Govt’s beach access policy falls short, says Newell

KINGSTON, Jamaica—Opposition Spokesman on the Environment and Climate Resilience, Omar Newell, says the Beach Access and Management Policy recently tabled in the Parliament by the Government does not go far enough to address the problem of access by Jamaicans, even though it acknowledges that a problem exists.

“Because the policy still approaches beach access as a managed permission rather than a fundamental public right,” said Newell on Wednesday during his contribution to the Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives.

“A beach cannot merely belong to those who can afford a room key or day pass. Our coastline is part of our national inheritance,” said Newell.

He noted that in countries across the region and the wider world, governments increasingly recognise that coastlines are held in trust for the people.

“But here in Jamaica, the land of wood and water, the average citizen increasingly feels like a visitor in their own country. The Government boasts about the number of public beaches. But Jamaicans are asking a different question: How much coastline can ordinary people actually reach freely, safely and affordably?” he questioned.

Newell argued that access is not merely about counting beaches.

“It is about dignity. It is about whether a fisherman can launch his boat. Whether a child can see the sea and play in the sand; whether a family can enjoy the natural beauty of their own country; whether the man in Drapers who grew up with unfettered access to Blue Lagoon will still be able to access it for commercial and recreational activities,” he said.

Newell, who is the Member of Parliament for St Mary Central, said the policy must go further.

“We need guaranteed public access corridors; legal protection for traditional fishing communities; protection of public easements; national mapping of beach access points; limits on the privatisation of coastlines; and modern legislation rooted in sustainable environmental justice,” he said.

The Opposition spokesman insisted that: “there must be free, unfettered access to all of Jamaica’s beaches for all of Jamaica’s people. Because beaches are not merely tourism assets; they are part of Jamaica’s shared natural heritage. Jamaicans must not only live where others vacation, we must be able to enjoy our natural resources.”

According to Newell, few issues capture environmental inequality in Jamaica more clearly than beach access. “It is to our national shame that less than one per cent of this natural resource can be freely accessed by our people,” he remarked.

He lamented that for years, Jamaicans have watched large portions of our coastline become increasingly inaccessible.

“First, we encounter the security guards, gated developments, hotel corridors, blocked pathways, disappearing fishing access. An island nation, surrounded by the sea, where many citizens feel alienated from the sea itself,” said Newell.