| Popis: |
Jamaica applied strict regulatory measures at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic and has relied extensively on the Disaster Risk Management Act to manage the spread of the virus. Like several countries in the Caribbean, state coercion defined Jamaica’s response to the pandemic, despite appeals for self-regulation from various state actors who invoke the importance COVID-19 protocols in preserving life and easing the burden on the underfunded healthcare system. A significant proportion of the population were non-compliant in their behaviour and attitudes toward the public health advice and regulations. The challenges with non-compliance revealed certain nuances about attitudes to state authority and notions of lateral citizenship as a set of responsibilities to fellow citizens. These orientations were evident in the ways that different groups negotiated compliance and made the case for themselves as an exception, and, importantly, how the state responded. Many citizens believed that they should be free to disregard COVID-19 rules made by the state – in particular places, social spaces, at particular events and other particularities. Making exception, whether on religious, socio-cultural or political grounds, can be seen as a method of negotiating non-compliance to COVID-19 rules without directly confronting the authority of the state while practically subverting it. |
