In a year when US President Barrack Obama set foot on Cuban soil and the Pope went to the US of A, Jamaicans made their own headlines. Some of them, like those that told the grim dead babies saga, were gruesome.
Happily, many of them were great stories of hope.
At the end of 2014, the authorities were able to boast of an 11 year low in the murder rate. Sadly, twelve months later, the numbers went back up to pre-2014 levels of about 1200 murders for the year. The Jamaican news was happier in sport, medicine, beauty and literature and there was historic news concerning ganja.
March – An era came to an end in March when the 28 year tenure of erstwhile ‘Hotline’ host Barbara Gloudon was halted. Her insightful and motherly advice to callers will certainly be missed. Thankfully, Miss G’s fertile mind is still creating stories for the Pantomime and her column in the Observer newspaper.
April – Ganja was legalised in Jamaica on April 15 … sort of. New laws came into effect on that date allowing possession of small quantities of the herb, ostensibly for personal use and allow Rastafari to smoke it on their places of worship. The law states that persons found with two ounces or less of marijuana will no longer be subject to arrest or detention by the police.
They will be issued instead with a ticket for $500 payable within a 30-day period at a revenue centre.
Understandably, the air of optimism has led prospective ganja industry entrepreneurs to lobby for the infrastructure to produce a whole range of products derived from the herb.
May – The Jamaican people turned-on their on-off love affair with Asafa Powell at the Jamaica Invitational at the National Stadium. A week earlier, American sprinter Ryan Bailey had distorted Usain Bolt’s well known ‘To the World’ signal, with a throat slashing gesture after a rare loss by Jamaica to the USA in the 4×100. Asafa sprinted back into the hearts of many by burning Bailey’s heels at the Invitational in 9.84 seconds over 100 metres.
July – Jamaican scientist Henry Lowe boosted the nation’s standing when he was granted a US patent for a possible prostate cancer cure.
According to a statement from Dr Lowe’s Bio-Tech R&D Institute, “The patent is based on a method of treating prostate cancer using compounds from the crude extract of the indigenous Jamaican plant, Ball Moss, commonly known as Old Man’s Beard.”
Kingston played host to the inaugural Jamaica Film Festival and screened some 43 films, 12 made by Jamaicans. Staged by JAMPRO, the festival included 14 workshops covering all aspects of the film-making process and brought together Jamaican and regional film makers with heavy hitters from the USA. It gave hope of a return of the spirit that spawned movies like the Harder They Come, Countryman, Dancehall Queen and the Children of Babylon. It was a huge success.
To top off a buoyant July, the Reggae Boyz beat the USA to advance to the finals of the Football Gold Cup in Philadelphia. The Boyz lost 3-1 to Mexico but made history by reaching the final for the first time.
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