Republicanism in Jamaica required for independence, the popularity of the Royal Family amongst Jamaicans, and tendencies towards Anglophilia among the political elites. The first Jamaican prime minister to make steps towards a republic was Michael Manley, whose People's National Party (PNP) came to power at the 1972 general election. His government established a commission into constitutional reform in 1975, and in July 1977, following a march to commemorate the Morant Bay rebellion, Manley announced that Jamaica would become a republic by 1981. However, his government was defeated at the 1980 general election by the more conservative Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), led by Edward
Human rights in Jamaica duopoly which was composed of two labor organized parties: the People's National Party; led by Norman Manley in 1938, and the Jamaica Labour Party; led by Alexander Bustamante in 1943. In the mid-1940s, the JLP and Bustamante held the majority in Jamaica's limited-autonomy government under the authority of the Colonial office in London and the governor for a decade. Then in 1955 the PNP and Manley gained back the majority. In 1961, Jamaicans favored the stand-alone sovereignty government status proposed by Alexander Bustamante and the JLP to the Federation status proposed by Norman Manley and the PNP. In 1962, Jamaica