR

Tribal war eventually erupted and there were many casualties from both political tribes. The lives of others were of little consequence in the competition for the scarce resources. Thus began the loss of respect for the lives of others. People were either a convenience or an inconvenience … nothing more. The supporters of the losing political party also lost the ability of their benefactors to support them. A lot was a stake when the nation went to the polls.

With the waning capacity for the political tribes to continue supporting their innumerable dependents, enter the dragons (area leaders and dons). The tribes morphed from political factions to gang factions. These powerful gang leaders hold the lives of many in their hands. They caress some and crush others in their quest for complete dominance over some communities. The conflicts and turmoil are sickening little Miss Jamaica.

Little Jamaica has grown, she has a population of 2.83 million (as of January 2024). She is still very young, but she is unwell. Some of her cells appear to have gone berserk … citizens are killing off other citizens at an alarming rate. She has a high per capita murder rate, with 1,393 people murdered in 2023. She also has excessive road fatalities; she experienced 425 road fatalities in 2023.

She has a cancer that is invading and permeating her entire body. This malignancy (corruption) has been detected in her central nervous system (central government), and in her peripheral nervous system (local government). Metastasis has been discovered in every aspect of her existence. Sadly, her immune system (her police force) has not been spared. Jamaica is ailing, and only we, the citizens, can cure her. However, too many citizens have undertaken a symbiotic relationship with the cancerous corruption … perhaps she is doomed.

Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com and garthrattray@gmail.com