amjamin

A year on after the incursion, Jamaica’s capital exudes vibrancy and resilience Amitabh Sharma Contributor On May 1, the streets were filled with a riot of colour, music on the crescendo and a sea of revellers dancing their blues away at the carnival parade that meandered through the streets of Kingston. This was a welcome and refreshing contrast to 12 months back, when the air in the city was filled with tension, apprehension and fear, as the security forces prepared for intervention in the west Kingston community of Tivoli Gardens. The incursion, which saw pitched gunfights between the security forces and the supporters of Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke, left Kingston scarred and bruised, and the city’s tourism and hospitality industry in uncertainty. “It (the impact) was quite significant, with hotels dropping to as low as 10-15 per cent occupancy [and] attractions, taxi operators, etc, seeing little to no business. It also set back the hard work and progress of the JHTA (J