Jamaica Archives - Commonwealth Oral History Project

Interview with Billie Miller

by nicholaszuniga | May 4, 2017 | Barbados, CARICOM, Civil Society, Constitutional Change, Decolonisation, Democracy, Development, Diplomacy, Education, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Gender, Human Rights, Jamaica, Judiciary, Law, Reflections, Small States, Trade and Investment, Trade Unions, Trinidad and Tobago

Download the transcript (12 Jan 2015) Biography – Dame Billie Miller was educated at Queen’s College in Barbados, King’s College, Durham University and the Council of Legal Education in England. She was the coordinator of CARICOM ministerial spokespersons with...

Interview with Dorienne Rowan-Campbell

by evanamusoke | Jan 6, 2017 | CHOGM, Civil Society, Commonwealth Secretariat, Development, Education, Gender, Health, Human Rights, India, Jamaica, Queen, Race, Sexuality, South Africa, Technical Assistance, West Indies/ West Indies Federation, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Rowan-Campbell, Dorienne. Born in Jamaica. Educated at Carlton University, Canada. One of the founding members of Canadian Research Institute for the Advancement of Women (CRIAW), 1976. Broadcast journalist for Canadian...

Interview with Rashleigh Jackson

by chrismoffat | Jul 21, 2015 | Civil Society, Commonwealth Secretariat, Diplomacy, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Namibia, Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Queen, South Africa, United Kingdom, United Nations, USA, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Jackson, Rashleigh Edond. 1929- . Born in New Amsterdam, British Guiana. Joined the civil service in 1949. Received scholarship to study in the United Kingdom, 1954. Educated at the University of London and University of...

Interview with Carl Dundas

by chrismoffat | Jul 21, 2015 | Apartheid, Barbados, Civil Society, Commonwealth Secretariat, Democracy, Development, Elections, Fiji, Grenada, Guyana, India, Jamaica, Kenya, Malaysia, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Technical Assistance, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Dundas, Carl. Educated in London and called to the bar at Gray’s Inn. Appointed Legal Counsel and Director of Legal Division of the Caribbean Community, 1973. Technical Legal Advisor to Joint Selection Committee on...

Interview with The Most Hon Edward Seaga

by chrismoffat | May 22, 2015 | Apartheid, Canada, CHOGM, Cold War, Democracy, Grenada, Jamaica, Queen, South Africa, Trade and Investment

Download Interview Transcript. Biography: Seaga, Edward Philip George. 1930- . Born in Boston, United States. Educated at Harvard University. Nominated to serve in the Legislative Council, Jamaican Parliament, 1959. Elected MP for Western Kingston in 1962, a...

Interview with the Most Hon PJ Patterson

by chrismoffat | Apr 17, 2015 | Canada, CHOGM, Development, Guyana, Jamaica, Mozambique, Nigeria, Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), Rhodesia (see also Zimbabwe), Rwanda, South Africa, Sport, Technical Assistance, Trade and Investment, Uganda, United Kingdom, West Indies/ West Indies Federation, Zambia, Zimbabwe (see also Rhodesia)

Download interview transcript. Biography: Patterson, Percival Noel James ‘PJ’. 1935- . Born in Hanover, Jamaica. Educated at the University of the West Indies, Mona, and the London School of Economics. Elected Vice-President of the People’s National Party (PNP), 1969....

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Definitioner

Bill Clinton

William Jefferson ‘Bill’ Clinton (b.1946) is an American political figure who served as 42^nd President of the United States (1993-2001). Clinton remains active in politics as an adviser to the Democratic Party, and also oversees the William J Clinton Foundation and its work on the prevention of AIDS and global warming. In 2009, he was United Nations Special Envoy to Haiti.

Forbes Burnham

Linden Forbes Burnham (1923-1985) was a Guyanese politician who served as leader of Guyana from 1964 until his death, holding the titles of Premier (1964-66), Prime Minister (1966-80) and President (1980-85) over his long career. Burnham was founder and leader of the People’s National Congress.

