Published:Wednesday | September 19, 2018 | 12:00 AM
With all the recent discussions about mental health, young people, suicide and suicidal hotlines, it's important for us to widen the scope through which we view this topic of mental health.Coincidentally enough, World Suicide Prevention Day was...
Published:Wednesday | September 19, 2018 | 12:00 AM
I find it very interesting the way many of our people think, and how much interest is shown in the weather and preparedness for severe weather conditions.As I write this letter seated in my living room at home with the sound of thunder punctuating...
Published:Wednesday | September 19, 2018 | 12:00 AM
On September 6, 2018, the Supreme Court of India repealed Section 377 - a 150-year colonial-era law that criminalised same-sex intercourse and intimacy, among other offences. The court held that Section 377 contravenes key constitutional rights of...
Published:Wednesday | September 19, 2018 | 12:00 AM
It is most surprising that the Government has announced a ban on some plastic packaging, most of which is to come into force in three and a half months' time, without knowing what sanctions will apply to people who breach the law. At least, that is...
While we venture no opinion on the merits of the specific case, the issues relating to the timely justice raised by the Smith family of lawyers further highlights why the Holness administration must act with dispatch to fill vacancies on the Bench,...
I'm struggling to take a hard-line position on the issue of political appointments. The age-old practice has always troubled me.Once there is a change of government, start counting the casualties of war.It's par for the course that not only are the...
So, Jamaica's traffic chickens have finally come home to roost.For the past 10 days, motorists have clogged the airwaves weeping, wailing and gnashing their teeth at the horrendous gridlock caused by the apparently inept traffic planning, resulting...
Enter the dreadlocks! Damion Crawford, doing his best Biggie Smalls impression, has kicked in the door waving a piece of two-by-four and in the process sent his vice-presidential rivals scampering for cover as he captured most votes in the race for...
Depression affects millions of us. Unfortunately, many persons afflicted with the condition are undiagnosed, and a significant proportion of those who have been diagnosed are not treated. Reasons for the absence of treatment include denial, stigma...
This newspaper welcomes the seriousness and weight Jamaica's Government says it attaches to the Windrush Generation saga and the effort it has invested in protecting the rights of its citizens victimised by the scandal. Indeed, we are heartened by...
I'm in favour of progress, of upgrading our infrastructure and our roads. We have long ago outgrown our housing solutions, water supply, power supply, public transport system, roads, public health facilities, schools, prisons, police stations and...
Justice and equity demand three immediate changes in the Government's relations with the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech). And I accept responsibility for these not being settled during the last administration.The first is the balancing of...
We vacation in Jamaica at least twice per year, purchased a cottage in Boscobel 10 years ago, and plan on retiring there.We have a preteen daughter and we all like to drive around the island on our visits. We have been visiting Falmouth over the...
Published:Sunday | September 16, 2018 | 12:41 AMCarolyn Cooper
Two Fridays ago, I went to Gordon Town for the unveiling of the statue of Louise Bennett-Coverley, popularly known by her stage name, Miss Lou. Mutabaruka, who was covering the event for Irie FM, tried to get me into ‘mix-up’...
Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke should be commended for his efforts in using the media, as well as speeches from public platforms, to inform and engage Jamaicans on a range of economic reforms he regards as important for the country's advancement....
Stripped to its core, Michael Lee-Chin's private $60 million "gift" to coffee farmers is really just the billionaire businessman's way of helping the Government to provide subsidies it couldn't afford to an industry that is yet to truly understand...
A crocodile killed a fisherman last month and another did something last week which I warned/predicted years ago. Given the sociological insight I gained from the University of the West Indies (UWI) and the work of herpetologists such as my...
Member of parliament for St James North Western, Dr Horace Chang, announced recently the Government's intention to construct 76 housing units to relocate some residents of Canterbury, a $550-million project designed to transform the inner-city St...
Published:Saturday | September 15, 2018 | 12:00 AM
That he has spoken publicly about it can only mean that Audley Shaw takes seriously what he interprets to be a threat on his life. And so, too, must law enforcement. In the event, the police must engage in a full and thorough investigation of this...
Published:Saturday | September 15, 2018 | 12:00 AM
"She gone stark raving crackers," said one of my friends. "Who?" I asked. "Kamla," he replied, referring to the former prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago and now leader of the Opposition. "What happen? What she do now?" Pause. "She call de prime...
Published:Saturday | September 15, 2018 | 12:00 AM
Over the past few months, a lot has been said about the Primary Exit Profile (PEP) instituted by the Ministry of Education. The Profile was designed to increase the students' academic and critical thinking capabilities, and creativity by the end of...
We don't know if anyone in Jamaica remembers Gordon Brown, or, more important, has been listening to him this week. We should.A decade ago, Mr Brown was Britain's Labour prime minister. Before that, he was Chancellor of the Exchequer, or finance...
Niamey, the capital city of the Republic of Niger (where I have been attending a conference), is located in the Sahel, the semi-arid area south of the Sahara Desert. The Niger River (the third-largest in Africa after the Nile and the Congo) is the...
Every so often, and the 'often' is getting more frequent these days, matters of an absolutely logic-defying nature hit the national headlines. In the preceding days, we have learnt of the massive damage to cable infrastructure by telecommunications...
The editorial of Sunday, September 9, 2018 concerning the Windrush crisis has presented an opportunity to share some details on the Government's response to this truly tragic situation.Jamaica's high commissioner in London, along with the other...
