Parliament to Observe Commonwealth Day – March 12

As a member of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), the Parliament of Jamaica will observe Commonwealth Day on Monday, March 12, under the theme: ‘The Commonwealth – Respecting Differences, Promoting Understanding’.
Some 100 students from schools in the Corporate Area, as well as St. Ann and St. Catherine, will take part in the event, to be held at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, beginning at 10:00 a.m.
Students from six schools have been chosen to represent six Commonwealth member states. Each representative will be asked to make a five-minute presentation on his or her country’s involvement in the CPA as well as to do a cultural item from that country.
A Member of Parliament will give a brief overview of the CPA, highlighting its role in respecting difference and promoting understanding. A student will read Her Majesty’s Commonwealth Day Message, while another will read the Prime Minister’s Message.
The President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Leader of the Opposition will bring greetings.
An exhibition on the Commonwealth and the CPA will be mounted at the venue on the day of the event, after which it will be relocated to the Parliament’s chamber lobby, where Parliamentarians and members of the public will be able to view it for the rest of the week.