There’s a thunderstorm sweeping through Jamaica, threatening to capsize the island’s already struggling economy and put its government in a diplomatic dilemma with the United States. Last August, the US Department of Justice issued an extradition warrant for the arrest of Christopher “Dudus” Coke, an alleged gift from the infamous Tivoli Gardens garrison in West Kingston. Coca-Cola, considered among the “world’s most dangerous drug lords” by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), has been charged with conspiracy to traffic firearms and distribute marijuana and cocaine.
To date, Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding has ignored mounting US and local pressure to sign the extradition warrant, citing failure to comply with Jamaican law in obtaining intercepted evidence and due process protection for its citizens. But this is not an ordinary citizen.
Coca-Cola’s tentacles of power and influence extend throughout Jamaica and up to the upper levels of the current government. The community that controls Coca-Cola is a notorious stronghold of the ruling Jamaica Labor Party (JLP) and is Prime Minister Golding’s constituency; His defense attorney, Sen. Tom Tavares-Finson, is a member of Parliament.
Rather than a diplomatic stalemate, the David and Goliath showdown threatens to expose the corruption that has been intrinsic to Jamaican politics for decades. Furthermore, it underscores the reality that politics and criminal gangs remain closely linked in both political parties. The ongoing diplomatic stalemate has far-reaching repercussions for the popular tourist destination, which relies heavily on US support and magnanimity in the form of exports, tourism and remittances.
Then a bombshell: A Washington Post article reported that last November, the prominent US law firm Manatt, Phelps and Phillips received nearly $50,000, a fee for a $400,000 contract, to lobby on behalf of the Jamaican government against Coke’s extradition.
The deal was signed by Manatt’s partner Susan Schmidt and Kingston lawyer Harold Brady, who claimed to be “authorized on behalf of the Jamaican government” to make the deal and was attended by Daryl Vaz, Jamaica’s Minister of Information. The agreement violates the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), because the company did not state the purpose and scope of its lobbying efforts and because Coca-Cola financed the contract.
Although records filed by Manatt under FARA regulations indicate that only “treaty issues” were discussed, White House officials confirm that the talks primarily focused on Jamaica’s opposition to Coke’s extradition. In the ensuing furore, Prime Minister Golding denied that anyone was authorized to act on behalf of the government, and the law firm has since “ceased business on behalf of the Jamaican government”. But questions remain, the most important among them: Who has the power to negotiate and finance such an agreement and why?
It is everything that anyone, taxi drivers, businessmen, nurses, vendors, speaks on the island. Yet, as a testament to its power and reach, almost no one will speak on the record, not college professors, journalists, friends, or the man on the street, and inquiries are met with dead-eyed stars and disconnected phone lines. A palpable tension hangs over downtown Kingston and across the island, a restless unease.
Impenetrable to outsiders, the entrances to the downtown garrisons are blocked with cement boulders, tires, and old iron. They are patrolled by steely-eyed boy-men with automatic weapons hanging at their sides, fingers not far from the trigger. Ghetto passes are not enough here, and curiosity is answered with a shrill “Who are you?” Coca-Cola supporters are legion insisting that it will not go down without a fight, and rumors of its preparation are rampant.
The garrison communities (Tivoli, Trench Town, Jungle, Fletcher’s Land and others) are autonomous, politically protected enclaves, striated by party affiliation, dependent and controlled by “dons” and their gangs, who are the link between the community and the politicians. parts. Dons receive patronage and political protection from party leaders, which insulates them from law enforcement. In return, they finance political campaigns, hand out votes, wage wars to protect territories, and generally keep the peace.
Despite their reputation for crime and corruption, many dons profit greatly from government contracts for construction, transportation, and infrastructure, and in turn use these legal businesses to launder money. They fill a void that successive governments seem unable and unwilling to address.
Indeed, Coca-Cola has been instrumental in resuscitating, restructuring and streamlining commerce and ensuring the safety and security of sellers and buyers in downtown Kingston. Now, business transactions and social interactions (such as the popular dancehall event, Passa Passa) are mutually beneficial, with money flowing to poverty-stricken communities unlikely to benefit from tourist dollars or subsidies. governmental.
It also managed to stop much of the violence and terror for which these areas are historically famous. But this peace comes at a high price: no business can operate without paying a don’s minions, from established businesses and storefronts to market vendors. Refusal means arson, intimidation, and the threat of violence without legal recourse.
Politicians have ceded their power to gang members and seem unable or unwilling to mitigate the chaos they helped create since they began arming gangs in inner-city Kingston and beyond. As the deadlock deepens, Jamaicans fear the return and outbreak of violence and what will flourish in the vacuum created by their extradition.
Jamaicans are a famously proud people who resist the idea of bowing down to anything and anyone, but many are bitterly angered and exasperated by the putrid stench of decades-old corruption, which they feel taints the island’s image throughout. the world. No matter the resolution, in the bitter aftermath, regular Jamaicans struggling to make a living will pay an unbearable price.
America sharpens its tools
The turmoil began with Jamaica’s prominence in the 2010 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, which lays bare the country’s many transgressions. The report highlights the “unusual treatment of [Coke’s] extradition request” and notes the “dramatic change in Jamaica’s previous cooperation on extradition,” including a temporary stay in processing all other pending requests, which he says raises serious questions about the country’s commitment to combat transnational crime.
Damningly, the report highlights the trade in “guns for ganja” and labels the island the “Caribbean’s largest source of marijuana” for the United States and “a transit point for cocaine trafficking from South America.” , citing its “high per capita homicide rate.” –1,672 in 2009, one of the highest in the world.” Expresses concern about “the growing activity of organized crime, which pervades the legitimate business sector as well as the political sector, and its impact on Jamaica’s political and economic stability “.
Despite claims by the US charge d’affaires in Jamaica, Isaiah Parnell, that ties remain strong between the countries, Washington is growing weary of waiting and skeptical of the government’s political will. Despite Prime Minister Golding’s claims that efforts are underway to strengthen bilateral cooperation to stem the wave of illegal drugs and arms, anti-corruption and anti-crime legislation still languishes in Parliament.
To date, the United States has yet to appoint an ambassador to Jamaica, and recently the visas of several prominent artists and businessmen have been revoked without notice. Many citizens are concerned that US visas will not be granted or renewed.
What options await Coke, who resides in a multi-story mansion in the green suburbs of Kingston, miles away from the congested slums he supposedly dominates? His father, feared JLP strongman Lloyd Lester “Jim Brown” Coke, a JLP enforcer and leader of the Shower Posse, who for more than a decade funneled drugs and guns through the US and Jamaica, also joined. found himself in the same situation. Coke Sr. died in a mysterious fire in his cell at the General Penitentiary on the eve of his own extradition in February 1991.
Currently, the political delay continues before the Supreme Court of Jamaica. Jamaica’s attorney general, Dorothy Lightbourne, filed a motion seeking a statement on the handling of Coke’s extradition request. The hearing is set for May 5.
As the high-stakes game of chicken continues, a country waits: anxious, watchful, hopeful.
