THIS DAY IN OUR PAST

The following events took place on August 7 in the years identified:

1999:group A joint working

to oversee the creation of a more competitive telecommunications market in Jamaica is established by the Government and Cable & Wireless. A press release issued jointly states that both parties announced the creation of a “high-level joint working group”. The group is said to be examining a number of areas, including establishing a new licence for Cable & Wireless Jamaica, which at present has a monopoly position in the local telecommunication sector. Other areas being examined are interconnection, tariff regulation and informatics. 1999:Hundreds

of members of the local Baptist Church join forces to stage a symbolic re-enactment of the historic Paul Bogle-led march from Spanish Town, St Catherine, to Stony Gut, St Thomas. A small number of participants start out in Spanish Town early in the morning and travel on foot to José Marti High School in Twickenham Park, St Catherine. They then journeyed in buses to Boulevard Baptist Church in Kingston and then on to Bethel Baptist Church in Half-Way Tree. From there they go to the Morant Bay court house in St Thomas, where their numbers swelled to well over 200. The original Bogle-led 1865 march, which was staged by the Baptist Church, triggered the famed Morant Bay Rebellion, which in turn brought about radical changes in the country’s system of government. 2000:Minister Agriculture

Roger Clarke urges farmers to take advantage of opportunities to boost production, but warns that some sectors, in particular sugar, will have to do so with reduced government input. “All parties will have to prepare themselves to deal with the challenges facing the sugar industry,” Mr Clarke, remarks were made during the final day’s official ceremony at the Denbigh Agricultural Show 2000, May Pen Clarendon. – Gleaner Archives