Government of Jamaica
Kingston, 10 August 2021 (JIS) - No permits will be granted for entertainment events over the next three weeks, as the Government moves to contain the current spike in coronavirus cases. From August 11 to August 31, no small or large events such as concerts, parties, tailgate parties and round robins will be permitted.
Prime Minister, the Most Honourable Andrew Holness, made the announcement during a digital press conference on Monday (August 9), where he outlined the revised coronavirus containment measures.
He stressed that the new measures will be strictly enforced, and warned that the police will close down any event that is being held illegally.
During this period, nightclubs and certain places of amusement are to be closed.
In addition, gyms, restaurants, zoos, parks, and bars are to operate at a maximum of 50 per cent of capacity. Capacity is determined by using the physical distance rule of one person to every 40 square feet of useable space for the area.
Mr. Holness further informed that no more than 50 persons will be permitted to physically attend a wedding and for annual and extraordinary general meetings of entities, the maximum number of persons permitted to attend physically is 50.
In terms of events hosted by public entities such as handover ceremonies, launches, groundbreakings, and opening ceremonies, Mr. Holness informed that no more than 30 persons are permitted to be in physical attendance.
The limit of 30 persons remains in place for funeral services and burials. This includes mourners as well as clergy and any support personnel. Burials can be done only on Mondays to Fridays during the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., and the time for conducting burials continues to be limited to 30 minutes,” the Prime Minister said.
Turning to travel protocols, Mr. Holness informed that these remain the same, where all persons are required to present a negative COVID-19 test within three days prior to their travel date. Additionally, the list of countries from which travel to Jamaica is not allowed remains the same. These are: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, India, Paraguay, Peru and Trinidad and Tobago.
The Prime Minister noted, however, that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade and the Ministry of Health & Wellness are working on arrangements to facilitate the entry of university students from Trinidad and Tobago, who are pursuing studies in Jamaica.
Mr. Holness said that given the recent “exponential” rise in the number of confirmed covid-19 cases in the country, “we are now clearly seeing our third wave”.
He said that the Government’s focus in crafting the measures for the next three weeks has been on controlling the spread sufficiently to allow for the reopening of schools to facilitate structured face-to-face learning in September.
“As it stands now, this goal is severely challenged. We are still hopeful that we would be able to have some form of reopening. We are targeting mid-September, but it really depends on what we, as Jamaicans, do in the next three to four weeks,” he said.
The Prime Minister again implored persons to do their part in controlling the spread of the virus by adhering to the infection prevention and control measures. These include wearing a mask while in public, maintaining a distance of at least six feet from other persons, and frequently washing or sanitising hands.
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Kingston, 15 April 2021 (OPM) - Prime Minister Andrew Holness says the Government plans to invest in the entertainment industry.
Speaking in Parliament on Tuesday (April 13, 2021), the Prime Minister also encouraged major stakeholders in the industry to join the Government in developing strategies for the delivery of their product; this as the industry is expected to attract many as the country transitions out of the pandemic.
Prime Minister Holness also noted that part of the capital investment that the Government will have to make is in entertainment spaces, venues and locations which he acknowledges are insufficient.
“Presently, we have not designated spaces for entertainment, so you might have a dancehall right beside a church or a clinic within residential areas, and we disturb our neighbours. What the pandemic has revealed is that we need to reconfigure our society. We need to sit with the stakeholders and plan to build a new Jamaica, a Jamaica in which entertainment can be accommodated, and this is a conversation that we need to have without anybody saying that we are fighting dancehall,” said Prime Minister Holness.
The Prime Minister says he is acutely aware of the hurt and suffering faced by many in the entertainment industry due to the significant loss of resources. In that regard, he said the Government sees music and culture as a part of our economic recovery, and as such, will allocate funds towards the industry.
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Kingston 26 April 2019 – The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, says she’s optimistic about finding solutions to address the ongoing conflict between the police and promoters/producers of events.
Minister Grange was speaking today (Friday) after meeting the Minister of National Security, the Honourable Dr Horace Chang, the police, NEPA and other stakeholders to consider amendments to the Noise Abatement Act which regulates entertainment events.
According to Minister Grange, the meeting “looked at hours that would be approved, days, the extensions, entertainment zones, and other relevant matters. I’m happy to say that we have arrived at a framework within which we will work.”
Minister Chang noted that “we have been having major challenges in our entertainment activities throughout the country and some places are particularly difficult, especially places like Negril, because of the current law that controls entertainment.”
Dr Chang said today’s meeting was the beginning of a process to deal with the challenges.
Dr Chang said:
“Entertainment is one of our largest industries and an area [in which] we have more of our humble people with creative talent having the opportunity to develop and give individuals good income and improve their quality of life. And we have to ensure that we put Jamaica’s entertainment industry on a solid legal footing.”
The Acting Deputy Commissioner of Police, Fitz Bailey, who attended today’s meeting said he would discuss the proposals with the Commissioner, other members of the High Command as well as divisional commanders.
Mr Bailey said:
“We will have further dialogue because we believe that it’s a partnership approach that needs to be taken to treat with the issue of entertainment because it is important to the development of Jamaica.
We don’t want entertainers to see us as their enemies. We are friends. And we want to work as best as possible to resolve some of the issues that we are currently faced with.”
Minister Grange said the next step is for a small working group to “look at the immediate amendments that can be made to the noise abatement legislation and to see how we can, within the immediate future, address some of the problems and arrive at solutions in relation to events.”
The Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, the Honourable Olivia Grange, advises that Cabinet has approved the tabling of the bill entitled the National Heroes and Other Freedom Fighters (Absolution from Criminal Liability in Respect of Specified Events) Act in the Houses of Parliament.