Caribbean Report 02-05-1990

Abstract

The Prime Minister of Jamaica, Michael Manley, visits Washington on a three-day official trip to hold talks with the president of the United States, the Deputy Secretary of State and other senior American officials. High on the agenda is Jamaica’s economic reform programme and the war against drugs. Secondly, the former Jamaican Minister of National Security, Dudley Thompson, says it is time for the government to abolish the controversial Suppression of Crime Act that was introduced as a temporary crime fighting in 1974. Following the Financial News, all eyes are on Cuba after the collapse of socialism in Eastern Europe. According to Vilma Espin, a member of Cuban Communist Party, Cuba will never turn its back on socialism despite the international pressures meted out to the Cubans. In another related report, there is growing disaffection amongst the youths in Cuba who blame the Communist Party for restricting their opportunities for material goods. The report concludes with the swearing-in of the new and fourth Electoral Council in Haiti which comprises of nine members, three of which were from the first Council that was abandoned in 1987.