Beach vendors have been earning their living on the beach with items ranging from trinkets to some good and hearty Jamaican cuisine. Nothing is more wonderful than to experience Jamaicans and foreign tourists enjoying this beach together and seeing true community tourism at work.
Under Threat
All this is to change if the Urban Development Corporation, an agency of the Government of Jamaica, is to have its way. Their proposal envisions beach cottages as well as luxury villas which will have several negative impacts on the area. To start with there will be environmental degradation which will lead to habitat loss for many species of birds as well as for the endangered Hawksbill Turtle, which nests in the area. There will also be more strain on marine life and the coral reef which is already suffering from the impact of housing developments in the area.
In addition to the negative environmental impact there will be severe negative social impacts as the citizens of Jamaica loose yet another of their beaches to unsustainable development. We believe that preserving Winnifred Beach as a public beach is important in the fight for Jamaicans to retain their beaches all over the island and as such can set a precedent.
The Public Fighting Back
Friends and Supporters of the Free-Winnifred Beach Society, have established a formal benevolent society.
The efforts continue to keep beautiful Winnifred Beach as a public beach. In order to apply to the courts and to be recognized as a formal entity a Free-Winnifred Beach Benevolent Society has been formed and is structured to include a Chairperson, Treasurer, Secretary and various committees including Audit, Fundraising and Projects, Environmental and Discipline.
The Society is comprised of members of the beach vendors, the surrounding community, and representatives in the Portland area from health, business and service communities.
The society is calling for the Urban Development Corporation proposal for Fairy Hill and Winnifred Beach to be withdrawn in its entirety, for the status of Winnifred Beach to be firmly declared as a public beach with no possibility of privatisation in the future, for the area to be declared a conservation zone and for the Jamaican government tourism product development agency to assist the Fairy Hill Community with the sustainable management of the beach with a view to the preservation of the beach for the people of Jamaica and visitors to this island forever.
How You Can Help
Funds are needed to pay for legal expenses as well as to improve the water system at the beach. There are also plans to fix the road to the beach which at the moment is quite dreadful. Please send your donations to:
Winnifred Defense Fund at Scotia Bank
Port Antonio Branch
Account No 807657
Routing from Europe NOSCJMKNA
USA CHASUS33
Swift code 021-000-021
Transit 70235
Any small contribution is going to be a blessing or sign the online petition or contact the Free-Winnifred Beach Society
http://www.free-winnifred.com/
