Dec 06
A release from the Highway Re-Route Movement (HRM) in Trinidad and Tobago late on December 5, 2012 indicates that agreement has been reached to conduct a full independent review of the proposed Debe to Mon Desir Highway with terms of reference that address their main demands; pending which no work will begin on the contentious highway. Accordingly, Dr Wayne Kublalsingh ended his hunger strike the same evening. On the face it this constitutes a significant victory, not only for him and the HRM, but more broadly for civil society in Trinidad and Tobago; with wider regional implications…
DEMOCRACY HAS WON
Dr Wayne Kublalsingh, through his unrelenting and focussed championing of a cause has forced us as a nation to come to grips with the meaning of our constitutionally guaranteed right to “freedom of thought and expression” – even when taken to its extreme.
He has provoked reactions from every level in the society, ranging from full support on the one extreme to outright condemnation on the other – including calls for his arrest – and one moment that can be best characterised as theatre of the absurd when he was the target of an abortive “citizen’s arrest.”
In all of this Dr Kublalsingh has provided the Government, the Opposition, interest groups and prominent individuals with the opportunity to contribute to the maturing of the nation. So far, we have done very well indeed.
Dr Kublalsingh has not – yet – been dragged off to prison – as he would have been had he been in China, Russia and other jurisdictions where even mild citizen protests are not tolerated. For its part the Government, moving on from the gross, disgraceful, offensive, retrograde, indecent, hysterical and anti-democratic comments of two of its leaders – Messrs Warner and Moonilal, has decided – not a moment too soon – to give unofficial mediation and information-sharing a chance. The Opposition for its part, apart from one low-key appearance of its leader at the site of the hunger strike, has so far, been concentrating on its own internal Party affairs.
So, what we have up to this point in time, is a hunger strike – outside of the offices of the Prime Minister – that has given the entire populace the opportunity to have its say, in one way or the other, on a multi-billion dollar project to be funded from taxpayers contribution to Government revenues. This is a very healthy development for our young democracy and it has been achieved without violence.
Whatever the result of Dr Kublalsingh’s mission, he has already scored a major victory. There will be no turning back of the clock after this. All future governments have been put on notice that, in this -and other democratic countries-, upheavals can come not only as a result of mutinies, riots and insurrections as happened in our brief history as a nation, but also from the exercise of the indomitable will of individuals and the irrepressible exercise of freedom of thought and expression as enshrined in our Constitution.
I believe that the establishment of a civil society oversight process in major government projects and in which significant sums of public money is being/is to be spent is an important development in our governance arrangements. From now on no government will be able to proceed with major projects unless they have engaged in a proper process of participatory consultation/dialogue with communities/interest groups. This bodes well for transparency and accountability. Wayne’s action, the intervention of civil society organisations such as the JCC, FITUN, Working Women and the TTTI and the support of concerned and enlightened citizens have certainly “moved the ball down the field” in the ongoing effort to bring about better governance.
David
FROM WAYNE KUBLALSINGH “I have no regrets. I think that the people of Trinidad and Tobago woke up not because I did it. It was not me alone. If i did it I would not have changed anything. The people of Trinidad and Tobago especially rose up and force the Government not me. The people have been given power. They must feel the cutting edge of their power and they have the power to do it all the time to force the government to do the right thing.”
http://www.trinidadexpress.com/news/Start_work_from_Point_Fortin-182620651.html