Waging Peace:  Jamaica

Go to: Monitoring Elections | Exploring a Hemispheric Agenda

Building a Model for Transparency

Jamaica was one of three countries with which the Carter Center's Americas Program teamed in 1998 to reduce corruption and promote transparency in the Americas. The "Transparency for Growth in the Americas" project also focused initially on Costa Rica and Ecuador under the auspices of the Americas Program. In Jamaica, the program's work focused on ongoing legislative efforts to pass a corruption prevention act and an access-to-information act.

The prime minister invited the Center to help inform the public debate about the two acts. Consequently, the Center commissioned an annotated guide to the country's existing legislation against corruption and a comparative study of Jamaican legislation and other similar legislation worldwide. Read full text >

Monitoring Elections

Jamaica's Electoral Advisory Committee twice has invited The Carter Center to observe its elections, hoping to deter election-related violence and raise confidence in the electoral process. Jamaica's elections in the 1980s were fraught with widespread violence; the outbreak of violence during the 1980 election killed more than 800 people. In 1997, the first time Jamaica invited international observers, and again in 2002, election-related violence in the "garrison" communities controlled by politically related armed gangs was a concern. Yet, with the presence of observers, both the 1997 and 2002 elections were relatively peaceful.

2002 Elections
The Center praised the 2002 Jamaica electoral process, noting that Jamaicans' confidence in their election was bolstered by the professionalism of the security forces and the Electoral Office of Jamaica. Other contributing factors to a peaceful election were the institution of the Elections Center, which allowed for the immediate resolution of disputes, and the consultative process used to verify the voters list, determine the location of polling stations, and select poll workers. Read full text >

Election Reports

View Carter Center election reports for Jamaica >

Exploring a Hemispheric Agenda

Carter Center representatives met with officials in Jamaica as part of a fact-finding tour in January 1997 to prepare for the conference "Agenda for the Americas for the 21st Century." The group included former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, Rosalynn Carter, and Dr. Jennifer McCoy, director of the Americas Program. Discussions with Prime Minister Patterson as well as meetings in Argentina, Brazil, and Chile helped to set the agenda for the April 1997 conference.