The Bahamas: The political back and forth on Urban Renewal... Whence cometh Rev. C.B. Moss' authority to speak about urban renewal, the idea and not simply the specific program?

Getting real on urban renewal

By Simon

thenassauguardian

Nassau, The Bahamas

The political back and forth on Urban Renewal is counterproductive.  The launch of the program by the PLP administration of Perry Christie was a progressive and important step in the right direction to address a host of social ills.

FNMs and others should recognize and applaud the intent and various aspects of urban renewal with consideration of expanding its reach.

Meanwhile, PLPs should stop pretending that the program has been dismantled or of its efficacy in fighting crime in the manner in which the party often boasts.

Both parties should pay more attention to Rev. C.B. Moss, founding pastor of the Mount Olive Baptist Church and executive director of Bahamas Against Crime (BAC).  Whence cometh his authority to speak about urban renewal, the idea and not simply the specific program?

His understanding of the many dimensions - roots and branches - of urban renewal and the limitations of urban renewal is more expansive than much of the current thinking by many.  While many think in terms of programs, Rev. Moss is on a mission of transformation.

He is armed and fortified for this mission with the wisdom and vantage point of paradox. Rev. Moss is tough-headed and tender-hearted, street smart and book-learned with fluency in the language and the vocabulary of both, and a man of progressive ideas and traditional values. He is also not without some showmanship and clever at grabbing media attention to press his causes.

 

JOURNEYS

To understand where Rev. Moss has come to and what is required of people of faith in The Bahamas to help heal the land, is to appreciate the journeys of other men of the cloth; men like Reinhold Niebuhr whose theology is built on paradox, irony and Christian realism, and Walter Rauschenbusch and his theology of the social gospel.

Through a life’s journey and with a deep sense of the history of The Bahamas, Rev. Moss knows the depths of the valleys and the heights of the mountaintops.

He understands the addictions of which we are all heir, of power, drugs, money, possessions, fundamentalist certainty and many more.  He also appreciates too the power of service and altruism.

They are saving graces which can liberate us from the tyranny of the mess we often make of our lives and the self-righteous judgment we inflict on others projecting our personal demons onto our favorite scapegoats be they individuals or entire groups.

So when he faces the issue of crime and the death penalty, he is clear about criminals being held responsible for their crimes as well as society being held responsible for the role it plays in fostering and sustaining a criminal culture by commission or omission.

Unlike many of his fundamentalist colleagues, Rev. Moss is deeply uncomfortable with capital punishment, recognizing its limits as a deterrent. He sees through the scapegoating, the all too easy panaceas, and the “vengeance is mine” mentality.

His theological reflections are seasoned with sociological realities unlike so many pastors stuck in a rigid Old Testament mind set, untouched or liberated by the Gospel of Jesus Christ whose sermon on the mount and parables have barely penetrated the spirits of those more comfortable with fire and brimstone.

 

THE CROSS

From his vantage point sitting outside Mount Olive Baptist Church in Bain Town, at the crossroads of Meadow and Augusta Streets, and of much that ails our society, Rev. Moss understands why on an issue like capital punishment, Christians must hold firm to both arms of the cross with the message of Christ at the center.

Those arms include care and compassion for the families of murder victims.  It demands seeking the redemption of those who murder.  It requires also compassion and care for the families of murderers.  In this, Rev. Moss is a spiritual companion of Sr. Helen Prejean, CSJ, whose ministry of forgiveness and transformation on the most capital of punishments was chronicled in the film Dead Man Walking.

He knows too that this same spirit is required for genuine renewal of our urban communities and inner city.  A call to renewal which will require not just house repairs, clean-ups and better community policing, but more fundamentally conversion of hearts and minds.

A resident of an over the hill community noted that urban renewal will not become real solely by people coming into his community and doing things for him and other residents.  He was clear that urban renewal will only become more genuine when the people of his community are truly engaged in rebuilding their lives and community.

