“Long ago in Tobago, the Carnival wasn't so, no/Was plenty jab-jab and devil/They came down to Les Couteaux/They came from Culloden, horns on their head/One name is Vixen, eyes always red/One Abyssinia, a hero of man/Portraying Lucifer with a fork in his hand.”
Shadow’s lyrics in Pay The Devil, released in 1994, show the devil mas has been a part of Tobago’s culture for decades. Errol Hill, in his 1972 book The Trinidad Carnival, said the jab molassie mas had been observed in Trinidad in 1848. So many people were surprised that a fuss was made over the appearance of a jab molassie as part of Tobago’s presentation at the World Trade Market in London between November 6-8.
According to the National Library and Information Service (Nalis) said the jab molassie costume consists of short pants or pants cut off at the knee, a mask and horns, chains, locks and keys, and a pitchfork. He may smear his body with grease, tar, mud or coloured dyes (red, green or blue). The jab molassie wines to a rhythmic beat that is played on tins or pans by his imps.
Traditionally, the jab molassie also screams in counterpoint to the beat.
The version seen at the WTM, according to an 11-second video consisted of a single performer in a black body suit, partially covered in black body paint, and with no props, screaming at bemused attendees.
THA Minority Leader Kelvon Morris questioned the place of the mas in Tobago’s tourism strategy, and said the jab molassie is not something seen in Tobago daily.
In a WhatsApp video, Progressive Democratic Patriots (PDP) political leader Watson Duke castigated the presentation.
“Nowhere in the history of the countries that have been to the WTM, we find people portraying primitive men or men that are unsocialised, uncivilised.
“Here we are, in 2023, in the age of AI (artificial intelligence), displaying a character that is screaming to the ears of would-be visitors, cold running down his beard and he is looking wild, uncivilised."
THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine said the character represents protestation against the enslavement of people of African descent, and invited Morris to learn more about the character.
Tobagonian jab molassie practitioner Antonia Thomas said part of people’s rejection of the mas might be a misconception of what the character should look like.
“Tobagonians have a very idealistic version of what a devil should be, reminiscent of what Abyssinia used to portray, but it’s not the only way to portray a devil. People were expecting to see the horns, the chains, the whistle and everything they’ve grown accustomed to over the years: but it’s not something that is required to play the mas.
“I think people have also grown accustomed to us beautifying our culture to showcase outside, as opposed to just presenting it in its raw state. I don’t necessarily believe we have to put on a filter on our traditions for it to be acceptable.”
She said the mas was not related to the Christian concept of the devil, but was seen as such by many people in Tobago.
Former minis