Alister McIntyre

Sir Meredith Alister McIntyre (b.1932) is a Grenadian economist and development planner who played a key role in the movement toward Caribbean integration as Secretary General of CARICOM from 1974-77 and Vice Chairman of the West Indian Commission. During his international career, McIntyre also served as Director of the Commodities Division, UNCTAD, Deputy Secretary General of UNCTAD, and Assistant Secretary General at the United Nations in New York. From 1988 to 1998 he was Vice Chancellor of the University of the West Indies, and later acted as Chief Technical Advisor to the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery.

Michael Fennell

Michael Fennell is a Jamaican sports administrator who served as President of the Commonwealth Games Federation, overseeing events in Kuala Lumpur (1998), Manchester (2002), Melbourne (2006) and Delhi (2010). He has also acted as President of the Jamaican Olympic Association.

Stan Mudenge

Isaak Stanislaus Gorerazvo Mudenge (1941-2012) was a Zimbabwean political figure who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1995 to 2005 under the presidency of Robert Mugabe. From 2005 until his death in 2012, Mudenge was Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education in Zimbabwe.

Kikwete (Jakaya Kikwete)

Dr Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete (b.1950) is a Tanzanian politician who was elected President of Tanzania in 2005. Under his predecessor, Benjamin Mkapa, Kikwete was Minister of Foreign Affairs (1995-2005) and he previously served as Minister of Finance (1994-95). In 2008-09, Kikwete was Chairperson of the African Union.

John Kufuor

John Kufuor (b.1938) is a Ghanian political figure who served as President of Ghana from 2001 to 2009, succeeding Jerry John Rawlings in a peaceful democratic transition of power. Kufuor was Chairperson of the African Union from 2007-08.

Benjamin Mkapa

Benjamin Mkapa (b.1938) is a Tanzanian politician who served as the third President of Tanzania from 1995 to 2005. He previously served under President Ali Hassan Mwinyi as Minister for Information and Broadcasting (1990-92) and Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education (1992-95).

Indian Ocean Commission

The Indian Ocean Commission (IOC) was established in 1982 to facilitate political, economic, ecological and cultural cooperation between five African Indian Ocean territories: Comoros, Réunion, Madagascar, Mauritius and Seychelles. The IOC’s Secretariat is headquartered in Mauritius.

Organisation of American States

The Organisation of American States (OAS) was established in 1948 as an inter-continental body promoting regional cooperation and collaboration. Headquartered in Washington, DC, the OAS includes 35 member states. In 2015, the Uruguayan lawyer and politician Luis Almagro was appointed Secretary General.

Herbie Walker

Herbert Samuel Walker is a Jamaican diplomat and former Governor of the Bank of Jamaica (1977-81) who served as his country’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 1981-88. From 1989-92, he was Jamaica’s Permanent Representative to the Specialised Agencies of the United Nations at Geneva, where he was elected President of the Common Fund Conference.

Group of 77

The Group of 77 is a coalition of United Nations member states, primarily composed of developing nations, who collaborate in UN negotiations to promote their collective economic interests. The Group was founded on 15 June 1964 at the UN Conference on Trade and Development.

ACP Group

The African, Caribbean, and Pacific Group of States (ACP Group) was created in 1975 by the Georgetown Agreement and, as an organisation, devotes its attention to sustainable development, poverty reduction and integration with the world economy. It includes 48 countries from Sub-Saharan Africa, 16 from the Caribbean and 15 from the Pacific.

Commonwealth Games

The Commonwealth Games is an international sporting event that takes place every four years and brings together athletes from across the Commonwealth of Nations. It began in 1930 as the British Empire Games, and is overseen today by the Commonwealth Games Federation.

Marlborough House

Marlborough House is a 17^th century mansion in the City of Westminster, central London, which has served as the headquarters of the Commonwealth Secretariat since 1953.

New International Economic Order

The New International Economic Order (NIEO) was a proposal set forth by a group of developing countries in 1974 to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. It focused on issues of trade, development assistance, tariff reductions in developed countries and was intended to revise the dominant ‘Bretton-Woods’ economic order that was perceived to disproportionately benefit the United States.

