There has been this ongoing public debate about whether Jamaica is a failed state or not.

Radio broadcaster Cliff Hughes, perhaps the most respected journalist in Jamaica today, recently declared that Jamaica is a failed state. It was a statement that generated a strong response from celebrated Gleaner columnist Ian Boyne and prompted vigorous discussion in certain social spheres. Many disagree with Mr Hughes' assessment of this land of ours, but is he really off base or are we as a people, as usual, unwilling to accept reality.

I looked at some very basic things - economy, law and order, health and standard of living - that helped me make my mind up about whether Jamaica is indeed a failed state and this is what I came up with.

Back in 1962 when we gained independence, and I use the word 'independence' loosely here, Jamaica was a world leader in the export of bauxite, sugar, and pineapples and was a preferred tourism destination for many of the world's most affluent individuals.

outstrip exports

These days imports significantly outstrip exports and as a result our dollar has slipped in value from about 50 cents Jamaican to one US dollar, to where it is today where we need about 113 Jamaican dollars to purchase that same one US dollar.

Over time, Jamaica has borrowed so much money our great, great grandchildren will still be paying debt when they're old.

The debt burden has seen Jamaicans struggle through constant austerity over the past 40 years or so. April is a month many Jamaicans fear because that is when some minister of finance stands before Parliament and reveals how much more taxes we will pay. It is a month when business people and the common Jamaican man and woman, develop ulcers at a faster rate than at any other time of year.

political violence

Unemployment is high, crime is high, social graces have become alien to the populace and we have become increasingly violent.

In 1980, more than 800 Jamaicans lost their lives because of political violence. Up to that year it was by far the highest number of persons killed violently in any one year. However, for the past 15 years or so, it takes us about six months to kill 800 persons.

The police force is overburdened, stained by corruption and harbours serial killers within its ranks. The judicial system is clogged seemingly beyond repair.

Further afield, excessive bureaucracy makes everything difficult to get done and that provides fertile ground for even more corruption. As a result, corruption is rife and there is no real effort to fix it.

Add to this the fact that there are growing concerns about the welfare of the nation's children who are disadvantaged by a poor system of education, victims of physical and sexual abuse and who have very little hope of achieving great things unless they are athletes who can win scholarships to schools overseas; win the Lotto or through some unholy means.

Then consider that people are dying on our hospital floors and the best place to get proper health care is overseas. Think about this for a minute. Whenever one of our politicians is in need of health care, where do they go?

Over the past five decades, Jamaicans, in large numbers, have fled for so-called greener pastures to the extent that there are more Jamaicans living abroad than living at home and these days we all need visas to step on a plane to anywhere.

Now I am not calling Jamaica a failed state but I ask you, what does the evidence suggest? In the eyes of many we might not be a failed state but to my mind, we're pretty damn close.

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