No ditching Queen before Diamond jubilee

Constitutional speed bumps have slowed the Government’s push to cut ties with the British monarchy ahead of Jamaica’s 60th Independence anniversary celebrations in August, Minister of Legal and Constitutional Affairs Marlene Malahoo Forte has said.

In fact, the minister said no timeline has been determined, cautioning that the Constitution sets out a process for amendment from which legislators cannot deviate.

The update came during Wednesday’s post-Cabinet press briefing at Jamaica House, two weeks after the visit of British royals Prince William and Kate, which spurred anticolonial protests and intensified calls for reparation from the United Kingdom for slavery and for the island’s transition to a republic.

“We’re not at the stage of drafting instructions yet. I have completed my assessment of the deeply entrenched reform issues. The process has to be carefully sequenced ... . The questions also to be put to the electorate. Those have to be carefully designed,” Malahoo Forte said.

She cautioned against drawing comparisons with CARICOM neighbour Barbados, noting that its constitutional provisions are different and did not require a referendum to effect the change.

The Eastern Caribbean island jettisoned Queen Elizabeth II as its head of state in November last year, becoming the newest republic in the region.

But Malahoo Forte explained that several sections within the “deeply entrenched” provisions of Jamaica’s Constitution require careful amendments.

She said areas of importance and concern under these provisions include the make-up of the Jamaican Parliament, which comprises The Queen, the House of Representatives, and the Senate, the qualifications for election to the House, and the qualifications to serve in the Parliament.

The minister also made reference to Section 68 (1) of the Constitution, which speaks to the executive powers of The Queen.

She said these provisions require a two-thirds majority vote from members of both Houses of Parliament as well as a referendum for change.

Three-month delay

Additionally, Malahoo Forte said before a bill seeking to amend deeply entrenched provisions can advance, there must be a three-month period between the date when the bill is tabled in the House and the commencement date of the debate.

At the conclusion of the debate, the minister said another three-month period is required before the bill can be passed in the House.

She said were the bill to be tabled at the next sitting of Parliament, the ensuing processes would not be concluded before August 6.

“We have to go through a constitutional process to achieve the goal of moving Jamaica from a constitutional monarchy to a republic. And in Jamaica, we have constitutional supremacy. Whatever we do must be in accordance with the Constitution,” Malahoo Forte, a former attorney general, said.

Last month, Holness signalled the country’s intent to sever ties with the monarchy, telling the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge that Jamaica is “moving on”.

“We intend to attain, in short order, our development goals and fulfil our true ambitions as an independent, developed, prosperous country,” Holness said then.

kimone.francis@gleanerjm.com