IV 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 16 
Congratulating Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller for becoming the first 
democratically-elected female Prime Minister of Jamaica and the first 
female Jamaican head of state. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 5, 2007 
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas submitted the following concurrent resolution; 
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 
Congratulating Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller for be-
coming the first democratically-elected female Prime 
Minister of Jamaica and the first female Jamaican head 
of state. 
Whereas Portia Simpson-Miller won the 2006 parliamentary 
election in Jamaica, becoming the first female Prime 
Minister in the history of Jamaica; 
Whereas on February 25, 2006, Portia Simpson-Miller was 
elected President of the People’s National Party and 
Prime Minister-designate; 
Whereas in the People’s National Party internal vote, Portia 
Simpson-Miller received 1,775 votes, while her nearest 
rival, National Security Minister Dr. Peter Phillips, re-
ceived 1,538 votes; 
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•HCON 16 IH 
Whereas Portia Simpson-Miller had been the Jamaican Min-
ister of Local Government and Sport since October 2002; 
Whereas Portia Simpson-Miller previously served as Jamai-
can Minister of Labour, Welfare and Sports from 1989 
to 1993, when she first entered Parliament for South 
West St. Andrew, then served as Minister of Labour and 
Welfare from 1993 to 1995, Minister of Labour, Social 
Security and Sports from 1995 to February 2000, and 
Minister of Tourism and Sports from February 2000 to 
October 2002; 
Whereas Portia Simpson-Miller had also served as a Vice 
President of the People’s National Party since 1978; 
Whereas Portia Simpson-Miller holds a Bachelor of Arts in 
public administration from the Union Institute, and has 
since been awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Humane 
Letters by the Union Institute; 
Whereas 70 percent of Jamaican university students are fe-
male and 80 to 90 percent of Jamaican law school stu-
dents are female; 
Whereas women in Jamaica have traditionally made up close 
to 50 percent of the labor force and, over the past two 
decades, have increasingly moved into many of the senior 
and middle-management positions across society; 
Whereas there are still few women in the highest positions of 
Jamaican society, particularly in the male-dominated 
area of politics; and 
Whereas Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller took office on 
March 30, 2006: Now, therefore, be it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That Congress— 
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•HCON 16 IH 
(1) congratulates Prime Minister Portia Simp-
son-Miller for becoming the first democratically- 
elected female Prime Minister of Jamaica and the 
first female Jamaican head of state; and 
(2) commends the people of Jamaica for this 
benchmark for women, for democracy, and for a di-
verse and prosperous nation, and encourages further 
progress by Jamaican women to be strong, success-
ful leaders and policymakers. 
Æ 
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