Friday, August 01, 2014
JAMAICA'S leaders have issued a call for unity and respect for human rights in their Emancipation Day messages.
Governor General Sir Patrick Allen said it was optimistic that despite the fact that a number of Jamaicans today live in 'nowhere land' the resilience of the people will see the country prosper.
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| Allen, Simpson-Miller, |
"I firmly believe that we are destined, under God, to increase in beauty, fellowship and prosperity. Today, my fellow Jamaicans, as we celebrate Emancipation, I thank all of you from every walk of life who commit to working to achieve that noble vision for Jamaica. It is time for us to stand together and combine all our efforts to free our country from every form of barrier, tribalism and hindrance to our progress as a people. Let us now move with haste to engrave a new profile on the local and international image of Jamaica. We must believe in ourselves and in our potential to be a truly great nation," Sir Patrick said.
On August 1, 1938 slavery was officially abolished by the British Empire and thousands of slaves of African descent were no longer forced to do back-breaking labour without compensation for their white slave masters.
In an emotional message laced with references to the 'brutality and genocide' meted out to the blacks who fought bitterly against their forced oppression, Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller called on Jamaicans to pay tribute to and never forget the struggles of those who had to endure the sting of the whip, rape, amputations and other horrors of the greatest sin mankind has ever perpetrated.
"Scholars tell us that some of the ex-slaves walked up hills and climbed into tree tops so that they could clearly witness the literal dawning of their freedom, so anxious were they not to miss the first light of liberation day.
In Jamaica on that "full free" August morning, peaceful celebrations occurred across the island. A hearse containing shackles and chains that had been used to bind rebellious slaves was driven through the streets of the capital Spanish Town, and ceremoniously burned," Simpson Miller said. more
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