In essence, he offers the essential mission and ambition for more effective urban renewal of which the major parties might take note.  In so doing there are many models for such a mission.  One of them is Afro Reggae.

The Afro Reggae cultural group arose from a slum, the Vigário Geral favela in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro in response to violence spawned by drugs and related criminal activity.  The group opened its first Culture Community Center in 1993 initially offering workshops in dance, percussion, garbage recycling, soccer and capoeira, which became foundations for various social projects.

The center had as its mission: “To offer a cultural and artistic education for adolescents living in slums by affording local youth more chances of strengthening their citizenship” and providing them “a viable path away from entanglement in the prevalent drug trade”.  Over the years Afro Reggae has expanded the number of its centers and programs.

“In conjunction with workshops in music, capoeira, theater, hip hop and dance”, Afro Reggae helps “preschool kids through programs aimed at socializing and literacy”.  Participant children’s parents also take part in weekly meetings where subjects such as domestic violence and personal hygiene are discussed; they also receive basic-food baskets.

 

TRANSFORMED

But it is through the power of the arts, entertainment and film and documentary production that Afro Reggae has transformed the lives of thousands and helped to sustain itself.  It has transformed minds and hearts by providing career paths, and new horizons and friendships for teens tempted to drugs, early sexual encounters, bullying, crime and anti-social behavior.

Through well-honed experiential learning and edutainment models, Afro Reggae has broken the cycle of poverty for many and restored community while giving voice to cultural expression.  The program is targeted for young people but engages their parents and others in its program of transformation.

Afro Reggae’s offerings have expanded to include circus arts, a theatrical group, community service to the elderly, choirs, a newspaper, radio programs, and an internet site dedicated to Afro-Brazilian culture.

Its health program is conducted by a theatrical group comprised of adolescents that utilize the performance arts to educate and inform their peers on a range of adolescent development issues.

Afro Reggae has plowed through the viciousness and violence and rampant criminality of a number of the favelas in Brazil.  Through its inspiring hard work and success, it has saved lives that may have been lost to communities in despair.

The problems in Brazil’s cities and favelas with millions of people are much broader and complex than those of our urban centers.

Surely, by employing the creativity and will of models such as Afro Reggae we can stem much of our social decay through a sociology hope.  This is the message of Rev. C. B. Moss whose voice on these matters we ignore at our own peril.

 

Oct 04, 2011

frontporchguardian@gmail.com

www.bahamapundit.com

Haiti needs its own national army

By Jean H Charles



President Joseph Michel Martelly of Haiti has revealed in camera to several foreign embassies accredited in the country the blueprint of the new national army that he plans to restore to the territory. The reaction has been viscerally negative abroad yet applauded with both hands in the country.

Haiti needs its own national army.

Akin to the United States that was founded through the battlefield by its own army under the commandment of its first president, General George Washington, Haiti was also founded by its own indigenous army under the command of Jean Jacques Dessalines.

Its army is an organic structure of the country; its absence is felt negatively by all its composites. In case of disaster (they are coming often now!), the population is vulnerable without immediate help unless it comes from the Dominican Republic or the United States. (Which one is preferable?)

The porous borders of the country are open invitations for drug dealers, bandits of all quarters to come in, and open business to the detriment of the social fabric of society.

The arguments against the reinstallation of the army are spurious at best, disingenuous at worst.

Haiti needs no army because 35 other countries in the world are conducting their business without one. A cursory look at those countries will reveal immediately that they are in large part principalities with no fewer than 100,000 people: the Vatican, Vanuatu, Monaco, etc., yet Haiti has 10 million people.

Haiti has no money -- it should spend its asset on other priorities. Security is foremost the backbone for the accumulation and the preservation of wealth for any nation or for that matter any person.

Haiti has a history of a repressive military force that does not respect its limits and boundaries; it has often been involved in the politics of the nation. It is true the army was a tool of repression used by the dictatorship of the Duvaliers, yet the same army was seen as a liberator when it sided with the people to force the departure of Jean Claude Duvalier on February 7, 1986.

