Decolonization

Jamaica sought its independence from Britain since its earliest days; throughout its history it was fighting against the laws passed down by the Crown. The island made the final transition in the 20th century (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization).

After World War II, Jamaica began a relatively long transition to full political independence. They had a love-hate relationship with the British and resented British domination, racism, and the dictatorial Colonial Office (Igniting Independence) . Britain gradually granted the colony more self-government under periodic constitutional changes (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). Jamaica's political patterns and governmental structure were shaped during two decades of what was called "constitutional decolonization," the period between 1944 and independence in 1962 (Igniting Independence).

The roots of the national movement for independence reach back into the struggles for land in the 19th century (Igniting Independence) . More immediately, it was inspired by the political ideas and protest of Marcus Garvey, one of Jamaica's national heroes, and precipitated by the reaction of the sugar and dockworkers to the economic crisis spawned by the Great Depression (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). It emerged as a political force in the context of the rebellion in 1938. During the decolonization movement, various political parties arose (Igniting Independence) . These parties were the People’s National Party, the Jamaica Labor Party, the National Workers Union, and the Bustamante Industrial Trades Union (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). The constitutional change that facilitated the emergence of these parties was the granting of adult suffrage and a measure of self-government in 1944 (Igniting Independence).

The weakness of the 1944 constitution lies in the relative lack of power of the ministers (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). They were meant to deal with both the Executive Council and the House of Representatives, but had no responsibility to them. In 1951 discussions of future modifications arose when Sir Hugh Foot arrived as Governor (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). By 1953 a new constitution with more changes was set forth. With this new system in place, Bustamante became Jamaica's first Chief Minister (Igniting Independence) . However, an election in 1955 brought a change of power and Manley took the position of Chief Minister (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). During the next two years even more constitutional changes were made, and by the end, the government was a Cabinet Government with almost complete internal self-rule (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization).

For a long time, Britain wished to unite its Caribbean territories. Though many larger territories, including Jamaica, had objections, the group was joined together with the capital on Trinidad in 1958 (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). The new group became the Federation of the West Indies. The Federation was created in January of that year, and elections were set for March. Though much work was done to make the Federation work, by 1961 Jamaica had put forth a referendum for its removal from the Federation (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). The removal was granted and the British Government agreed to discuss Jamaica's independence. The Federation fell apart the following year (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization).

With Britain's willingness to discuss Jamaica's independence and dominion within the British Commonwealth of Nations, things proceeded quickly (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). Within a year a new constitution had been drafted, strongly based on Jamaica's current design, but with a number of changes reflective of other British dominion nations (Igniting Independence).

The period 1944 – 1962 not only saw major political changes, but also major transformations of the structure of the economy (Igniting Independence). For an export economy, the economy became diversified around the export of sugar, bananas and other agricultural commodities, and the tourist industry (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). These in turn, stimulated a vibrant construction industry, and an import substituting manufacturing sector.

The date for Jamaica's independence was set as August 6, 1962, and the political parties on the island quickly went into full force (Politics of Constitutional Decolonization). Jamaica has been free to make its own decisions since the early 1960s (Igniting Independence). Both Bustamante and Manley led Jamaica's people throughout much of modern history.

*All information found via:

"Jamaica History: Independence | Jamaica-guide.info." Jamaica Guide - Culture, History, Vacations, Travel, and More | Jamaica-guide.info. Web. 04 Dec. 2011. <http://jamaica-guide.info/past.and.present/history/independence/index.html>.

Munroe, Trevor. The Politics of Constitutional Decolonization: Jamaica 1944-62. Jamaica: Inst. of Social and Economic Research, Univ. of the West Indies, 1972. Print.

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