Thumbnail illustration by Tiffany Zhong
Thumbnail illustration by Tiffany Zhong
After Jamaica gained independence from Britain in 1962, a politically independent nation was established that would struggle tremendously to support itself financially. In sum, Jamaica was an independent nation on the surface but without colonialist powers connections to trade relations, Jamaica had little means to be financially independent from Britain. This dilemma created a real vulnerability in the following decades characterised by the presence of multinational corporations, structural adjustment programs and loan organizations exploiting Jamaica beyond belief. During the pursuit of independence, Britain responded proactively by creating multilateral organisations installed with the power to undermine the developing economies of countries seeking independence. Notably, Alexander Bustamante, leader of the Jamaican Labour Party enlisted Jamaica into these organisations as well as aligning with the United States whom he regarded as a potential co-founder of modern Jamaica. Subsequently, a neo-colonialist relationship was born between the two, with Jamaica heavily influenced by American values, the country embedded themselves into international financial institutions with the developed West hoping to gain economic resources. The result was the revitalisation of a few neo-colonialist industries including tourism, sugar plantations, the marijuana market and perilously, the bauxite mining industry.
Bauxite mining, open-cast extraction of the ore that produces aluminium, effectively replaced the sugar plantations, contributing 15% of Jamaica’s GDP and making 2/3 of all exports. As a scarce resource where labour doesn’t come nearly as cheap in the other countries it is also found, foreign investors have been keen to extract and import the material from Jamaica. By 1976, foreign capitalists accrued over 191,00 acres in land, displacing 560,00 rural Jamaicans between 1943 and 1970. However, the industry has only ever employed 10,000 workers at one time while exacerbating unemployment and forcing relocation of locals. The ecological effects of mining on water resources is concerning, in sum mining activity threatens to decrease the availability of clean water during the dry season. What’s more, locals are experiencing respiratory symptoms due to the thick, red smog of floating particles released into the air during the extraction process. The bauxite mining industry already met strong resistance, reaching its peak when the governments’ plans began to reignite conflict over land-rights and sovereignty with the Maroon community local to Cockpit Country. Colonel Richard Currie of the Accompong Maroons has been an outspoken representative of his community’s rights and demands. Maroon communities are among the immediately affected by bauxite mining in the rural North. The requisition of land for the purpose of mining poses two major problems: the Accompong Maroons rely upon local water resources which will become increasingly limited with expansion of mining. Secondly, land rights agreed in the 1739 treaty between the British and the Maroons is currently under threat in the pursuit of the raw material.
Neo-colonialist interest in Jamaica has been depriving the country of genuine economic independence for years, and with the Cockpit Country now under threat, the entire Jamaican population are affected. Around 40% of Jamaica’s drinking water comes from the Cockpit Country; as bauxite mining edges further towards ecologically vulnerable territory, a win for mining companies such as Noranda will most certainly be to the detriment of Jamaicans. So, what are the Maroons of Accompong prepared to do to defend their ancestral land as well as their nation’s environment? Quite honestly, the Maroon Council have not shared any tangible plans of resistance. If Chief Curry’s Instagram addresses are anything to go by, the Accompong Maroons are adamant that the Jamaican government would be wise to think twice before siphoning off their land acre by acre but the man himself is yet to publicly demonstrate meaningful action against the government. In truth, Chief Curry has much less influence than his ancestors had touted before him and it may seem, he knows it. Prime Minister, Andrew Holness fails to acknowledge the Maroons as a sovereign people, as he declared in early January that ‘there is no other sovereign authority in Jamaica’. With the financial value of bauxite investment, the government knows where their bread is buttered.
As established, the long-term effects of independence birthed an economic dependency on the supply-demand relationship with international investors – for all their fighting-spirit, the Maroon’s share no steak in this power dynamic. So often is the case with former colonies, it feels as if Jamaica is far from an independent and sustainable economy – a post-colonial hangover that plagues many Caribbean nations. Ultimately, for all the beauty, history and sustenance of Cockpit Country, the ground it stands upon is defenceless. After reading into this issue, I understand that there has long been efforts to protect the Cockpit Country as it is such a crucial ecological asset to the nation, however I hope greater international awareness will provoke a sense of urgency. In many cases globally, powerful corporations set to make a killing from literally killing the Earth all too often escape accountability while families and labourers pay the price, but what will it take to challenge this pattern?