Haiti has MINUSTHA a multi nation force invited by and extended into the entire country by the Haitian government. I may have sent the first salvo denouncing the presence of the international force as the biggest international fraud against the nation in my column. Now the chickens are coming home to roost! It is decried by the entire population for being ineffective, an elephant in your bedroom, and a carrier of epidemics such as cholera and involved in sordid practices such as multiple violations of young men and women.

It was Ernest Renan, the father of the concept of nation building, who instructed the founding fathers past and present that no country can have the pretention of becoming a nation if:

1) it does not have the full control of its borders and its territory,
2) while protecting its citizens in their locality and
3) rooting them with sane institutions and adequate infrastructure in
4) insuring that no one is left behind.

Haiti as the first free black country in the world does have the pretention of becoming one day a nation hospitable to all its citizens in full control of its borders equal to and in collegiality with its neighbors.

President Joseph Michel Martelly, elected on a wide plebiscite for change, will have to dice out the New York Times, the Miami Herald, the Times and other foreign papers that have all decried the concept of Haiti building its own army. The blueprint for the new one is a modest force of 3,500 soldiers, with a budget of only $94 million, with some of the funds going to pay back disbanded officers sent home two decade ago without compensation and to institute a universal civic duty force made for and targeted to the youths of Haiti.

This force is a nickel and dime expenditure in comparison to MINUSTHA, with a purse of $700 million per year, with dubious result in security and in stabilization.

The country will seek to inherit the full military base installation of MINUSTHA, not as a war trophy but as a compensation for harm done: 5,000 people perished in the cholera epidemic; the country will have to deal for a long time in the future with the consequences of that scourge.

President Martelly or his Minister of Foreign Affairs will have bread on the ground in dealing with each one of the foreign contingent of the MINUSTHA family to negotiate the passing to the new Haitian army the the trucks, the armaments, the cars, and all other war and civilian materiel brought into the country.

The new Haitian army shall be an army for the people and with the people. In addition to its security duties, it shall be a force for the renewal of the environment, an incubator for the transfer of technology, ferment for civic bonding and nation building and a model citizen army, with some of its men and women sent abroad through the United Nations to help other nations in difficulty.

The Haiti that claimed its independence against all foreign odds two centuries ago needs its own national army to defend its territory, its resources (the Japanese fishing fleet is plying the territorial waters of Haiti with impunity) and its people against all foreign might now!

October 3, 2011

caribbeannewsnow

Bahamas Blog International

The Virtual Magistrate: An old idea for a new Caribbean cyberspace (part 1)

By Abiola Inniss LLB, LLM, ACIArb



As the Caribbean region struggles to find its own space in the world of virtual business transactions, the issues of transparency, efficiency and dispute resolution have become major difficulties in the development of international business relations and the growth of the region as a whole.

The example of South East Asia where significant effort has been dedicated to the development of technological and other resources and where, in the aftermath of war and disaster, astounding progress has been observed, ought to provide a catalyst to the notion that the region can yet accomplish significant development if the necessary attention is given to the critical areas with the intention of resolving these problems.

The use of alternative dispute resolution techniques such as online arbitration and online mediation have been tried and proven and many models are in use around the world by individual companies and groups that provide a fee based service. It is here proposed that the Caribbean region needs a single comprehensive online ADR institution, which must be grounded in the principles of private international law, cyberspace law and the law of international trade in order to withstand the rigours of both international trade and scrutiny, and to meet the standards of judicial competence required of a regional institution. The idea of the Virtual Magistrate is revisited here.

On May 22, 1996, the National Center for Automated Information Research (NCAIR) of the USA held a conference on online dispute resolution in Washington, D.C. The conference brought together experts from the Cyber Law Institute (CLI), Georgetown University, American Arbitration Association (AAA), Villanova Center for Information Law and Practice and MCI.

