No Entertainment Reopening Anytime Soon In Jamaica

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports Olivia “Babsy” Grange says a reopening of the entertainment industry is not happening anytime soon.

This was revealed ahead of the relaxed curfew hours that will take effect tomorrow (December 10). The measures will run from 10 p.m. nightly to 5 a.m. the next morning. On Christmas and New Year’s Eve, however, the curfew will commence at 1 a.m. on Christmas and New Year’s Day, respectively.

Many had begun to suspect that Prime Minister Andrew Holness may give entertainment players a Christmas reprieve for the season—however, this will not be. Up until July 1 this year, the industry had endured over a month of drought in an effort to limit the number of gatherings, by the government. Between July 1 and August 1, small-scale events were permitted with up to 100 attendees. Larger scale events had to be vetted by the Government , Office Of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM), and Ministry of Health and Wellness.

Since the suspension of the entertainment industry in March 2020, stakeholders have accused the Government of using it as the scapegoat. In June this year, the Jamaica Music Society (JAMMS) and Jamaica Association of Composers Authors and Publishers (JACAP) were criticized by the tourism sector for implying that it got preferential treatment to reopen early in the COVID-19 pandemic, while the entertainment sector remained on lockdown.

In an official press release at that time, JACAP’s General Manager Lydia Rose, had said the societies had suffered close to a 50 per cent fall-off in revenues, a direct result of the protracted lockdown of the sector and “other economic interruptions”.

She added that the end result was a “tremendous negative impact on members who earn a significant part of their income from the societies, as well as from live performances and touring”.

In the same month, Minister Grange promised grants totaling $50 million for members of the entertainment, culture and creative industries.

A sum of $40 million had previously been promised, but due to technical issues with the electronic portal for disbursement, members of the sectors were unable to access the funds.