SSP Diaries | Sitting on the fence is never an option

Sitting on the proverbial fence, trying to ride out the ‘storms’ of the region cannot be an acceptable option for any democratic country. The recent unilateral actions taken by the current US administration in Venezuela are, in my opinion, unacceptable. Alleged drug boats and crews have been systematically destroyed/killed at the hands of an administration that has publicly offered no substantial proof of accusations. The Venezuelan people have had these actions shoved down their throats and literally made to accept them because a large and powerful state has deemed them necessary.

The scenario escalated with accusations against President Maduro, the subsequent ‘invasion’ of his country and capture of him and his wife under the guise of conducting a ‘law enforcement’ operation.

Are we to understand that US law now supersedes all other laws upon planet Earth? Is this an acceptable situation by all sovereign states? In the absence of anything being done or said to the contrary, silence is not only consent but seems to stem from a deeper fear, one that leaves many countries to be wondering, who is next?

Since Venezuela, the US administration has been making vague threats directed at Cuba, Colombia, and Mexico, to name a few in our region. The view of most states, globally, has been to denounce the actions taken by the US, but there is nothing much beyond that. CARICOM appears to be playing the ’wait and see game’ while ensuring that they do not ‘annoy’ the US in its present strategy to conquer, control, and reap all the obvious spoils.

Naturally, there is the fear of disruptions to our trade relationships and the fragile tourism industry that so many of our people depend upon. There is now the fear of having your country overrun by superior military might and some of our leaders whisked away by day or night to stand trial in US courts on ‘trumped up’ charges or even genuine ones dependent upon our past/current actions and the wide reach of Uncle Sam. The lack of regional strategic economic diversifications to sustain nations’ viability is a real condemnation of our leadership since shelving colonialism.

RULES-BASED ORDER

In essence, sovereignty in the present environment has lost its meaning. In the face of autocratic/despotic actions the right of a nation to self-governance under the UN provisions, international or domestic laws, has effectively been suspended or eradicated by those purporting to be the most powerful nation on Earth, governed only by the ‘morality’ of its leader. This is effectively where we are at. Trinidad and Tobago have shelved CARICOM and thrown their lot in with the US. In the absence of a collective approach from the region in addressing the issues deciding the future of our small-island economies, there will be others planning to join Trinidad.

The silence of CARICOM continues to be deafening for too long. My own recommendations in addressing this issue are by no means new, but they need to be said time and time again until they sink home and are transformed into positive actions. CARICOM needs to speak collectively, with one voice as a unified entity. It must be strongly opposed to unlawful actions, develop the will to refuse to deal with nations violating the relevant UN and Human Rights Laws, Protocols. Etc. It must use whatever power it has to achieve its objectives, for example, refusing to support the guilty parties in votes in the OAS or UN. CARICOM nations should be one of the strongest advocates for the development of an effective and efficient UN, with adequate powers to take actions against countries violating their charter. If the UN is to function in the interest of all member nations, then it is time that it dispenses with the post WW2 veto system, which has only served to have the superpowers counter any proposal that does not suit their interests, politically or otherwise. The UN must advance to a stage where all votes are equal, with all nations being equal under its umbrella.

These things are critical in striving to achieve an international rules-based order as has been the cry of PM Mottley, Barbados, consistently. President Ali of Guyana recently spoke to his focus, and it is simply that there would be no agreement between Guyana and the US to strike a deal in their decades-old border dispute with Venezuela, while PM Holness has made it clear that his job is to keep Jamaica safe and steer it away from such incidents as the downfall of President Maduro while moving the nation towards prosperity.

Just by using this small sample of recent statements from some CARICOM leaders, it is clear in my mind that the focus is still from an individual perspective, and the need to grasp and expound a collective reality is abundantly clear. Small Island Developing States (SIDS) cannot achieve anything in the scenario that confronts us unless we speak as one and use the tools available to us to make sure our voice is heard where it matters. We were at the forefront in tackling apartheid in South Africa many decades ago, before the advent of CARICOM. The same will is needed now to ensure our survival and, perhaps, that of the free world as we have come to know it.

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