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Haiti To Play In Tournament In Jamaica To Celebrate End Of Slavery In May

JFF joins trans-atlantic abolition celebrations

Thursday, March 15, 2007

The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) yesterday committed a partnership with the Jamaica National Bicentenary Committee (JNBC) in celebration of the 200th anniversary of the partial abolition of the transatlantic trade in Africans.

The parties have planned to use football as a vehicle to create a level of awareness, interest and support for the activities surrounding he anniversary. The announcement was made at a press conference at the offices of the JFF yesterday.

On Sunday, the JFF will begin overseeing a year-long series of football games, commencing with the inter-confederation games on a round-robin format at venues to be announced. The competition will end on April 29 and teams will vie for the Jamaica National Bicentenary Cup.

This tournament will feature squads from the confederations of Eastern, Western, South Central and KSAFA, with the view of showcasing the island's football talent (outside of the NPL/national player pool), affording new technical director Velibor 'Bora' Milutinovic an opportunity to scout for more talent.

The second tournament is tentatively scheduled for May, and will engage four Caribbean nations that have been to the FIFA World Cup before (Cuba, Haiti, T&T and Jamaica). It is understood that Cuba and Haiti have already confirmed their participation, but Trinidad and Tobago have yet to confirm.

The third tournament scheduled for August, should see the Reggae Boyz facing teams from Africa. These could include Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon, who have already been contacted, while the fourth and final tournament scheduled at year's end would see our Reggae Boyz lining up against world powers, including Germany.

JFF general secretary Burchell Gibson could not confirm the teams mentioned, but said details would be made available at a later date.

"Football continues to be an excellent avenue around which national goals can be achieved, especially at the community level," Gibson said.

"Our ancestors were torn from Africa beginning in the 15th century; through the most adverse of circumstances. Yet, we not only survived but created our own identity and with it tremendous achievements for which we can be duly proud.

"The most outstanding achievement has been the successful creation of the international brand Jamaica. A critical component of this brand has been the popular name Reggae Boyz.

Meanwhile, Professor Verene Shepherd, chair of the Jamaica National Bicentenary Committee, explained the importance of this year's anniversary.

"By that trade in Africans, over 15 million enslaved Africans were forcefully relocated to the Caribbean and the wider Americas, about a million in Jamaica alone," she said.

"Over 30 million suffered permanent dislocation in communities across the continent, millions unknown were mutilated and murdered in modernity's greatest crime against humanity. While those who committed such a crime against humanity remain silent on the question of reparation, we in the African diaspora are celebrating our ancestors' victory over adversity and the role their anti-slavery activism played in forcing legislation of the Abolition Act."