Troika

Refers to incumbent, previous, and next Chairpersons-in-Office of the Commonwealth, who, after the 2002 CHOGM, met to try to resolve the dispute over Zimbabwe’s membership of the Commonwealth.

PJ Patterson

Percival Noel James Patterson (b. 1935) is a prominent Jamaican political figure. He was leader of the People’s National Party and Prime Minister of Jamaica, 1992-2006.

Lomé Convention

The Lomé Convention is a trade and aid agreement between the European Community and the African, Caribean and Pacific countries. It was signed in February 1975, and came into force in April 1976.

Rufaro Stadium

The Rufaro Stadium is a sports stadium in Harare, Zimbabwe. It hosted Zimbabwe’s independence celebrations in 1980.

Joe Clark

Joe Clark (b. 1939). Canadian journalist, politician and statesman. As a member of the Progressive Conservative party, he was Prime Minister of Canada, June 1979-March 1980 and Secretary of State for External Affairs 1984-91.

ZAPU

Zimbabwe African People’s Union. A militant political organisation founded in 1961 that fought against white minority rule in Rhodesia. Merged with ZANU in 1987 to form ZANU-PF.

ZANU

Zimbabwe African National Union. A militant political organisation founded in 1963 to campaign against white minority rule in Rhodesia. It won power in 1980, and in 1987 merged with ZAPU to form ZANU-PF.

WTO

The World Trade Organization. International organisation that aims to manage and organise liberalisation of international trade. Established in 1995, the WTO replaced the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade signed in 1947

Harold Wilson

Harold Wilson (1916-1995). British politician and Prime Minister (1964-1970, 1974-1976).

Cyrus Vance

Cyrus Vance (1917-2002). American politician and diplomat, served as Secretary of State (1977-1980) and as a United Nations envoy (1991-1993).

Secretary Vance (Cyrus Vance)

Cyrus Vance (1917-2002). American politician and diplomat, served as Secretary of State (1977-1980) and as a United Nations envoy (1991-1993).

UNCTAD

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. Established in 1964 to promote to trade, investment and development opportunities in developing countries.

SWAPO

South West Africa People’s Organisation. A Namibian political party founded in 1960 to campaign for independence; it has governed Namibia since 1990.

South Pacific Forum

The South Pacific Forum was an international organisation formed in 1971 to facilitate cooperation between the independent countries of the Pacific Ocean. In 1999, it was renamed the Pacific Islands Forum.

soft power

A concept used to explain an emphasis on a attracting and co-opting power as opposed to coercive or forceful power.

Hugh Segal

Hugh Segal (b. 1950). Canadian politician and a member of the 2010 Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group.

SADC

Southern African Development Community (SADC). An international organisation founded in 1992, and a successor to the Southern African Development Coordination Conference, founded in 1980. Goal to encourage socio-economic cooperation and integration among southern African states.

Shridath Ramphal

Shridath Surendranath 'Sonny' Ramphal (b. 1928). Guyanese politician, second Commonwealth Secretary-General (1975-1990).

Sonny Ramphal (Shridath Ramphal)

Shridath Surendranath 'Sonny' Ramphal (b. 1928). Guyanese politician, second Commonwealth Secretary-General (1975-1990).

Non-aligned movement

An international organisation of countries that are not aligned with any manjor world power, founded in 1961.

Non-alignment

A national foreign policy position of avowed neutrality towards major powers.

Joshua Nkomo

Joshua Nkomo (1917-1999). Zimbabwean nationalist and leader of ZAPU.

Nkomo (Joshua Nkomo)

Joshua Nkomo (1917-1999). Zimbabwean nationalist and leader of ZAPU.

Robert Mugabe

Robert Mugabe (b.1924). Zimbabwean resistance leader and politician. Served as Prime Minister (1980-1987) and President (1987-) of Zimbabwe.

