CARICOM is not from Unity

Sep 14, 2008 Features / Columnists

The Parrot has made a 100. No, not runs as in cricket, that’s for Shiv; 100 published articles in this paper. Today!

Oh, by the way, congratulations “Tiger” on winning cricket’s most prestigious award. You have basically single-handedly carried West Indies cricket over the years.

You have not only done yourself proud, but Guyana and the region. You have shown them what a “lil” boy from Unity can do.

Keep on scoring. You are an inspiration to many. Your many moments of glory have brought people together.

Hope your team-mates learn from you, especially your ability to focus, not to be intimidated, to rise after taking hard knocks, to be patient and to be humble.

There is another famous son of the soil who hails from Unity. Just like Shiv, he has demonstrated his ability not to be intimidated and to remain focused.

He has shown over the years that he is not afraid to voice his own, and sometimes different, opinions on matters that can have a negative effect on the state and by extension, our people.

Yes, our Head of State is from Unity. Maybe it explains some of the common traits between himself and Shiv: men of humble beginnings who can best understand the working class.

In the last few squawks I have basically focused on the CARIFORUM/EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) and Guyana’s reluctance to sign.

It’s not my intention to repeat here what I said then. However, given the importance of the issue, I feel compelled to make some further points.

The underlying point to note is that Guyanese are united in their support for Guyana’s position as presented by Uncle Bharrat on the EPA.

It was heartening to see the unequivocal support given by the Palm Tree party, represented by no less a person than Uncle Murray. He, like all the others who have voiced their support, knows the ramifications of the current agreement.

Guyana is the largest country in CARICOM, with more diversity in its people and economy. Our exports include sugar, rice, a wide range of other agricultural produce, bauxite, timber, rum, gold, diamonds and other precious minerals and un-endangered species of wildlife.

Which other CARICOM country has such resources? None. Our vast fertile lands can be the envy of countries from across the world. We have the ability to feed CARICOM.

Our agricultural diversity is testimony to this. Geographically, it would be safe to say that all the other countries in CARICOM can fit in Guyana. Yes, we can hold them. Yes, we can feed them.

Their revenue-earning capabilities are vastly different from ours, with most depending on tourism, services and offshore banking. Many of their businesses are owned by Europeans and other foreign residents.

Given our potential and diverse economy, given the economy of the other countries in CARICOM and given some of the clauses in the EPA, it is clear that Guyana will be more adversely affected in terms of trade and foreign revenue earning than any of the CARICOM countries. This is the stark reality. It shows that the EPA which is across-the-board for CARICOM is unfair.

Development in countries like Guyana can be negatively impacted by the current EPA whether we sign or not. This is why Guyana, through the stringent efforts of Uncle Bharrat, is calling for a pause and some renegotiation. Why rush, CARICOM? There is still some time.

Our history across the region has shown that our forefathers were forced to these parts of the world to toil in pain for their colonial masters. They were beaten. They had no rights.

Everything was dictated for them. Guyana and some countries from the region and Africa were raped of their resources by the colonisers.

Today, many of these countries cannot recover. In Guyana, we are fortunate to see improvements in our social infrastructures and, by extension, standard of living as a result of prudent fiscal policies of Uncle Bharrat’s administration. The same cannot be said of other countries that suffered under colonial rule.

The EPA in its current form is not different from the policies of colonialism. It seems as if these former colonial masters want to “reclaim” their colonies through the EPA. It’s basically “take it of leave it” or “face the consequences”.

This “push down your throat” method by the EU cannot be masked behind their smiles and pseudo promises of making trade easier and more economically viable for the countries in question. The Grinch also had a smile. Didn’t he? Uncle Bharrat was able to see beyond these smiles.

That explains his position. It is unfortunate that the rest of CARICOM, with the exception of Haiti which has voiced some reservations, is rushing to sign. Isn’t it kind of cynical the way they seem to be pandering to their former colonial masters?

Aren’t these the same leaders who sometime back clamoured for reparation from slavery?
Guyana has more to lose than these countries.

They basically have no or little goods to trade. Their sandy beaches and blue waters cannot be exported to Europe; Europe will come to them for that.

So the “no need to bother” and “let’s not unduly worry about Guyana” attitudes seem to have stepped in. Leading luminaries at the EPA consultation alluded to the funding received by the Caribbean Regional Negotiating Machinery (CRNM, which negotiated the agreement on behalf of CARICOM), from the EU.

The CRNM’s position on the EPA was eloquently defended by its Head who, incidentally, is not Guyanese. Why am I not surprised? An old saying jumps out at me, “he who pays the piper calls the tune”.

Europe and the West have been dictating to other countries to have democratic elections and to maintain democratic practices. Some have tied financial and other aid to democracy.

How is it then that the EU can imply that there was no need for Uncle Bharrat to consult with Guyanese on the EPA? Is it that they want him not to consult and to make the decision on his own?

If it were that he is an autocratic leader like Mugabe and Kim Jong IL, and had ruled with an “iron fist”, would the EU have tolerated it on issues other than the EPA? The answer is NO. They would not.

It is therefore clear that the imposition of the EPA on Guyana and the other countries in question is a case of convenient democracy vis-à-vis Hamas winning a democratic election in Palestine. If it is not in their favour, it’s not going to happen.

Guyana has never been afraid to stand up to those who try to impose on us. The consequences of the EPA, signing or not, are dire. As I said previously, Guyana’s efforts through Uncle Bharrat must be supported.

What happened in Barbados last Wednesday is indeed a defining moment for CARICOM; disunited on a major front.

Like Shiv who stands literally alone in the West Indies team as their fort of defence and beacon of success, history will no doubt carve these same words for Uncle Bharrat on the EPA.

Shiv and Uncle Bharrat have many things in common, one being “Unity”; obviously lacking in CARICOM. Squawk! Squawk!