Silence is not an option

THE EDITOR, Madam:

The Caribbean is facing a dangerous intersection of crises: the devastation left by Hurricane Melissa, the accelerating climate emergency, and now the threat of militarised conflict in our regional waters. While our people struggle to rebuild, foreign military operations are escalating, deepening the very climate conditions responsible for stronger, deadlier storms. Yet our Government remains largely silent.

Climate scientists confirm that Hurricane Melissa’s rapid intensification was fuelled by Caribbean waters now 1.4°C above average, a condition made hundreds of times more likely by human-driven climate change. Small island states like Jamaica contribute almost nothing to global emissions, but we absorb the full consequences: shattered homes, battered coastlines, and disrupted livelihoods.

War multiplies this danger. Research from Queen Mary University of London shows that military conflict is a major driver of greenhouse gas emissions. In the first 60 days of the Gaza conflict, Israel’s bombardment produced more than 21,000 metric tonnes of CO2 equal to burning 150,000 tonnes of coal. US-led wars in the Middle East have emitted over 400 million metric tonnes of CO2. Today, similar climate-damaging military activities are occurring in our region.

For more than two months, US military assets have been active in Caribbean waters, producing significant emissions and reportedly carrying out lethal strikes at sea. Such actions raise grave legal concerns under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), particularly Articles 30, 87, 110, 224, 225, and 301, and may constitute extrajudicial killings.

Colonial patterns rooted in extraction, violence, and environmental harm continue to shape regional vulnerability, as affirmed by the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Jamaica and CARICOM have legal tools they are failing to use. The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (Rio Treaty) of 1947, which allows collective defence when regional peace is threatened, remains inactive. The American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, to which the US is bound, guarantees rights directly endangered by militarisation in our waters.

Our fishing communities now work near an active conflict zone. Their lives and livelihoods cannot be collateral damage in geopolitical confrontations.

The Government of Jamaica must protect its people by rejecting militarism in Caribbean waters, activating regional legal mechanisms, and defending our right to safety and a stable climate. Jamaica must also accelerate renewable energy, halt offshore oil exploration, and adopt a decolonized climate-resilient recovery strategy, including coastal rezoning that protects ecosystems and community rights.

When storms strengthen and empires prepare for war at our doorstep, it is the poor who are sacrificed. The Government must act before silence becomes complicity.

CONCERNED CITIZEN