Minister Falconer and PAJ meet on Proposed Protocol

Minister with responsibility for Information, Sen. Sandrea Falconer on Thursday, April 25, met with a team from the Press Association of Jamaica (PAJ) on the matter of protocols governing relations with the media and in particular the conduct of interviews with the Prime Minister.

The PAJ was firm in its position that the Prime Minister was inaccessible to the media and again placed on record that Mrs. Simpson Miller has not done any major interview in the past 15 months. However, Minister Falconer pointed out that the Prime Minister was accessible and had in fact given several scheduled interviews including appearances at Jamaica House Media Briefings and many impromptu interviews.

The meeting agreed that there must be respect in the interactions of journalists with the Prime Minister, with Minister Falconer reiterating government’s commitment to a free press.

The meeting also discussed a range of proposals from both sides on improving the relations, with the PAJ agreeing to take a draft protocol to its membership for further discussion. It was agreed that the parties would hold follow up talks in the next two weeks with a view to finalizing revised procedures.

The PAJ team was headed by veteran Journalist Wyvolyn Gager and included PAJ President, Jenni Campbell, Milton Walker, Naomi Francis, Rohan Powell, Irvin Forbes, and immediate past president Byron Buckley.

The Minister was accompanied by members of the Prime Minister’s Support Unit and Head of the Minister’s Taskforce, Colin Campbell.

Contact: Communications Unit-OPM

Tel: 926-0244

Fax: 920-4684

Email: opm.news@opm.gov.jm

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