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AFC pickets against CARICOM’s pro-prorogation stance
“The body’s position can potentially lead to a destabilisation of the community” – AFC MP Nagamootoo
Members of the Alliance For Change (AFC) yesterday protested outside the Caribbean Community(CARICOM) Secretariat in Turkeyen, Greater Georgetown, over the organisation’s pro-prorogation stance taken last Friday at the 35th meeting of its Council of Ministers.
During yesterday morning’s demonstrations, those participating could be heard shouting, “No Parliament, No Democracy” with placards reading “CARICOM abandoned all of Guyana again”, “CARICOM what about democracy in Guyana” and “CARICOM we deserve better representation”.
Those present were in consensus that such action was necessary to raise public awareness on the hit that democracy had taken at the hands of CARICOM, since the organization is saying that it is essentially not giving the majority opposition a voice in the country’s politics.
Last Friday, Foreign Ministers of the Region convened at the CARICOM Secretariat for a working session, where the prorogation of Guyana’s Parliament was discussed. After the meeting for the Council of Ministers, the second highest organ of the 15-nation regional body, a statement was issued in that regard.
Protestors outside the CARICOM Secretariat yesterday
According to the statement, the Council of Ministers received an update from Foreign Affairs Minister Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett regarding developments in relation to the prorogation of the Parliament of Guyana.
“Ministers,” the body said, “were satisfied that the prorogation of Parliament was in keeping with the provisions of the Guyana Constitution and did not constitute a breach of the Commonwealth Charter.”
However, AFC Member of Parliament (MP) Moses Nagamootoo, says that the CARICOM Ministers’ stance on the issue is in total contradiction with the body’s previous policies with relation to Guyana’s Constitution.
“The Guyana Constitution also says that the country should have Local Government Elections (LGE),” explained the politician, “and LGE has not been held in over 17 years. So you couldn’t say on one hand that there is a confirmation of the Constitution and on the other hand there is a violation of the Constitution.”
According to Nagamootoo, CARICOM’s position on prorogation can potentially lead to a destabilisation of the body, since all of its operatives are located at the Secretariat.
He explained that as a Caribbean institution, CARICOM ought to express the aspirations of the Caribbean people, especially in a country where its Parliamentary majority is being undermined from carrying out its democratic duties.
“If Guyana implodes and there are problems here, then it will affect the entire community,” the AFC MP opined.
Meanwhile, Kaieteur News columnist, Frederick Kissoon, is of the opinion that Guyana’s elected majority has been essentially nullified, with CARICOM’s support of a prorogued state validating said nullification.
He said that yesterday’s protest was done to bring attention to the serious blow that democracy took when the Council of Ministers released their statement.
In addition to bringing the issue into public consciousness, Kissoon said that the protestors are signalling to CARICOM that major stakeholders, like the AFC, do not support the pro-prorogation position the regional institution has taken.
The former University of Guyana lecturer also stated that from an academic viewpoint, CARICOM has become an ineffective body, and has failed those it meant to represent.
He cited a study by the University of the West Indies in which a survey revealed that the majority of Jamaicans would rather be under British or American rule.
Kissoon quoted a description of CARICOM by renowned West Indian author V.S. Naipaul which says “the Caribbean created nothing and the Caribbean did not create anything”.
The social activist stated that CARICOM leaders have essentially proven such perceptions true, as many Caribbean citizens feel totally disengaged from the body.
From a more local viewpoint, AFC Region Three Councillor Harry Narine Deokinanan said that CARICOM’s acceptance of prorogation has taken away the voice of the majority-elected opposition, “which is what the people desperately need at this time”.
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