Land issues dominate Charles Town Maroon Conference

FRIDAY, JUNE 20 was designated ‘Academic Conference Day’ under the theme, ‘The Land Part 2 – Ancestral Connections. Indigenous Rights. Stewardship’, at the 17th Annual International Charles Town Maroon Conference and Festival.

Academic papers on topics, under three panels – ‘Ancestral Connections, Communications and Technologies in Modern Times’; Spirituality and the Land’; and ‘Indigenous Rights, and Knowledge systems’ – were delivered and discussed throughout the day. The common subtopics were land possession/ownership, land dispossession, indigenous people’s rights to land, land stewardship, sacredness of the land, indigenous knowledge of the land, and spiritual connections to the land.

The topics were not confined to Academic Day, as on Saturday, ‘Comm-Unity Day’, they were broached again in ‘The Colonel’s Town Hall Meeting’, and on Sunday, the 22nd, ‘Maroon Victory Day’, when Maroon chiefs and their representatives from the other Maroon communities of Scotts Hall, Moore Town, Trelawny Town/Flagstaff, and Accompong Town addressed the gathering.

In his welcoming address on Sunday, Captain Delano ‘Ras Padam’ Douglas of Charles Town said, among other things, “Today, we speak not just with our voices, but with the breath of our ancestors. The land we gather on is more than earth beneath our feet; it is memory, spirit, and truth. It is sacred. This land is our heartbeat. It carries the footprints of our elders, the echo of drumbeats, and the blood of those who refused to be broken.

RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LAND

“We are the descendants of freedom-fighting Maroons who carved liberty from the forests, who knew the rivers and mountains as kin. This land gave us shelter when the world gave us chains, and we have never forgotten. Our connection to this land is not ownership; it is relationship. It is built on reverence, duty, and love. Indigenous rights are not privileges; they are truths to be honoured. As Maroon people, as descendants of resistance and survival, we understand the sacred call to protect identity, land, and legacy.”

Representing Culture Minister Olivia Grange was Everton Hannam, secretary general, Jamaica National Commission for UNESCO. He started out with, “This gathering, held under the thought-provoking theme ‘The Land Part 2: Ancestral Connections, Indigenous Rights, Stewardship’, continues to be a vital platform for reflection, cultural affirmation, and collective action.”

Further on Hannam said, “This year’s theme compels us to deepen the conversation around the ancestral and spiritual bonds we hold with the land. It calls us to advocate more boldly for indigenous rights and to safeguard our heritage landscapes from environmental degradation, commercial exploitation, and cultural erasure.”

The issue of Maroon land, land ownership, possession, and stewardship is a centuries-old one, a very contentious one, as while the Maroons lay claims to their lands, there are people in many quarters who are convinced that the Maroons do not own any, and that their claim to sovereignty and autonomy from the rest of Jamaica has no legal support.

TREATY OF PEACE

The third article of The Articles of Pacification (treaty of peace and friendship) concluded on March 1, 1738 between Captain Cudjoe of Trelawny Town in St James and the British colonisers says, “That they (the Maroons) shall enjoy and possess, for themselves and posterity forever, all the lands situate (sic) and lying between Trelawny Town and the Cockpits, to the amount of fifteen hundred acres, bearing northwest from the said Trelawny Town.”

And the fifth article says, “That Captain Cudjoe and all the Captain’s adherents, and people now in subjection to him, shall all live together within the bounds of Trelawny Town”. As it relates to the element of succession, Article Eight says Captain Cudjoe shall be the “Chief in command in Trelawny Town”. He was to be succeeded by his brother Accompong, his brother Captain Johnny, Captain Cuffee, and Captain Quaco, in that particular order. When they were all dead, “the governor, or commander-in-chief for the time being, shall appoint from time to time who he thinks fit for that command”.

And there was another treaty, signed on June 23, 1739 between the British and the Leeward Maroons of eastern Jamaica, led by Nanny and Captain Quao. Nanny did not sign the treaty, but Captain Quao did. On April 20, 1741, George II granted Nanny, “the people residing with her, and other heirs” 500 acres of land in Portland.

And, over the years, many debates have been waged over this issue of Maroon autonomy and their determination to own the lands on which they reside. Maroon autonomy and sovereignty were not a consideration in the 1962 Jamaican Constitution, nor was it when the Charter of Rights, replacing the old Chapter Three of the said Constitution, became effective in April 2011.

On Sunday, Hannam also said, “As we celebrate the unique contributions of Maroon communities to Jamaica’s national identity, let us also recommit to a vision of land stewardship that respects ancestral wisdom, promotes sustainability, and defends the rights of indigenous peoples to live in harmony with their environment.

“In the context of UNESCO’s mandates on intangible cultural heritage and the rights of indigenous peoples, this conference remains a powerful space for dialogue and transformation. May it inspire policies and practices that honour the land, protect our sacred sites, and empower communities to shape their futures on their own terms.