Jamaican News

Government Committed to the Declaration and Development of Pinnacle

Culture Minister, the Honourable Olivia Grange met with members of the Rastafarian Community at Pinnacle to discuss the Rastafari Heritage Site Declaration and Development. The meeting took place on Friday, April 22, 2016.
Culture Minister, the Honourable Olivia Grange met with members of the Rastafarian Community at Pinnacle to discuss the Rastafari Heritage Site Declaration and Development. The meeting took place on Friday, April 22, 2016.

KINGSTON, Jamaica – Friday, April 22, 2016 – Minister of Culture, Gender Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, announced that the Government is committed to the declaration and development of six lots on the Pinnacle lands in Sligoville, St. Catherine as a heritage site for the Rastafarian community.

“One lot has already been declared a National Monument by the Jamaica National Heritage Trust (JNHT), while there are four others already identified. We are looking at a total of six lots for acquisition and the establishment of a Rastafarian heritage site and National Monument,” the Minister explained.

Minister Grange made the announcement during a visit to Pinnacle on April 22, 2016.

In highlighting that everything is a process, the Minister said, the new board of the Jamaica National Heritage Trust will lead the process in accordance with the JNHT Act.

In calling for unity among Rastas on the matter of Pinnacle, Minister Grange said, “We will all sit at the table to determine what the project will be, in order to secure the appropriate funding and to determine the way forward and how we will sustain what we are going to put in place and how it will benefit Rastafari and Jamaica.”

“Today and this week is important to you and it is important to Jamaica because when His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie, visited Jamaica on April 21, 1966, he came at the invitation of my Government and 50 years later it is the same Government that is making a commitment to you, that will be realized in your lifetime; that we will once again restore the glory to this piece of rock we call Pinnacle. But for us to achieve this we must recognize that unity is strength,” said Minister Grange in highlighting the 50th Anniversary of the State Visit of Emperor of Ethiopia, the arrival of his grandson, His Imperial Highness, Prince Ermias Sahle – Selassie and the commitment of the Government in declaring and developing Pinnacle.

Commentary

This disputed piece of land better known as Pinnacle is not beyond us to arrive at a settlement. It is long overdue for an amicable resolution.

The former PNP government did not have a clue how to resolve this dispute. Rastafarians have been treated for too long as if they are second class citizens.

“Out of many one people” is supposed to be our motto, we dear not continue to give lip service to such a laudable statement and in the next breath, ignore the plight of Rastafarians … let them settle once and for all at Pinacle by granting security of tenure. They have considerable spiritual and emotional attachment to this plot of land to be ignored.

To do otherwise would be a downright disgracevif not egregious travesty.

Let us finally do the right thing as this is right thing to do. Amen!.

Commentary by Hopeton O’Connor-Dennie is Senior International Correspondent & photojournalist for Vision Newspaper Canada.

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