KINGSTON, Jamaica – Jamaica’s Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, says while there would be trade and economic opportunities presented by the Samoa Agreement, Kingston is also seeking to assure stakeholders that there is nothing in the accord that will contravene local law.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness addressing the JLP convention on Sunday (CMC Photo)The Samoa agreement was signed earlier this month in Apai and serves as an overarching legal framework for the relationship between the European Union (EU) and the 79-member Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS). It succeeds the Cotonou Agreement and covers subjects such as sustainable development and growth, human rights and peace and security.
The provisional application of the agreement will start on 1 January 2024. It will enter into force upon consent by the European Parliament and ratification by all EU member states and at least two thirds of the OACPS members.
But there have been concerns in several quarters in the Caribbean amid fears that it will impose laws on Caribbean people that are not in keeping with the culture and values.
The Roman Catholic Church in Trinidad and Tobago, as well as the local Christian group, Jamaica Coalition for a Healthy Society (JCHS) are among those raising concerns regarding the agreement.
The JCHS said it would reintroduce the rejected Comprehensive Sexuality Education Curriculum back into Jamaican classrooms and undermine Jamaicans’ fundamental rights and freedoms.
“The agreement will bind Jamaica to undefined human rights obligations tied to trade sanctions, reintroduce comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) back into schools despite parents’ outrage in 2012 with regards to CSE’s sexualising content; trap the nation in yet-to-be-negotiated international instruments, and demand the acceptance of terms that directly threaten citizens’ freedom of conscience and speech among other alarming concerns,” JCHS said in a statement.
But as he addressed supporters of the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) 80th annual convention on Sunday, Prime Minister Holness said “as we pursue these opportunities, we must engage, explain and reassure our stakeholders of the various provisions in place to respect our values and laws as a sovereign country.”.
Holness said Jamaica continues to be a reasonable and rational voice in international affairs.
“We continue to lead in global initiatives and treaties, whether in trade, finance or climate change. Whatever treaty obligations we negotiate or sign on to, it must be consistent with our laws and constitution and we must engage with local stakeholders within our democratic framework.”
The JLP leader said that this has been the approach of his administration “even as it is we’re determined and committed to ensure that our local financial system is robustly compliant with the international financial system, Financial Action Taskforce recommendations for anti-money laundering and other illicit activities.”
Holness told supporters that he wants Jamaica’s financial system to meet the highest international standards “as we believe that this will make Jamaica a stronger and safer destination for investment. So it is with the Samoa Treaty”.
Van Steen told the Gleaner newspaper that Jamaica and the EU engage in “political dialogue every year. The last one was in the beginning of October this year, and the one before was in July 2022.
“So, that was another thing that took us by surprise. That, only a couple of weeks after our last talks, the Government said, ‘You know what? We are not 100 per cent ready, we will postpone. We are not saying that we are not going to sign, but we need a little bit more time to do some consultations’,” Van Steen said.
“In general, when we have our political dialogues, we never had this kind of expectation, that Jamaica would have difficulties with the very general and comprehensive agreement that we have negotiated together. So, yes, it took us by surprise,” she told the newspaper.
The diplomat told the newspaper that the Samoa agreement was a negotiation between member countries and it was a reasonable expectation by the EU that Jamaica would sign.
“It was a negotiation. We do not impose on any nation. We negotiate an agreement. It’s a region-to-region agreement … . It’s not the intention of an agreement like that to undermine national legislation. That is not what we are intending to do,” the EU ambassador told the Gleaner newspaper.
Last week, Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister, Kamina Johnson Smith, said Kingston would be signing the agreement.
“I can’t give you a date,” she noted telling the Jamaica Observer that the new agreement will not impose any requirements on Jamaica to introduce measures which are foreign to the island’s culture.
“There is no need to fear. The Jamaica Labour Party government is a government that can be trusted to ensure that any agreement that we enter into with a third party state, third party organisation, will never infringe upon our laws,” Johnson Smith told the newspaper.
