Recently-appointed Government Senator, Abka Fitz-Henley, has charged that partisan politics played a hand in the massive drop Jamaica suffered on the World Press Freedom Index in May.

In its 2023 rankings, Reporters Without Borders reported that Jamaica now ranks 32nd out of 180 countries, compared to 12th in 2022. This represents a fall of 20 places this year.

Fitz-Henley, who spent his decade-long career in media at Nationwide News Network in various capacities, spoke to the issue on Friday as he opened the 2023/24 State of the Nation Debate in the Senate.

He said: “I note the recent 20 per cent decline that was applied to Jamaica in terms of the press freedom index. Yes, there are challenges and there have been incidents in the past which should not have happened. I can speak to a few of those. But, in my view, such a steep decline was not merited. It is not an accurate depiction of the state of affairs in Jamaica”.

Fitz-Henley told the Senate that he made checks “and I was told that our friends in the international community, who assess these things, can only operate based on what was said to them and I am of the view, they were misled”.

“I was also told that to the astonishment of others, one individual presented a false picture about the media landscape in Jamaica and interactions with this (Jamaica Labour Party) administration,” he said.

“Stakeholders must understand that when you seek to speak falsely, negatively and unfairly about your country, it might achieve temporary partisan talking points for one side but that is a pyrrhic victory because it is one of the most despicable forms of unpatriotic behaviour,” Fitz-Henley declared.

He said there were many hardworking media workers, including reporters, producers, cameramen, editors, “who could do with much more support from employers and better remuneration but they are doing well in a largely safe environment, which most times is free of political interference”.