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News

TRH visit Jamaica

12th March 2008

The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall today celebrated the life and music reggae star Bob Marley during a visit to Jamaica on the last stop of their 11-day tour of the Caribbean.

Their Royal Highnesses joined the widow of Jamaica's most famous son, Rita Marley, at a mini concert staged in the grounds of the musician's former home turned museum in Kingston.

The singer, guitarist and activist's phenomenal success made reggae music popular across the globe and brought international attention to the island of Jamaica.

Their Royal Highnesses were greeted by Mrs Marley under a statue of the star in the grounds of the museum, which opened in May 1986.

The Prince and The Duchess looked relaxed as they chatted to the musician's wife, who married the star in 1966 and became part of his famous backing singers, the I Threes.

A choir of youngsters sang songs made famous by Marley while a drum player beat out hypnotic rhythms before the group went into the museum, which also served as the headquarters of the reggae star's label Tuff Gong.

The house was filled with memorabilia, artefacts and mementoes of Marley's life and music from gold and platinum discs to his bed and hammock.

The Prince and The Duchess are keen fans of the reggae star's hits which include classic songs like No Woman No Cry, Jamming, Buffalo Soldier and One Love - People Get Ready.

Legend, Bob Marley’s posthumous compilation album released in 1984, is the best-selling reggae album ever with sales of more than 12 million copies.

Marley was born in the rural Jamaican parish of St Ann in 1945 but when a young boy, he moved with his mother to Trenchtown, a poor area of the Jamaican capital after his father died.

He began recording music in the early 1960s and also became a Rastafarian - a religious group that worship a former Ethiopian emperor Haile Selassie as a god.

His first international success was a single No Woman No Cry and Marley went on to become not just a musician but a motivator for peace in his country which, in the 1970s and early 80s, suffered from wide scale violence mainly between followers of opposing political parties.

During the tour, Their Royal Highnesses walked through the grounds of the house and stopped to watch a performance by Nyahbingi drummers - a group of Rastafarian musicians.

The Prince and The Duchess were invited to sit down and began playing bongo drums with a group of musicians.

Their Royal Highnesses both smiled and laughed as they tried to keep in time to the music and were cheered when the drummers ended the piece with a flourish.

Marley's hits were later played for The Prince and The Duchess as they joined an audience of invited guests for the performance by Jamaican singer Roslyn Williams and young musicians from the Charlemont high school.

Later Their Royal Highnesses toured the Rose Town district of Kingston - an example of the worst problems faced by Jamaican society and a showcase for efforts to help bring about fundamental change.

The area has high unemployment, poor living and sanitary conditions and a history of violent crime similar to other notorious parts of the capital.

Jamaica has an unenviable reputation for violent crime and last year more than 1,500 murders were recorded.

But the killings, revenge attacks and gang feuds are predominantly found in isolated areas and involve young black men targeting each other in areas like Rose Town.

The Prince's Foundation for the Built Environment, His Royal Highness’s architectural charity, has been working in partnership with the Kingston Restoration Company on an urban regeneration project which will transform the living conditions of Rose Town residents.

The Prince’s Foundation became involved in the project after The Prince visited Kingston in 2000 and was moved to act after visiting some of the capital's depressed areas.

On this visit, Their Royal Highnesses visited a restored library during a tour of the area and unveiled a plaque to commemorate the site of a proposed playing field - at the moment scrubland covered with rubble.

Their Royal Highnesses walked through the streets of Rose Town, which was lined with shacks made with corrugated iron roofs and breeze block walls, and derelict buildings.

Many of the locals came out of their properties to greet The Prince and The Duchess warmly, shaking their hands and taking pictures of them with camera phones.

The Prince later showed off his football skills as he helped launch a sports initiative which will use soccer to tackle youth violence in Jamaica.

A six-a-side tournament will be staged in August involving 19,000 young people, both male and female, as a way of getting teenagers involved with sport.

The Prince of Wales's Community Peace Cup is being run by Beacons for Peace and Achievement, an organisation which is the Jamaican arm of a leadership programme established by the Metropolitan Black Police Association in Jamaica and other countries, including the UK and South Africa.

Kingston youngsters showed off their ball juggling skills before The Prince was asked to draw from a bowl the parish which will host the first game.

His Royal Highness picked St Elizabeth to laughter from the invited audience at the event held near King's House, the residence of Jamaica's Governor General Sir Kenneth Hall, before taking a few shots at goal himself.

British football club Charlton Athletic are involved in the tournament and will officiate at the event and help with training and coaching.

Paul Mortimer, technical director of the club's women's team who attended the launch, said: "Football is a way of drawing the youngsters in and keeping them away from violence. This is not for two minutes. I'm hoping we'll be involved for years to come."
 
Later in the afternoon, Their Royal Highnesses were received by the Governor General at Kings' House and attended a dinner and cultural evening at with the Prime Minister of Jamaica Bruce Golding, and  First Lady Lorna Golding, at Jamaica House.

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