These experts discussed and designed regulations for the first active online ADR system on the Internet and gave birth to the Virtual Magistrate (VM), the first online dispute resolution facility. It was jointly managed by the Villanova Center for Information Law and Policy, the Cyberspace Law Institute and the American Arbitration Association.

The idea behind this project was to develop a response to what was perceived as the immediate global need for dispute resolution mechanisms in cyberspace, in what was then a fledgling but rapidly developing and exciting sector. VM was an experimental project that was intended to measure the use of online arbitration mechanisms for online disputes and to gauge the effectiveness of such a system and whether online users would utilize it.

VM was also intended to provide Internet service providers (ISP) with informed and neutral judgments on appropriate responses when making decisions which involved allegations of copyright infringement or defamation. The Virtual Magistrate project offered arbitration to individuals who use online services, systems operators and people who claim to be harmed by wrongful messages, postings and files.

The administrators had systems operators in mind when developing this project. Administrators projected that ISPs would use VM decisions as a basis for their contracts and that they would place an arbitration clause in their contracts. VM also considered cases which were directly related to online activities or commerce dealing with compensation or financial obligations.

The Magistrates were selected by the AAA and the Cyber Law Institute Subcommittee and were paid volunteers randomly selected when a case was accepted. Magistrates needed to be familiar with relevant legal principles as well as technical issues that they could encounter.

When a party wanted to apply for service they had to fill out a complaint form located on the VM’s webpage. The complaint asked for a description of the action, objection to the activity and information about the other person. The complaint was then reviewed by the AAA who, if necessary, would request additional information about the complaint, then secure a participation agreement from both parties. After the necessary documents were secured the AAA would assign Magistrates to the case. The VM tried to resolve all disputes within 72 hours of both parties agreeing to participate.

Communication between the Magistrate and the parties would take place on a designated listserv/newsgroup (“grist”). All participants received a password for access to the grist, where the decision would be posted. In some cases, it may have been necessary for the Magistrate to communicate privately with a party; in these cases communication would take place via the Magistrate’s private e-mail.

VM also decided whether reasonable action should be taken by the systems operator; such as deleting, masking or restricting access to a message, file or posting. If necessary the Magistrate could decide whether access should be denied to certain parties.

The Virtual Magistrate project expected system operators to support and enforce all decisions just as they would in private arbitration. All decisions were made public unless otherwise deemed by the Magistrate. The first decision of the Virtual Magistrate is available here: http://www.interesting-people.org/archives/interesting-people/199605/msg00054.html.

This initial project though it contained many of the basic ideas necessary for the resolution of disputes at the time of its actualization in 1996 and was based on a concept of universality, could not fulfill a global need because of the difficulties involving any attempt to ground it to any particular legal system or systems. It therefore dissolved having created the groundwork for a number of individual mechanisms that are now used worldwide in the resolution of online disputes.

The Caribbean region is in the unique position to create a model for online dispute resolution which goes much further than the Virtual Magistrate project of 1996 and which can encompass the concept of an online international tribunal.

October 1, 2011

caribbeannewsnow

Bahamas Blog International

Jamaica: God understands Patois

By Devon Dick
Jamaica

On Sunday, Jo-Ann Richards, former missionary to West Africa and the Americas, proclaimed at the Boulevard Baptist Church, on the observance of Mission Sunday, that God understands Patois.  Apparently, God speaks even in Patois.  She read a passage of the Bible in Patois, spoke at times in Patois and sang in Patois.  This is very important to her in the quest for the evangelisation of Jamaica.

Richards related a visit to a USA centre for world missions which had Jamaica listed, not as a Christian country, not as well evangelised but as an underevangelised place.   This was a shocker to many, when popular folklore has it that Jamaica has the most churches per square mile.   How could anyone claim that Jamaica is under-evangelised?   It is because the criterion used is based on the availability of the Bible in the language of the people.   And in that context, Jamaica has been found wanting.

