Emancipation a mandate to build on Jamaica's future, say leaders

 

Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness has called Jamaicans to action on this Emancipation Day, emphasizing that the observance is not merely a historic milestone. 

 

In his message to the country, Dr. Holness urged Jamaicans to protect the freedom they enjoy through the sacrifice and courage of ancestors, uplift each other and build the country they dream of. 

 

"To truly honour our forebears, we must show through our conduct, our choices, our institutions, and our achievements that we are a great people, capable of achieving great things. Every time we demonstrate competent self-government, every time we hold fair elections, uphold the rule of law, educate our children, care for our elders, invest in our infrastructure, and uplift the vulnerable, we are demonstrating our capacity, our strength, and our resilience," said the Prime Minister. 

 

"Emancipation was the beginning of our responsibility, a duty to build a society founded on order, dignity, and justice. That duty is ours still. On this Emancipation Day, let us renew our commitment to fulfilling it, not as victims of history, but as authors of our own future," he charged. 

 

 

In the meantime, Opposition Leader Mark Golding said emancipation is a living mandate that calls each Jamaican to examine whether he or she has truly broken the chains of mental slavery, systemic injustice, and economic exclusion. 

 

Mr. Golding said the country must continue to work toward an economy that empowers its people, education that opens doors for all, and a society rooted in fairness and respect.

 

"Are we truly emancipated when the system deprives so many of our youth of the chance to achieve their potential? And can we say we are free when the gap between the powerful and the powerless continues to widen? To answer these questions with positive change, we must place social justice, equity, and empowerment at the centre of our mission. 

 

"Our commitment to freedom requires [us] to invest in opportunity - opportunity for all to access quality education, opportunity for all to benefit from affordable health care, opportunity to own a piece of the land we call home, opportunity to move up from poverty and build intergenerational wealth, opportunity to live with safety, dignity, and pride, no matter what your background or where you were born," the Opposition Leader declared.