A workman puts up the national colours on one of the many flag poles at the National Stadium in St Andrew yesterday in preparation for the Independence Day Parade and Gala scheduled for today. - Ricardo Makyn/Staff Photographer.

When the British Union Jack was replaced with the black, green and gold of the Jamaican flag on August 6, 1962, it was for many only a symbol of the birth of a nation that had already come so far.

Now, 46 years later, the celebration of the nation's Independence has led many to reflect on how far Jamaica has come and how far it still has to go.

"Independence speaks to autonomy in the development of a people and a nation in terms of how we manage our affairs," said Laleta Davis Mattis, executive director of the Jamaica National Heritage Trust. "It is the point in our cultural evolution when we must be cohesive as a nation, that in reflecting on our past, make decisions on what we have yet to accomplish as a nation."

Importance of self-definition

While speaking with The Gleaner, Mattis emphasised the importance of self-definition in an independent state and an understanding of the role of the individual in the nation's development.

"The people need to focus on the power that we have as individuals, but we need to do so from a point of law and order and not from a point of anarchy," she said. "We cannot allow the rest of the world to define us, we need to teach our children to be proud of who we are instead of the self-hatred that we see out there today, until we do that, we're not going anywhere fast."

Jamaica's 46th Independence Day celebrations, to be held at the National Stadium, will feature ceremonial arrivals from various ministers of state, performances by an array of reggae artistes and other musicians, a tribute to sports, as well as a 'Bandmania' which will showcase the musical talents of the Inner-City, St Judes, Magnificent Troopers and the Tivoli Gardens marching bands. The day will end with a mystifying fireworks display.

The celebrations will also see the return of the colourful and exciting Festival Float Parade and Grand Gala.