The mother tongue of the majority is Patois, but most versions of the Bible are in English.   Richards claimed that most Jamaicans think in Patois but it would be on the rare occasion that there would be a reading in Patois in a church.  Even at Miss Lou's funeral, the service was in English!   And she was an advocate for giving Patois respectability.

Patois is taking Great Britain by storm and the youths of England understand and use Patois.   It is known that many Japanese who do not speak English understand the Patois in the reggae music.   But so often Patois is ignored in church save and except when it is evangelistic time, or during open-air meetings.

This disregard for Patois started in colonial times. Part of the colonising strategy is to impose language, religion and values on the conquered. K.D. Smith, in a letter to the editor on August 13, requested: "It would be great if Pastor Dick followed up with an analytical article about Eurocentrism and its influence on Christianity in Jamaica."

Eurocentrism in Christianity has led to us having mainly English hymns being sung, rarely the Negro spirituals and not many songs in Patois.   It has led to English being the major means of communication, and oftentimes the images and illustrations are European or North American. In my book, The Cross and Machete, it states that the Native Baptists fought for the use of Patois in the Church and warned of the emphasis on classical education and English pronunciation.

Unknown tongue

The Native Baptists were not against the use of scholarship, except when its display became like an unknown tongue to the congregants.   They believed it was futile for a preacher to speak in a language that the congregation did not know or understand.   The Native Baptists defended the use of simple speech, which was not 'clothed in elegant language' and diction.   They insisted on 'plain preaching'.

In the 1840s, Robert Graham, 'a free man of colour', came under the tutelage of Joshua Tinson, English Baptist missionary at Hanover Street, Kingston, and Graham insisted on plain speaking.   Tinson had wished to "instruct him in pronunciation and English grammar", but Graham refused because he "believed Mr Tinson's way of pronouncing words was the way in England" and he "was sure his method was the Jamaica method, and the way best understood by the people".

He was correct, as later when Englishmen Thomas Harvey and William Brewin visited Jamaica in 1866, they concluded, "Much of the literature which is so attractive to our population at home is neither interesting nor very intelligible to the people of Jamaica ... the topics, the allusions, the local colouring, are unfamiliar."

Since God understands Patois, and the majority of people understand and speak in Patois, it is time the church services reflect that reality.

Devon Dick is an author and pastor of Boulevard Baptist Church. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.

September 29, 2011

jamaica-gleaner

Lessons from PM Bruce Golding for CARICOM leaders

By Dr Isaac Newton


I was surprised, but not disappointed, when Jamaica PM Bruce Golding announced his plans not to seek re-election. He did not give the impression of being afraid of his people’s verdict at the polls. He appeared calm and uncomplaining.

Yet, he strikes me as a leader who could face down the roars of opposition voices with openness and resolve. In reciprocity with others, and in an attempt to transcend limits, he says farewell.

Golding stands in contrast to most CARICOM leaders, who act as if they have a divine right to lead. They hold on to power even after the people have rejected them at general elections. In an age of social media where society is increasingly democratized, CARICOM leaders must know when to quit. The recent events in Libya are a case in point. Paradoxically, with all the sacrifices made to acquire power, power is mesmerizing -- when you get it, you want to keep it for life.

Perhaps Golding is a fallen giant who collapsed under weight of his own undoing. But his early retirement could be seen as a tribute to mature leadership that slows down the opposition without hurting the Jamaican people.

“The challenges of the last four years have taken their toll and it was appropriate now to make way for new leadership to continue the programmes of economic recovery and transformation while mobilizing the party for victory in the next general elections.” (Caribbean News Now, Sept 26, 2011).

Taken at face value, these sobering words dramatized the PM’s critical moment. They portrayed him as a thoughtful navigator capable of adjusting to the changing political landscape. As I reflect on the unspoken issues that forced the shift from wanting to retire two years into a second term, to giving up prime ministerial power, I surrendered to speculation.

