FALMOUTH, Trelawny — Minister of Tourism Edmund Bartlett has criticised people who he says are creating a false impression internationally that Jamaicans are being denied access to the country’s beaches.

Speaking at the 2026 Artisan Village Food Festival in Falmouth on Thursday, Bartlett argued that the facts do not support the narrative being circulated overseas and the false claims are damaging Jamaica’s reputation and costing the Government money to correct.

“We have 70 [public bathing beaches] in Jamaica, all around the island. And of that 70 only 10 of them are paid beaches. And then only five of that you would pay a decent money to go to,” Bartlett said.

“And yet, some of us, when you hear what we say to the international media… you would believe that every beach in Jamaica is just locked off, and that’s not fair to Jamaica. That’s not fair to us,” added Bartlett.

He argued that concerns may arise about access to specific beaches, but insisted that isolated issues should not be used to broad-brush the country.

Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett (right) displays a branded water coconut he received from Donovan Haughton, operator of Signature Fruits, during the 2026 Artisan Village Food Festival in Falmouth on Thursday. Photo: Horace Hines

“So we say, if you have an issue with one, or two, all right, let’s talk about that. Let’s deal with it because everywhere in the world you go, there’s an issue. But we must deal with it and resolve it, and not define ourselves by it,” argued Bartlett.

The tourism minister said the Government has had to invest in advertising and promotional campaigns to counter misinformation in the international media.

“You know as minister of tourism how much trouble I get on international press to go and explain to them that it is not true? Then we have to spend money with advertising agents… to tell them seh nothing nuh go so,” Bartlett said.

He urged Jamaicans to resolve national challenges internally rather than tarnishing the country’s image overseas.

“So we have to help ourselves. Where we have a problem, let us resolve it. Let us see where the difficulties are, talk about it, deal with it at home, solve it at home. And, as Miss Lou seh, ‘Don’t wash your dirty linen abroad,’ because when you believe you are hurting your neighbour, you’re not hurting your neighbour, you’re hurting your country and, in the end, yourself,” Bartlett added.

He lamented what he described as a tendency among some Jamaicans to highlight only the country’s shortcomings.

“Some of us enjoy beating up little Jamaica. Some of us enjoy saying all the negative things about the country, and some people I hear say things like Jamaica refuse to make its people enjoy the beaches. I never hear anything like that,” he said.

Some of the attendees at the 2026 Artisan Village Food Festival in Falmouth, Trelawny, on Thursday. Photo: Horace Hines

Bartlett urged Jamaicans to use the country’s 64th anniversary of Independence to embrace a new conversation and project a more positive image of the nation.

“And as we do that, the second thing I want to concern my mind and to get you into my thoughts on is how it is that we project ourselves as a people and as a country,” Bartlett said.

“The world views us through our own eyes and through our prisms. The world sees us the way we see ourselves, but most importantly, the way we express who we are to the world,” he added.

Bartlett said Jamaica’s 64th Independence anniversary should mark the beginning of a more positive national outlook.

“So, on this 64th birthday, let us resolve to have a new conversation, a new narrative, a positive contribution to ourselves, as together we grow. As we recover from Melissa, we recover stronger and better, and we build this great little piece of rock. In the words of Miss Lou, ‘We little but we tallawah,’” he said.

Official data show Jamaica possesses approximately 1,022 kilometres of coastline, of which approximately 29 per cent (300 kilometres) consists of sandy beaches.