Prime Minister Andrew Holness says Jamaica is maintaining a strong and strategic foreign policy while holding firm to what he described as core national values, including his position that gender is limited to male and female.
Contributing to the Budget Debate in Parliament on Thursday, Holness said that although Jamaica continues to adapt to global changes, there are fundamental principles that will not shift.
“There were those saying these imperialists imposing global financial things on us, mek wi resist it. And what? Lose access to the international banking system? That’s the logic of the argument. Yes, there are things we must resist when it comes to our values. There are things that define us as Jamaicans that we not going to change. Man is a man and a woman is a woman. We are not going to change on that,” he declared, drawing applause as he struck the podium.
The prime minister framed his remarks against the backdrop of a rapidly evolving global landscape, pointing to shifts in the balance of power within the multilateral system. He noted that more countries are now exercising military, economic, technological and normative influence, resulting in increased competition and less automatic consensus on global issues.
According to Holness, this growing fragmentation underscores the need for reform of the global multilateral system, rather than its abandonment.
“We cannot abandon it, but it must be reformed to take into consideration the new power dynamics that have emerged,” he said.
He emphasised that in this complex foreign policy environment, Jamaica must remain strategic and avoid what he described as ideological rhetoric.
“Foreign policy is about having a clear framework of principles and values within which we pursue our interests, while treating with the interests and powers of others with whom we engage,” Holness stated.
Holness insisted that his administration has ensured Jamaica’s foreign policy serves the country’s economic interests, arguing that the current approach has delivered measurable benefits.
“There has been no other era during which foreign policy has delivered as much economic benefit for Jamaica,” he said, adding that all decisions must support the country’s ability to recover quickly and build resilience.
“Jamaica will always take the necessary actions to ensure that it is compliant under the multilateral system, but we will act in our own interest.”
Manley’s ‘wrong path pursued’
Holness also pointed to history as a lesson in leadership, criticising the People’s National Party under former Prime Minister Michael Manley for what he described as a misguided foreign policy direction.
In the 1970s, Manley, leading the People’s National Party, pursued “democratic socialism” and built close relationships with Fidel Castro and Cuba. That included cooperation in health, education and security, but also alarmed the United States during the height of the Cold War. Jamaica leaned toward the Soviet bloc and socialist-leaning countries, even while formally part of the Non-Aligned Movement.
The period coincided with significant economic challenges, including capital flight, high inflation, and interventions by the International Monetary Fund. It also gave rise to accusations—still debated—of U.S. pressure or destabilisation linked to Jamaica’s ideological direction. Critics argue Manley’s policies deepened the crisis, while supporters maintain that external forces played a major role.
“This period coincided with the collapse of the Jamaican economy, our first debt crisis, the hollowing out of the middle class, and the emergence of widespread political and gang violence. ” Many of the challenges we face today are anchored in that period of our history,” Holness said.
“What I’ve said here is not opinion. These are the facts. If you ask me for my opinion, I will give you my opinion. My opinion is that I admire Michael Manley’s intellect. I admire his willingness and challenge, but I also question his judgment.”
“As it turned out, by 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed, and the multilateral system entered a unipolar phase dominated by the U.S. The global socialist experiment for which the PNP diverted Jamaica had been defeated and proven to be the wrong path to be pursued,” Holness said.
