Avoiding a game of political football

Published in the Jamaica Gleaner: Wednesday | August 8, 2007

The visit by any Head of State is always a welcome event. This is especially the case when the visit is from a great and respected country such as Brazil which has been such a good friend to Jamaica. Moreover, President Inacio 'Lula' Da Silva is a distinguished political personality in his own right who is making a major impact on his country as well as on international affairs. We, therefore, join all Jamaica in expressing delight at the impending visit of the President of Brazil. We are certain that he will be greeted with all the warmth of traditional Jamaican hospitality.

At the same time, to be quite frank, the timing - no fault of the Brazilian authorities - is a real problem. Nomination Day has passed and the country is in the midst of a heated general election campaign. In this partisan context, it would perhaps be too much to expect that attempts will not be made, in one way or another, to politicise the visit.

Indeed, the prospect of somehow nudging the Brazilian President to traipse around the Jamaican countryside offering sports scholarships tothe football-loving Jamaican masses, or to announce major ethanol projects, in the midst of an election campaign, must make some on the government side salivate with joy. This would give a whole new meaning to the term 'political football'!

Visits at this high level are arranged long in advance, in mutual consultation. The decision about the date for the general election, on the other hand, was the sole responsibility of the Jamaican Government and was taken very recently. Many months ago, when they consented to an early August date for the presidential visit, the Brazilian authorities could never have imagined that this would be made to coincide with a general election campaign. For this embarrassing contretemps, the Government of Jamaica must take full responsibility.

Jamaica is not short of opportunists, on both sides of the divide, who spend their time plotting all sorts of political ambushes without regard to the country's long-term interests. In such untoward circumstances, the utmost circumspection has to be exercised by all. We rely on the saner heads in the Government and the political experience of the Brazilian authorities to ensure that the visit of President 'Lula' is not in any way exploited for partisan gain and that he does not find himself sucked into the ugly vortex of Jamaican politics.

Anything less would be a shameless dis-honour to our Brazilian guests and do irreparable damage to a vital bilateral relationship. All Jamaicans - Government, Opposition and civil society - must, therefore, be extremely careful to observe strictly every propriety on this important occasion. If this cannot be guaranteed, then the embarrassment of a postponement to a calmer day may be staring us in the face.

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