Latest update August 19th, 2026 8:14 PM
Need for Political Dialogue
Our politicians have frittered away the first year after elections in shouting away at each other across the aisles of Parliament and in the streets of our communities. This is in addition to the just as dangerous verbiage hurled under ‘bottom houses’. As we enter this second year, we hope the season of goodwill that is now upon us will influence our politicians to ease up with the screaming and begin to dialogue with each other.
As one expert in the field of conflict resolution pointed out, “Dialogue means we sit and talk with each other, especially those with whom we may think we have the greatest differences. However, talking together all too often means debating, discussing with a view to convincing the other, arguing for our point of view, examining pro’s and con’s. In dialogue, the intention is not to advocate but to inquire; not to argue but to explore; not to convince but to discover.”
These destructive shouting matches between our politicians do not help to address long-standing conflicts over public issues such as for instance, the dispute between the government and the Opposition as to whether Minister of Home Affairs Clement Rohee can be ‘gagged”. Moving the matter to the Committee of Privileges will not change anything since both sides will simply repeat their previous arguments.
Repetitive communication that is based in entrenched positions tends to close people’s minds to new ideas. Parties simply argue more loudly and refuse to be receptive to others’ views. These polarized ways of relating pose significant barriers for collaboration, and make informed and problem solving impossible. Opportunities are often lost to find common ground on which the nation’s business can be dealt with positively.
In addition, what we have witnessed is that since the shouting matches are filled with rhetoric and accusations, the public is exposed to a very limited discourse. This detracts from the involvement and education of citizens. In order to move toward productive collaboration, which is what all three parliamentary parties promised after the last elections, our political parties need to find new ways of relating to each other. Ways that help them to more fully understand the beliefs, meanings, values, and fears held by both their opponents and themselves.
It was our hope that the Tripartite Talks launched by President Ramotar early in the day would have become a site of dialogue such as we are advocating. But we would advise if these Talks are re-launched, the ground rules should be that they are based on ‘dialogue’ and not ‘argument”. Therefore before they sit down to negotiate or discuss resolutions to our deep-rooted, identity- or value-based conflict, they must indicate they are willing to partake in such a conversation. Unless this occurs, as we have seen, public discourse about divisive issues will once again be characterized by destructive debate that can lead to further group divisions and violence.
It is more than likely that if new Tripartite Talks are to lead to sustainable progress there might be the need for a mediator trained in conflict management. This is because our parties are operating from different interpretations of facts and events that may not even be fully understood by themselves. When public conflicts are long lasting and involve seemingly irreconcilable differences of identity, worldviews, and values, parties tend to cling to their own positions and denigrate views of the opposing side. They rarely ask each other questions or genuinely listen to what the other side is saying.
Our country’s future is delicately poised at this time. We are ill served even if it were simply to be marking time, for the rest of the world is marching ahead. But in the last year, we have actually moved backwards on several fronts. Events at Linden and Agricola have greatly dissipated that intangible commodity so important for national progress: social capital. A real dialogue among our political leaders will go a long way to get our development program – on all fronts, political, social, economic and cultural – back on track.
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