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The art of political posturing
Michael Burke
Thursday, August 16, 2007
The creation of a party manifesto is a craft like a game of chess or chequers. As one party moves from one ideological position, another might move into that position to capture the voters alienated by the shift of ideology. In a real way, this strategy has been used in Jamaica over the last six decades and is still being used.
In 1944, Jamaica had its first election under universal adult suffrage (the right of all adults to vote). Bustamante was seen as a hero of the people. This was because of the strikes he led which achieved higher pay and better working conditions for the sugar-estate workers and the stevedores on the waterfront. The People's National Party's manifesto was based on the mild Fabian Socialism as espoused by the British Labour Party in England.
The Jamaica Labour Party landslide of 1944 was caused in part by its campaign that linked the PNP to communism. Bustamante impressed upon the largely uneducated voters that the People's National Party would share up their "one cow", their "one goat" and their "one fowl".
After its defeat in 1944, one move that the PNP made was to start its political education programme through its group structure, promoting socialism as Christianity in action. It was an attempt to capture the thousands of churchgoing voters. While the PNP lost the second general election in 1949, it received 3510 more votes than the JLP in that election.
By January 1955 (not 1954 as published in a PNP advertisement) the PNP slogan was "Sweep them out". The PNP, led by Norman Manley, won that election by a mere four-seat majority, but gained some 55000 more votes than the JLP. After nearly 17 years of existence, the PNP, which successfully fought for self-government and universal adult suffrage, was now the government. It could now continue the fight for political independence, which was its aim from its inception on September 18, 1938.
Jamaica became part of the Federation of the West Indies in 1958. The mistake Norman Manley made was to enter into the federal arrangement before Jamaica achieved independence as a separate nation. Although the JLP opposed political independence, it now had to shift its position. This was because the PNP at last had been able to convince the electorate that independence was in Jamaica's best interests.
To capture the pro-independence position, the JLP confused the electorate by telling them that federation and independence were two different things. They shifted as the PNP concentrated on getting independence for Jamaica as a part of the West Indies Federation.
In 1961 the JLP's Lynden Newland moved a resolution in the House to reject federation and seek independence for Jamaica as a separate nation. The PNP, committed to federation, voted against the proposal. It is ironic that the PNP felt obliged to vote against the resolution when the whole reason the PNP was formed in the first place was to fight for political independence. The JLP won the referendum on federation, so Jamaica pulled out. And the JLP won the elections in 1962.
The PNP won the elections on Tuesday, February 29, 1972. By Friday, April 7, 1972, the newspaper Public Opinion carried the headline, "Will the JLP go left?" The JLP never did go left. But the story was that this was why Robert Lightbourne resigned from the JLP after that party lost in 1972. On the streets it was rumoured that the 24-year-old JLP parliamentarian Bruce Golding (still the youngest ever elected member of Parliament, not Andrew Holness) was part of a move to grab the left position from the PNP that it had abandoned. Was it true? I do not know.
Michael Manley as PNP president downplayed socialism in its campaign for the 1972 election. In a real way, he grabbed the deeply charismatic approach from the JLP as they lost it upon Bustamante's retirement. But he temporarily abandoned the left position because he needed the business class to fund the PNP's campaign. Norman Manley was no longer around to empty his bank account and to sell Drumblair to finance the PNP.
It is believed that was the main reason why the PNP recaptured its Democratic Socialist position in 1974. This was done at least a month ahead of the JLP leadership election where Edward Seaga was likely to win - and did. According to the story, the PNP forestalled any plan by the JLP to capture the left and its votes. Some years later the Gleaner published a story that the JLP was planning to refer to themselves as "Social Democrats".
And five years ago in 2002, the JLP grabbed the PNP policy position on free education, which it abandoned in the 1990s.
When I read the Public Opinion story, "Will the JLP go left?" 35 years ago, I did not know what to believe. But in the 2002 campaign when the JLP shifted to a "free education" policy, formerly used by the PNP, I started to believe it. Why?
Because the pattern seems the same as the April 1972 story about the JLP going left.
