The world laughed when it was published abroad that a Jamaican man had attempted to hijack a passenger plane from the island’s tourism capital of Montego Bay recently. “What? Why would he want to leave a herb smoking paradise to go to Cuba or to North American snow?” they suggested in their snicker.

It’s the way they see Caribbean culture: a happy frolicking, steel pan and reggae-playing people, who sometimes go crazy fighting over weed; but hijacking airplanes?! No way! it’s too complicated.

This past week culture was a main item on the agenda of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) level and among the Jamaican Diaspora in Canada. CARICOM’s Regional Cultural Committee (RCC), which groups national directors of culture, held its 20^th annual meeting that among other things looked at financing culture with CARICOM’s Programme Manager for Culture and Community Development, Dr Hilary Brown, speaking of “redoubling its efforts to find resources to capitalize the CARICOM Foundation for Art and Culture, and for financing culture in general, to ensure a sustainable pool of resources for vitally needed cultural development in this region.”