KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith has encouraged Jamaicans to remain calm after recent executive orders by President of the United States Donald Trump.

In a release from the ministry a short while ago, Johnson Smith said: “It is very important in these matters that we remain calm and responsible. It is extremely unhelpful that people are inciting panic on matters that are very complex and very technical and subject to a lot of uncertainty even in the issuing state.”

According to Johnson Smith, her ministry is making every effort to ascertain the scope of Trump’s orders.

She said “…it is important that we not conflate them, because there is more than one order and they deal with entirely different things. I would ask the Jamaican community overseas and public to remain calm and to be assured that the ministry is examining these issues”. 

“We are in contact with the US Embassy here, and we are in contact with the State Department overseas through our missions there. As soon as we are clear on the advice we can give to the public on any impact on the Jamaican community, we will do so. Please be assured that we are monitoring these issues closely with your interest at heart”, the minister added.

 Johnson Smith assured that the ministry and the Government will maintain open communications channels and provide updates as “matters become clearer”. 

Trump’s most recent executive order focused on immigration and banned refugees and travellers from seven largely Muslim countries, including: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia and Yemen . The order has caused a lot of uncertainty across the world, and attracted protests both within and outside the US.

Johnson Smith’s statement came after Opposition spokesperson on youth and culture, Lisa Hanna, earlier today called on the Government to clarify whether Trump’s recent immigration orders could affect Jamaican students seeking employment in the United States.