The pursuit of power contains mixed motives. I know that dismounting from it unleashes even more turbulence. Let me tease out possible causes and practical lessons from Golding’s farewell.

Possible Causes

Option One. The PM both perfectly read the affection of his people and deeply discerned their resilient temperament for new wine in new wineskin. He decided that he cannot serve two masters -- the people and the position. He bowed to his love for the people over his desire for the position.

Option Two. He considered the facts beyond anecdotes and polls and strategically set the Jamaica Labour Party on the best winning pathway. After he examined the internal processes that play a critical role in shaping eventual outcomes, he resorted to the wisdom of an intelligent and ethical leader.

Option Three. Golding might have surveyed the bruising political reality on the ground that threatens to unravel positive gains. He decided that departure would memorialize his legacy on the one hand, while on the other hand, it may increase his chances to fight another day.

Option Four. The PM accepted the constraints that age, health, emotions, and quality of life issues have on leadership effectiveness. He also believes that democracy is refreshed when new leaders are given leeway to sprout. Consequently, he renewed his vow to put God ahead of country, country before party, and party in front of self.

Option Five. His decision combined two or more of the above options, tied to a host of unknowns, which may be left for the frankness of a vivid prime ministerial autobiography.

Practical Lessons

Lesson One. In politics, timing is everything. Most leaders have a better grasp of when to enter the scene than leave the place. If leaders hesitate to go because they feel that others are incapable of continuing the dream they worked so hard to execute, they are self-absorbed. But overstaying is a much greater risk. It kills goodwill, stifles internal talent, tarnishes accomplishments, and hinders the growth of the party. In sum, “the fullest of time” is more about establishing an exit strategy than sticking it out.

Lesson Two. Intelligent leaders focus on retirement legacy. Through mastering deliverables, they empower the next generation to reach toward their vision of the possible. Such leaders consciously support subordinates to do greater things that they could ever do in their tenure. They know that success cannot be gained by individual effort alone. Therefore, they reward responsibility and increase talent. The core of their leadership competency is to ensure that their parties thrive after their exodus.

Lesson Three. Transformational leaders create healthy party structures. This is vital for continued success. Golding’s decision to step aside will be punctuated by several possibilities. He is leaving behind a stable culture of innovation and confidence. His departure will create a power struggle vacuum that will haunt the party. The next leader will emerge from a transparent meritocracy or through a set of bureaucratic hurdles.

Lesson Four. Performance, not popularity, should be the judge of leadership tenure. When leaders are self aware, they are motivated by excellence instead of ego. Regardless of Golding’s motives and motivations, some critics may argue that he is too addicted to power to leave without a just cause. Others may claim that the reality facing him was quite surmountable. If Jamaicans are better off now than when he first arrived, and they can imagine the future in the superlative, the PM would have partially fulfilled his mandate.

I am not aware of any scientific polls that showed that Golding would have lost had he chosen to run again. He was the right fit for Jamaica during times of fiscal pressures and social stresses. Some Jamaicans feel he has done the country damage with dark scandals. Others believe he is a miracle worker, given the challenges he faced. Despite divided loyalties, a great CARICOM leader takes nation-building initiatives, and chooses a dignified exit instead of a dishonorable existence.

September 29, 2011

caribbeannewsnow

Bahamas Blog International

Bahamas: Not only does the Privy Council make available to Bahamians some of the world's most able and experienced judges, it does so at no cost

tribune242 editorial

Nassau, The Bahamas



IN MAY last year the Arbitration Act and the Arbitration (Foreign Arbitral Awards) Act was introduced in an attempt to put the Bahamas in a competitive position for recognition as an international business centre.

The hope was to establish the Bahamas as a dispute resolution centre within five years to settle -- outside of the court system -- both domestic and international matters.

