Carifesta promises a lasting legacy

Aug 10, 2008 Editorial

It has been thirty-five years, but Carifesta is returning to Guyana. The first ever Carifesta was held here in 1972, and while the accommodation was not what it is today with the new hotels and bed-and-breakfast establishments, Guyana pulled out the stops. The Government built homes in what is now Festival City and housed the visitors there.

When the event was over, the Government sold the houses to Guyanese and actually started a housing community in that section of South Georgetown, a feat that has spawned communities like Lamaha Park, where members of the Joint Services live; the Meckdeci Housing Scheme to the east of Festival City, and the extension of what is now South Ruimveldt Park.

This time around, there are no new houses, but there is so much more. Hoteliers are smiling because their facilities are almost all fully booked, and those homeowners who made extensions when Cricket World Cup came are now reaping the fruits of their expenditure.

There is something else that makes this Carifesta different from that other held thirty-five years ago.

Guyana and the Caribbean were different. Hard drugs were non-existent and the killing squads were unheard of. The only security needed was to prevent the petty thief from jumping through windows to pilfer goods from the visitors.

On Thursday, Cabinet Secretary Dr Roger Luncheon was angry that a newspaper dared to report on the crime situation. He considered that, coming at this time, the report was unpatriotic in that it had the potential to warn people away from Guyana.

He may be right, because there are countries that refuse to highlight the crimes within their borders. For example, Barbados has its share of crime, but judging from what is reported, one would believe that the island is a crime-free paradise.

It is the same with some other countries, Antigua included. Just last week a honeymooning couple got killed in the island. Unfortunately, they happened to be tourists, and the fallout is still to be assessed.

One group has already concluded that the double-murders will impact on the desire by visitors to visit the island.
If that should happen, then the Antigua economy will suffer.

This is why Dr Luncheon and the Cabinet are upset at the report that seeks to suggest that crime is uncontrollable in Guyana.

There is no country that can report that it is crime-free. However, the difference should be in the security measures in place to thwart violent crimes.

Guyana has put in place such arrangements, and although the organizers are not making any public announcements, the view is that the security will be adequate to ensure that nothing untoward occurs during Carifesta X.

What many forget is that there is now legislation that allows for the involvement of foreign crime fighters.

We believe that if the local authorities feel that they do not have the necessary resources, they may very well seek help from overseas, and the visiting law enforcement officers would have the powers of arrest.

But there is more to Carifesta and life in Guyana than crime. People have a right to enjoy themselves and to ensure that nothing is done to tarnish the image of this country.

It is no secret that people refuse to report crimes, with the result that the perpetrator survives, sometimes to eventually prey on the very people who remain silent.

Guyana is about hospitality, about unparalleled entertainment, about friendliness, and about food. Carifesta has come at a time when the region and the rest of the world are experiencing food shortages. The visitors will see that, while there are rising prices, there is an abundance of food in Guyana.

We are certain that the visitors will gorge themselves on some of the fresh fruits and vegetables, and on the wide variety of seafood that is so common to Guyana but so scarce in other countries in the region.

People will see things that are so much cheaper here than in their own country, and when they leave they will take some of these things with them, leaving money behind that will go far to make life comfortable for the people who produce these things.

We are certain that when Carifesta is over such will be the memories that there may be requests for Guyana to be the permanent home of the festival of arts.

And if that is not to be the case, then whoever hosts the festival after Guyana would find an act very hard to beat.

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Carifesta promises a lasting legacy

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