Social Impact with Emma » corruption : A Jamaica Gleaner Blog

COVID-19 and Talking to the Press in Jamaica

May 5th, 2020

Many of us might not have noticed it: Sunday, May 3 was World Press Freedom Day 2020. The theme was Journalism Without Fear or Favour. The day is usually observed with some kind of public forum organized by the Press Association of Jamaica. With the pandemic on, obviously that was not possible. The Prime Minister […]

The Road Safety Problem: Are We Missing Something?

July 23rd, 2019

It’s always interesting, when you have visitors, to see aspects of Jamaica through their eyes – whether negative or positive. So when a recent friend observed that, having come to Jamaica, she is more afraid of the mayhem on our roads than crime, I quietly agreed. Not that we don’t have a crime problem too. […]

Comparing Ourselves to Others: The Singapore Syndrome

November 9th, 2018

We Jamaicans have a bit of an obsession with Singapore, don’t we? Our romance with this small, densely populated country – some 18,000 miles away, with a population twice that of Jamaica – still lingers. Some of the passion may have waned, as romances tend to do, in the past few years. But what sparked […]

Building Skills for Integrity With WROC: Respect for Life and What it Brings

September 15th, 2018

“Let our own light shine.” Nikeisha Sewell Lewis, Executive Director of the Women’s Resource and Outreach Centre (WROC) always inspires confidence and a sense of belief – in self, but especially, belief in others. In this case, it is the over 60 young people WROC has worked with over the past six months under the […]

The Corruption Problem: Is It People or Systems That Are to Blame?

July 22nd, 2018

I have been thinking about the Petrojam affair (after a while, one gets tired of the word “scandal”), which has taken several twists and turns. I hope that the Permanent Secretary in what is now the Ministry of Science and Technology only, who is reportedly investigating the matter, does a thorough job. The need for […]

Thoughts on Bastille Day

July 15th, 2018

In Jamaica, many parties and evening receptions are held outside, with stark shadows and artificial lighting. The annual celebration of Bastille Day (or Quatorze Juillet) on July 14 at the French Embassy is no different. The guests stand stiffly, almost in rows, while speeches are made, their faces turned slightly upwards. Then they begin to […]

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