And so now is not the time to even consider abolishing the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council --our highest court of appeal, sitting in London -- which is one institution that -- in addition to the proposed arbitration services -- gives an aura of stability to our local judicial system. If the Bahamas is to be considered a stable jurisdiction to attract international business, the Privy Council is one institution that grounds us in legitimacy. As one Bahamian lawyer put it: "It is one of the most respected courts in the world and brings international currency to our court system."

Together the five Law Lords have more than 100 years of legal experience to draw on. In addition -- removed from local politics, and petty prejudices -- litigants have confidence that their disputes are being treated objectively. This independence and removal from local contamination certainly inspires respect in the system, something that our own courts are lacking.

One would be surprised at what weight the existence of the Privy Council carries when an international business is being considered for relocation to the Bahamas. Businesses not only want a stable government, good communications, and efficient staff, but a sound judicial system. To business leaders this is of paramount importance.

Our local courts are made to look impotent when adversaries can so play the system that one side in the dispute cannot get a hearing to present his complaint.

In a recent international case, a lawyer pointed to what appears to be developing into a serious case of "judge shopping". It would seem that the case can't get off the ground because the judges are being toppled like nine pins. Already three judges have stepped down from the case, and a fourth has been called on recuse himself -- soon there will be no judges left to try the case. From an outsider looking in, it appears that our court system is being made to look impotently foolish.

Of course, there is still the Privy Council. When the local courts fail, the respected arbiter of justice stands solid to pick up the pieces. Bahamians would be foolish to agitate for its removal.

Not only does the Privy Council make available to Bahamians some of the world's most able and experienced judges, it does so at no cost.

In December 2006, the Judicial Committee made history when for the first time in over 170 years it left its permanent London home to hold a five-day sitting in the Bahamas. The five Law Lords were here again for a sitting in 2007 and 2009.

There are those in the legal fraternity who have suggested that the Bahamas give up the Privy Council and throw its lot in with the recently established Caribbean Court of Justice. Established in 2001 and based in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, this court is in its embryonic stage. It has not been established long enough to have a track record or attract the international recognition that the Privy Council has had for hundreds of years.

If the only reason for opting for this court is to hope that our "Caribbean brothers" will see eye-to-eye with us on capital punishment is indeed to play Russian roulette with this country's future. As explained in this column yesterday, many Caribbean lawyers are also moving away from capital punishment in favour of life imprisonment.

Of course, the weightiest consideration of all is the cost. The Bahamas would have to make a financial contribution to be able to use the services of the Caribbean court.

And the creation of a local court to replace the Privy Council cannot even be considered. It would be financially prohibitive. Already we do not have enough lawyers to staff our present legal institutions.

The Attorney General's office, which is inundated with cases going back years, is seriously understaffed. The courts cannot keep up with the work load that they already have. A country as small as the Bahamas would never be able to pay what would be required to attract our best lawyers from their private practices to sit on a high court bench. And even if we could there are not enough of them to match the calibre and resources of the Law Lords of London.
It is now time for Bahamians to appreciate what they have and start building on already well laid foundations.

September 28, 2011

tribune242 editorial

Bahamas Blog International

Bahamas: Despite escalating crime, career criminals are being released on bail by the courts - many of them contributing to the rising crime figures by retaliatory murders

Public supports Turnquest's comments on judiciary

tribune242 editorial

Nassau, The Bahamas


EVERYONE in authority has been creeping around on cats paws evading a subject that is agitating Bahamians. Despite escalating crime, career criminals are being released on bail by the courts - many of them contributing to the rising crime figures by retaliatory murders.

Finally, National Security Minister Tommy Turnquest had the guts to call a spade a spade. Speaking at a West Nassau Rotary meeting on Thursday, Mr Turnquest said, while not wanting to encroach on the independence of the judicial system, it was his opinion that some judges were far too "liberal" when it came to granting bail to career criminals and those accused of serious offences. He believed that this practice contributed "greatly" to the country's escalating crime problem. He is correct in this belief and he has the support of both the police and the public.

