|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Hundreds of Jamaicans are protesting the entry of Third Country Nationals (TCN) into the Island nation.
They’re pleading with their government to roll up the welcome mat.
Get out! You’re not welcome.
Despite almost 2,000,000 Jamaicans living abroad, some are protesting their government’s decision to admit a few thousand nationals from other countries.
According to the latest census, Jamaica has just under 3,000,000 Jamaicans living on the Island.
By that metric, 40% of Jamaicans live outside the country. And 1.5 million of the 2 million living outside the country are living in America. edw
However, the opposition to the US Third Country National (TCN) MOU is significant. Demonstrations in late June and early July 2026 brought out hundreds of protesters.
America is asking Jamaica to assist with an overflow of illegals.
According to Jamaica Ambassador Audrey Marks, the opposition to the TCN MOU is conflating her proposal for Jamaica to accept skilled workers from other countries.
Marks says the acceptance of skilled workers should not be confused with the deportees’ temporary stay in Jamaica while awaiting transfer.
When a friend asks for a favor, common sense dictates that one accommodate the request.
Especially if the request comes from a state that has carried you on its back for a long time.
Think about 1.4 million Jamaicans living in the USA—the largest number of any host nation.
While Jamaica’s former colonizer, the United Kingdom (UK), hosts only about 180,000 Jamaican nationals, the UK’s number is lower than Canada’s, which stands at around 300,000.
Jamaicans protest TCNs going to Jamaica from the USA.
Many Jamaicans don’t trust their government.
Some Jamaicans have accused Ambassador Audrey Marks of corruption and of selling out the country.
Audrey Marks is Jamaica’s thirteenth ambassador to the United States.
Ms. Marks, who received her Master’s degree from Nova Southeastern University in Davie, Florida, has denied being corrupted by America.
She has refused to release the Memorandum of Understanding she signed with the United States regarding the acceptance of TCN.
The accusation of corruption leveled against Ambassador Marks so far has remained unproven.
Jamaica and the US have an unequally yoked friendship.
For decades, America and Jamaica enjoyed a warm relationship, notwithstanding sometimes America’s meddling in Jamaica’s local politics.
Jamaica’s economy is heavily dependent on tourism to sustain the country’s infrastructure.
Where does most of the money that Jamaica uses to sustain itself come from? The United States of America.
Jamaica has a Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $146.00 million USD.
Jamaica welcomes between 1.8 million and 2 million American stopover (overnight) tourists each year.
That number represents roughly 70% of the Island’s entire stayover visitor market.
American tourists spend roughly US$3.5 billion to US$4.1 billion annually in Jamaica.
The Jamaicans-TCN debate hinges on the economy and sovereignty: how the acceptance of workers could affect tourism, remittances, and diplomacy.
Jamaicans protest TCNs going to Jamaica from the USA.
Should America prevent its citizens from visiting Jamaica, that would be a devastating blow to the Island’s economy.
Of course, such a move by the United States could also prove worrisome for America.
Jamaica sits right in Cuba’s backyard. It is in America’s best interest to prevent Russia and China from gaining a strong foothold in that part of the Caribbean basin.
Cutting off Jamaica would send other “first world” countries to court Jamaica.
The symbiotic relationship between the countries is stronger than that of the Commonwealth, of which Jamaica is a part.
America did drop the ball somewhat in its continued courtship of Jamaica.
While America slept, China has been playing footsies with Jamaica.
Is it in Jamaica’s best interest to accept the TCN? Yes!
Should those who disagree with their government protest their decision? Yes.
It is their right to voice their concerns.
However, sometimes government has to make a decision based on the information that it has.
Just do it.
Jamaica’s annual budget: 1.44 trillion Jamaican Dollars (JMD) or $9.10 billion United States Dollars.
Just do it!
“Think globally, act locally.”
It is crucial to be forward-thinking but not a forward person. “Be kind to everyone you meet because each carries his heavy burden…” Plato.
Embrace the three Constants: change, justice, and rightness.
The thought police are busy at work trying to suppress free speech. If allowed their march to madness, they will arrest your very thoughts.
“Free speech, but not free reach.” — Social media titans.
Free speech is thy Lord.
