Newly elected Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding stated during a recent interview on the BBC's Hard Talk program that he would not allow any gay person to be a member of his cabinet."That's a decision that I made ... that every Prime Minister makes. A prime minister must decide what he feels will represent to the Jamaican people a Cabinet of Ministers who will be able to discharge their responsibilities without fear, without favor, without intimidation. That's a choice that I had and I made that choice," said Prime Minister Golding.
Mr. Golding has been unfortunately vilified by various media by this very astute comment.
His statement was made in defense of the difficulty of governing various political districts in Jamaica, correctly rationalizing that (unfortunately) the Jamaican culture has absolutely no respect for homosexuals and would not follow the directions nor advice of any known LGBT person in Jamaican public service.
Prior to this statement Mr. Golding made it very clear that his selection of any cabinet minister would be based solely on the person's "merits and capabilities" and not on what they do in the privacy of their homes.
The moderator referenced recent articles regarding an incident in Mandeville, Jamaica whereas four men were chased out of their home resulting in casualties and a possible fatality. Mr. Golding replied that, "we (the ruling body) have given instructions that crimes against persons because of their sexual orientation must be pursued with the same vigor of any other crime.”
When confronted by the moderator that the police have not been enforcing those instructions Mr. Golding explained that "we do have a long-standing culture that is very opposed to homosexuality. I think that is changing. I believe there is greater acceptance now that people have different lifestyles, that their privacy must be respected."
Mr. Golding has also been criminalized for saying that Jamaica was not going to allow values to be imposed on it from outside.
“We (Jamaica) are going to have to determine that ourselves, and we are going to have to determine to what extent those values will adopt over time - to change in perception and to change in understanding as to how people live. But it can't be on the basis that lobby groups far and away from Jamaica will define for Jamaica how it must establish its own standards and its own morals.”
Mr. Golding was very effectively surmising how Jamaicans deal with internal social issues, and re-iterating that this was an issue that would take time and not instantly decided on or changed based on opinions by persons not familiar with Jamaican culture and society.
Mr. Golding, you handled this interview smartly, professionally, and without rancor. Your answers were rational, fair and balanced.
Well done.
To watch the complete interview click here.
1 comment:
i found his responses very truthfull and was happy that he did not falter.....plus very happy that it was not the former lady Pm in that hotseat as i am sure she would have embarrased the country.
Kay
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