Michael Burke
Thursday, August 16, 2007
The creation of a party manifesto is a craft like a game of chess or chequers. As one party moves from one ideological position, another might move into that position to capture the voters alienated by the shift of ideology. In a real way, this strategy has been used in Jamaica over the last six decades and is still being used.
In 1944, Jamaica had its first election under universal adult suffrage (the right of all adults to vote). Bustamante was seen as a hero of the people. This was because of the strikes he led which achieved higher pay and better working conditions for the sugar-estate workers and the stevedores on the waterfront. The People's National Party's manifesto was based on the mild Fabian Socialism as espoused by the British Labour Party in England.
The Jamaica Labour Party landslide of 1944 was caused in part by its campaign that linked the PNP to communism. Bustamante impressed upon the largely uneducated voters that the People's National Party would share up their "one cow", their "one goat" and their "one fowl".
After its defeat in 1944, one move that the PNP made was to start its political education programme through its group structure, promoting socialism as Christianity in action. It was an attempt to capture the thousands of churchgoing voters. While the PNP lost the second general election in 1949, it received 3510 more votes than the JLP in that election.
By January 1955 (not 1954 as published in a PNP advertisement) the PNP slogan was "Sweep them out". The PNP, led by Norman Manley, won that election by a mere four-seat majority, but gained some 55000 more votes than the JLP. After nearly 17 years of existence, the PNP, which successfully fought for self-government and universal adult suffrage, was now the government. It could now continue the fight for political independence, which was its aim from its inception on September 18, 1938.
Jamaica became part of the Federation of the West Indies in 1958. The mistake Norman Manley made was to enter into the federal arrangement before Jamaica achieved independence as a separate nation. Although the JLP opposed political independence, it now had to shift its position. This was because the PNP at last had been able to convince the electorate that independence was in Jamaica's best interests.
To capture the pro-independence position, the JLP confused the electorate by telling them that federation and independence were two different things. They shifted as the PNP concentrated on getting independence for Jamaica as a part of the West Indies Federation.
In 1961 the JLP's Lynden Newland moved a resolution in the House to reject federation and seek independence for Jamaica as a separate nation. The PNP, committed to federation, voted against the proposal. It is ironic that the PNP felt obliged to vote against the resolution when the whole reason the PNP was formed in the first place was to fight for political independence. The JLP won the referendum on federation, so Jamaica pulled out. And the JLP won the elections in 1962.
The PNP won the elections on Tuesday, February 29, 1972. By Friday, April 7, 1972, the newspaper Public Opinion carried the headline, "Will the JLP go left?" The JLP never did go left. But the story was that this was why Robert Lightbourne resigned from the JLP after that party lost in 1972. On the streets it was rumoured that the 24-year-old JLP parliamentarian Bruce Golding (still the youngest ever elected member of Parliament, not Andrew Holness) was part of a move to grab the left position from the PNP that it had abandoned. Was it true? I do not know.
Michael Manley as PNP president downplayed socialism in its campaign for the 1972 election. In a real way, he grabbed the deeply charismatic approach from the JLP as they lost it upon Bustamante's retirement. But he temporarily abandoned the left position because he needed the business class to fund the PNP's campaign. Norman Manley was no longer around to empty his bank account and to sell Drumblair to finance the PNP.
It is believed that was the main reason why the PNP recaptured its Democratic Socialist position in 1974. This was done at least a month ahead of the JLP leadership election where Edward Seaga was likely to win - and did. According to the story, the PNP forestalled any plan by the JLP to capture the left and its votes. Some years later the Gleaner published a story that the JLP was planning to refer to themselves as "Social Democrats".
And five years ago in 2002, the JLP grabbed the PNP policy position on free education, which it abandoned in the 1990s.
When I read the Public Opinion story, "Will the JLP go left?" 35 years ago, I did not know what to believe. But in the 2002 campaign when the JLP shifted to a "free education" policy, formerly used by the PNP, I started to believe it. Why?
Because the pattern seems the same as the April 1972 story about the JLP going left.