Members of the Rastafarian community in western Jamaica gathered this week at Sam Sharpe Square to demonstrate solidarity with Burkina Faso’s military leader, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, aligning themselves with a wider global movement expressing support for his leadership and resistance to external political pressure.
The demonstration, held in Montego Bay, formed part of coordinated protests reported in several countries and reflected long-standing Pan-African and anti-colonial sentiments within sections of Jamaican society. Participants framed the gathering not as a domestic political intervention, but as an expression of shared historical experience and ideological alignment with African struggles for sovereignty and self-determination.
At the centre of the protest were Rastafarian elders and clergy who praised Traoré’s emphasis on national control over resources, education, and economic direction. Wesley Kelly, a senior figure within the Rastafarian community, described the Burkina Fas…