How can any government control a crime situation when as quickly as an accused person with a violent criminal record is taken before the courts he is given bail and returned to the streets looking for trouble -- and, in some cases, the elimination of witnesses who might testify against him.

Pushed under questioning about bail by a Tribune reporter, Mr Turnquest was provoked into uttering a statement that he later regretted. "Liberally they have administered that -- it concerns me greatly -- if we had a system as they do in New York, where judges are elected, many of them would have been chased out of town."

Although he retracted these words, Bahamians would not have done so -- they would have agreed with him.

We also agree with Chief Justice Sir Michael Barnett that these particular words were "unfortunate."

"I'm always concerned," said Sir Michael, "when people attack the judiciary because persons have to be careful in what they say, so as not to undermine the public confidence in those of us who serve in judicial office."

We also agree with this statement, but only in so far as the judiciary understands that it too has to be responsible in its judgments to protect a community in crisis. We agree with the community that many judicial officers have failed them. The courts are not responsible for the country's crime -- there are many causes going back many years --however, no one can deny that there are times when the courts have been part of the problem. It is true that the judiciary should not be criticised, but on the other hand they should be careful not to give legitimate cause for criticism. The legal fraternity should certainly understand that responsibility is not one-sided.

However, what is most unfortunate in all of this is that a serious matter has become political. This certainly does not help.

In criticising Mr Turnquest in Friday's Tribune the PLP statement said: "By its own yardstick, the FNM has compromised the independence of the judiciary by failing in the past two years to review judicial salaries as is required by the Judges Remuneration and Pensions Act."

Is the PLP perchance insinuating that until judges' salaries are raised they are not going to perform satisfactorily? If so, this statement is the highest insult that can be made to the Bench.

What is interesting is that when the PLP was the government, its attorney general and minister of legal affairs was making the same complaint as Mr Turnquest.

This is what Minister of Legal Affairs Allyson Maynard Gibson in her fight for "swift justice" had to say on May 19, 2006:

"Today I reiterate that the Swift Justice initiative, the assurance that offenders and would be offenders will be swiftly caught, swiftly tried and swiftly punished, will greatly contribute to breaking the back of crime and the fear of crime.

"Law-abiding people in The Bahamas have every right to expect that they will be safe in their homes and as they go from place to place on our streets."

And then she said: "The Commissioner of Police has already indicated his concern about the disturbing trend of serious offences being committed while people are out on bail.

"In conversations with Magistrates, those before whom most Bail applications are made, they said they are often shocked to see how many people whose request for bail was denied by them (Magistrates) are back before them requesting bail for another offence committed while out on bail. These people had gone to the Supreme Court and been granted bail."

Here we have lower courts pointing the finger of blame at a higher court. We don't recall hearing at that time that Mrs Gibson was undermining the court system by her revelations. Why now that the tables of government have been turned?

Mrs Gibson then gave examples of persons on bail who had gone on to commit other crimes while awaiting their day in court. She also shared statistics on crimes using firearms.

As a result she proposed an amendment to the Criminal Law Miscellaneous (Amendment) Bill, 2006, to take care of the magistrates' complaints against Supreme Court judges. She proposed that there be a "new section 8A to provide for a right of appeal to the Court of Appeal by the prosecution or a person (accused or convicted), as the case may be where bail has been granted or refused to that person by the Supreme Court or where an application by the prosecution to revoke bail has been denied.

"This right of appeal by the prosecution," she said, "is particularly important as statistics have shown that persons, while on bail take not only the opportunity to abscond but more importantly to commit further crimes. The police have indicated that persons out on bail sometimes interfere with witnesses either by themselves or through their acquaintances."

This was the opinion of the PLP when it was the government. This is also the position of the Ingraham government. The difference is that Mr Turnquest had the temerity to express the problem in blunt terms on Thursday.

Prime Minister Ingraham will now address the issue in a state broadcast on Monday, October 3.

September 26, 2011

tribune242 editorial

Bahamas Blog International