This petition was drafted with the intent of lobbying the government to initiate a land redistribution program which will see thousands of Jamaicans acquiring a piece of crown land. The idea is that Jamaica has vast amounts of crown lands just lying idly. At the same time, many Jamaicans are unable to purchase lands and therefore find it difficult to access lands that they can live and farm on. This petition argues that the government should identify crown lands that can be transformed into communities and proceed in making it available for the people. 

 

Most Jamaicans cannot afford to purchase a piece of land because they are poor. This is not necessarily a fault of their own because most Jamaicans have inherited their poverty as a legacy of colonialism and haven't been given a reasonable chance at acquiring lands in the country where their ancestors worked these same lands for centuries. Even with years of employment, savings and loans, many Jamaicans are simply unable to afford a piece of land to call their own. 

Therefore, its time for Jamaicans to get a piece of Jamaica and this is how it is done. True independence is economic independence and this land distribution program will give the people an economic foundation on which to build on. 

Additionally, the many unemployed youths who are susceptible to criminality can be enrolled in a local farm work program which will see them being given access to lands to farm their produce of choice in order to sustain themselves. 

 

Therefore, the government is being asked to:

1) Map out our available crown lands and identify places where communities can be developed.

2) Make roadways and channel utility into these areas. 

3) Divide the land into plots.

4) Survey these plots and produce titles.

5) Accept applications from the public for approval of land ownership.

6) Distribute lands to those who apply for land ownership. 

7) Distribute lands to farmers so that the wealth of the soil can be harnessed to feed our nation while elevating national productivity (GDP). 

8) Turn the newly distributed lands into income generating assets by collecting land taxes to help pay for the original investment of roadways and utility and also to expand government's general revenue collection. 

 

The benefits of this policy are as follows:

1) Increased standard of living for the average Jamaican.

2) More farming for food to feed the nation and more employment for the many unemployed youths. 

3) Land owners are more economically independent and more able to access loans and create employment/ small businesses that will see less unemployment and less people dependent on government hand outs. 

4) By giving the land to the people, the lands are able to generate income for the government through land taxation so the government have no genuine reason to hesitate implementing this policy.

5) Land ownership is a sustainable form of wealth that will permanently cripple the cycle of inter-generational poverty and prevent Jamaicans from ever being as poor as they currently are.

This is the most progressive policy to ever be pursued in this nation's history and therefore the full support of the people is required to encourage the government to implement this policy. If you want to own a piece of land but cannot afford to, then you have a duty to sign this petition and circulate it to other Jamaicans so that our aim of 10,000 signatures can be achieved.