Don McKinnon

Sir Donald McKinnon (b. 1939) is a New Zealand politician who served as Deputy Prime Minister for the National Party (1990-96), Foreign Minister (1990-99) and Secretary General of the Commonwealth of Nations (2000-08).

Thabo Mbeki

Thabo Mbeki (b.1942). South African politician. He has served as an African National Congress negotiator in the 1980s and 1990s, and as South African Deputy President (1994-1999) and President (1999-2008).

Bob Marley

Bob Marley (1945-1981). Jamaican musician.

Michael Manley

Michael Manley (1924-1997). Jamaican politician, twice served as Prime Minister (1972-1980, 1989-1992). A member of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group on South Africa.

Dr Mahathir (Mahathir bin Mohamad)

Dr Mahathir bin Mohamad (b. 1925). Malaysian politician and Prime Minister (1981-2003).

John Major

John Major (b.1943). British politician, served, amongst other ministerial positions, as Foreign Secretary (1989) and Prime Minister (1990-1997).

Lancaster House

A London mansion house, frequently used as the venue for decolonisation negotiations between the 1940s and 1970s. It was the site of the Lancaster House Agreement in December 1979, for instance, which brought an end to white rule in Rhodesia.

John Howard

John Howard (b.1939). Prime Minister of Australia (1996-2007).

Harare Declaration

The Harare Commonwealth Declaration of 1991 set out the Commonwealth's principles and values, including membership criteria. Click here to read the Declaration in full.

Gleneagles Agreement

The Gleneagles Agreement was approved by Commonwealth leaders in Gleneagles, Scotland in 1977, supporting an international campaign against apartheid. Click here to read the Agreement in full.

GATT

The General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. A multilateral agreement managing international trade, agreed in 1947 and succeeded in 1995 by the World Trade Organisation.

FRELIMO

FRELIMO (Mozambique Liberation Front) was formed in 1962 as a Mozambican liberation movement. Since independence in 1975 it has been the ruling political party in Mozambique.

Malcolm Fraser

Malcolm Fraser (b. 1930). Prime Minister of Australia (1975-1983). Fraser also served as Co-Chairman of the Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group on South Africa.

Commonwealth Secretariat

The Commonwealth Secretariat is the principal inter-governmental body of the Commonwealth, responsible for promoting cooperation between members. Founded in 1965.

CMAG

Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group. Established by Commonwealth Heads of Government in 1995, the CMAG upholds the terms of the Harare Declaration.

Lord Carrington (Peter Carrington)

Peter Carrington, 6th Baron Carrington (b. 1919). British politician and member of the Conservative party. He was Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (1979-82) and 6th Secretary General of NATO (1984-88). In 1979 he chaired the Lancaster House conference.

CARICOM

Caribbean Community. In 1972, Commonwealth Caribbean leaders at the Seventh Heads of Government Conference agreed to transform the Caribbean Free Trade Association (CARIFTA) into a Common Market and establish the Caribbean Community, of which the Common Market would be an integral part. The treaty establishing the Caribbean Community was signed at Chaguaramas on 4 July 1973.

Apartheid

A system of legally enforced racial segregation implemented and upheld by the National Party in South Africa from 1948 – 1994

Emeka Anyaoku

Emeka Anyaoku (b. 1933). Nigerian diplomat. Served as Head of the Commonwealth International Affairs Division (1973-1977), Assistant Secretary General (1977-1979); Deputy Secretary General (1979-1991); Secretary General (1991-2001).

ANC

African National Congress. A South African political party, founded in 1912, that opposed apartheid and has been South Africa’s governing party since 1994.

Abacha (Sani Abacha)

General Sani Abacha (1943-1998). Nigerian army general and politician. He was the de facto President of Nigeria from 1993 to 1998.

Mrs Thatcher (Margaret Thatcher)

Margaret Thatcher (1926-2013). British politician and Prime Minister (1979-1990).

Interview with Billie Miller

Interview with Dorienne Rowan-Campbell

Interview with Rashleigh Jackson

Interview with Carl Dundas

Interview with The Most Hon Edward Seaga

Interview with the Most Hon PJ Patterson

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