Dates tabled for possible Carnival in Jamaica
Published:Tuesday | March 22, 2022 | 12:12 AMStephanie Lyew/Gleaner Writer
The Carnival Stakeholders Committee held its first meeting yesterday to discuss possible dates for Carnival in Jamaica 2022. With the events sector seeing some signs of returning to normality, several submissions have been tabled by the directors of the bands involved in the annual celebration.
Kamal Bankay, chairman of Carnival in Jamaica Stakeholders Committee, informed The Gleaner that more discussions are left to be had before an official date is announced.
“We have officially received requests for more than one date for the parades to happen; there is a request for a summer date, another request for an October date, and there has also been a request to not have anything until April of next year,” he shared.
The stakeholders have shown great interest in Jamaica’s carnival events and execution, with representatives coming from all bands: Xaymaca International, Xodus Carnival, Bacchanal Jamaica, Downtown Kingston Carnival, and other partners and promoters of fêtes involved in the carnival calendar of events.
Carnival in Jamaica has been suspended over the past two years, but with Prime Minister Andrew Holness’ lifting the ban on entertainment events last Friday, many promoters and partygoers are ready to ‘scratch the itch’ with major executions, including the annual road march. Bankay shared that all bands would have to agree on a date for the event to be staged under the Carnival in Jamaica banner.
BACK TO NORMAL
“What everybody agreed on — whether or not, they can agree to one date this year, which is all owed to logistics — is next year Carnival in Jamaica [is] to happen in April. Everyone is aligned to go back to the normal calendar scheduling,” he explained.
He further shared that while there must be a consensus between the stakeholders, the result is not based solely upon the stakeholders’ requested dates. The group will have to seek counsel from government, “as it is a public-private partnership”. However, the aim is to make an announcement, “within a few days”.
“With the carnival season already planned, it is just for it to be executed, but there are some follow-up meetings that need to take place before a definitive position has been made,” Bankay concluded.
In a recent interview with The Sunday Gleaner, band directors for Bacchanal Jamaica and Xodus Carnival shared their preference to host carnival celebrations in the summer. Meanwhile, Xaymaca International’s director, Andrew Bellamy, said that a carnival during the summer would interfere with other carnivals on the calendar and staple events and ‘Emancipendence’ celebrations.
“There’s a concern that we don’t want carnival to be rushed and it possibly leading to a COVID issue or be attached to a spike. While we have been given ‘free rein’ with certain guidelines, we still want to be mindful that COVID has not completely disappeared,” Bellamy said.