JAMAICA Must Stand: Time for a Montego Bay Declaration Against Genocide

MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica, July 3, 2025 - In the face of mounting international horror over the destruction in Gaza, the time has come for Jamaica to take a bold and principled stand on the right side of history. This is no time for diplomatic ambiguity or whispered regrets.

What has unfolded in Gaza is genocide ! A deliberate, methodical annihilation of a people under occupation, with children, hospitals, and entire communities buried beneath rubble and starvation.

Jamaica must rise now—not only in protest but in purpose. The Government of Jamaica must declare publicly and unequivocally that genocide is being committed, and the world must act. 

Moreover, Jamaica should move to table and lead a Montego Bay Declaration Against Genocide, inviting CARICOM and the wider Global South to reaffirm the dignity of all people and to demand a just, peaceful Two-State Solution.

Jamaica, since independence, has built its international reputation on moral clarity, human rights, and standing with the oppressed. From Michael Manley’s support of African liberation movements to the principled rejection of apartheid, Jamaica has never been afraid to speak truth to power. That legacy is being tested once again.

It is not enough to lament humanitarian suffering. It is time to name the crime. The deliberate siege of food and water, the flattening of refugee camps, the denial of aid, the targeted strikes on medical workers and journalists. These are not just acts of war, they are crimes against humanity, and their architects must be held to account.

Jamaica has long declared itself a friend of peace in the Middle East. But neutrality in the face of genocide is not diplomacy, It is complicity!

The Caribbean, and especially CARICOM, must not be silent. As small, post-colonial nations shaped by the brutalities of slavery, genocide, and racial domination, we of all people know the cost of dehumanization. 

The very foundation of our regional integration—CARICOM—was born from the belief that cooperation, justice, and sovereignty matter.

So where is the Caribbean voice today?

We propose that the Government of Jamaica, utilising its position as chair of the Forty-ninth (49th) Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), at their convocation in Montego Bay from the 6 to the 8th of July, to urge member states to adopt a Montego Bay Declaration Against Genocide.   

This declaration should affirm:
- That genocide, ethnic cleansing, and collective punishment are occurring in Gaza;
- That all civilian lives, regardless of faith or ethnicity, must be protected under international law;
- That the State of Israel must be held accountable for violations of the Geneva Convention and UN resolutions;
- That the Two-State Solution remains the only viable path to a just and lasting peace;
- That CARICOM stands in solidarity with Palestinian Muslims, Christians, and all who reject Zionist extremism—including Orthodox Jews who oppose the occupation.

This declaration must not be symbolic. It must be backed by action: at the UN, within international legal bodies, and in the diplomatic corridors where conscience has too often been traded for silence.

What is at stake here is not only the survival of Palestine. It is the integrity of international law, the credibility of human rights institutions, and the moral compass of a world sliding into barbarism under the cover of exceptionalism.

The killing of children cannot be justified. The starvation of families cannot be explained away as military necessity. And no amount of historical trauma gives any nation the right to commit present-day atrocities against another.

Gaza is not a battlefield—it is an open-air prison. Its people, trapped for generations, are now being erased in full view of the international community. And while bombs fall from American-funded aircraft, and vetoes block UN resolutions, millions of voices around the world are demanding one thing: justice.

Jamaica must add its voice—loud, clear, and unwavering.

It is not enough to express sorrow. Leadership requires risk. It demands courage.

The Jamaican government must:
1. Publicly condemn the genocide in Gaza and call for an immediate ceasefire;
2. Champion the Montego Bay Declaration Against Genocide within CARICOM and the Global South;
3. Demand a full investigation by the International Criminal Court into war crimes in Gaza;
4. Reaffirm its support for a Two-State Solution, with East Jerusalem as the capital of a sovereign Palestinian state;
5. Hold firm in opposing Christian Zionism and other ideologies that distort the Gospel and justify war.

Let the world know that Jamaica does not stand with empire, apartheid, or ethnic supremacy. We stand with the oppressed. We stand with the innocent. We stand with justice.

Let Montego Bay—this historic city of resistance and awakening—become the place where the Caribbean reclaims its moral voice on the global stage. Let it issue a declaration not just against genocide in Gaza, but against the ongoing erosion of international justice.

To those in government, in the Church and in civil society, history will ask where you stood in this moment. The blood of Gaza cries out from the earth. What will Jamaica’s answer be?

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O. Dave Allen is a writer, researcher, and advocate for justice and self-determination. He writes on Caribbean liberation, theology, and geopolitics.