On the eve of a general election, sleeping trade unions in The Bahamas awaken... and suddenly take notice of ‘the plight of their membership

More union action as general election looms

By Taneka Thompson
Guardian Senior Reporter
taneka@nasguard.com

Nassau, The Bahamas

It never fails. On the eve of an election, sleeping trade unions in the country awaken and suddenly take notice of ‘the plight of their membership’. It is almost as perennial as the grass. They carry on about agreements that have been languishing at the negotiation table for years, company bosses who ignore them and a government that moves too slow. They summon the media to announce, time after time, that they are about to resort to industrial action to shut the country or a business down.

The truth is that these worn tactics – in the face of the global economic downturn and changing dynamics in the demand for labor worldwide – are becoming increasingly dangerous for the union’s members. Unionists have to, more than ever, work with employers, certainly to protect the ‘rights of the working man’ but also to ensure that this same man has work to go to the next day. No one can force a business to keep its doors open and no one would blame someone for closing up shop if that shop was not profitable. And as the events of the past few years have shown us, there is no such thing as a company too big to close its doors.

The most talked about issue over the social networks over the past few days was the nine-day closure of KFC. While many disgruntled customers joked about the lengths they would go to get their hands on a ‘two piece spicy meal’, the human element of the situation was glossed over. During the closure KFC executives said they would not pay staff, who they accused of engaging in ‘illegal’ industrial action on February 20.

For the 300 employees of KFC who sat in limbo, reporting to work every day under the union’s orders only to the find doors locked, there was more at stake than getting a fix of the Colonel’s 11 herbs and spices. They were forced to loiter outside the company’s nine Nassau locations, chatting amongst themselves, some with children on their laps or underfoot. Many of KFC’s employees are single mothers with, as a few of them told me, two and three ‘deadbeat baby daddies’. Unsure of when the next paycheck was coming in, some workers applied for the dole, desperate for emergency food stamps to feed their families.

Luckily for them, the standoff between the union and their employer was brief. After a series of negotiations mediated by Labor Minister Dion Foulkes, both sides came to an agreement over the terms of a new contract and stores opened on February 29. But the tentative contract terms contain reduced benefits for new employees and some concessions, albeit with expiration dates, for current employees.  And those employees are today without a week’s pay.

The unions overextended their hand and underestimated the lengths their opponent would go to prove his point. The franchise owner of KFC Nassau, George Myers, doesn’t need the doors of the chicken restaurant to be open to put food on his table – the union’s members do.

George Smith, former Cabinet minister and a good friend of Myers told The Nassau Guardian that Myers was ‘pushed too far’.

“We (the country) are having economic problems. They (the union) should have said, ‘Look, when the economy turns around can we revisit these things and set some benchmarks for when the economy improves?’ They know that their union isn’t about to supplement those people but [executives at KFC] know they could afford to hold out for a long period of time. I assure you, George Myers used the time to give his top people holidays and clean the place up a bit,” Smith said.

The only resort chain in The Bahamas to have two proprieties on two different islands, Sandals, faced recent union drama of its own. There was no actual industrial action taken by current employees of the Sandals Royal Bahamian, the resort’s property on New Providence. During the whole ordeal, I wondered what would have happened if in fact there was a walkout of workers at the property. Chairman of Sandals Resorts International Gordon “Butch” Stewart just invested $20 million in the refurbishment of a block of rooms at Sandals Royal Bahamian and millions more expanding his current holdings at Emerald Bay in Exuma.

His general manager in Exuma, Jeremy Mutton, recently spoke about the cost of running a resort on the out island. His son and CEO, Adam Stewart, has said that Emerald Bay will not be profitable until at least 2014. Royal Bahamian General Manager Patrick Drake is on record referencing the high cost of utilities in Nassau.

Gordon Stewart is essentially the sole proprietor of the multi-billion-dollar company. He has no shareholders, no board of directors to consult if either property does not make money. It is not out of the realm of possibility that he could one day pick up his marbles and leave. No one does business in The Bahamas – whether they are local or a foreign investor – because they think Bahamians are cute. They do so to make money. Let’s not fool ourselves; unions are a business as well too. They make money from the salaries paid to their members. Pushing an employer so far that he would rather close the doors of his business is like a parasite killing its host.

Labor unions have always had to negotiate in the context of the economic realities in which businesses and the employees who work in these establishments exist. As the world attempts to rebound from the worst global recession since the Great Depression, they have been focused on keeping the doors of businesses open and securing their members’ jobs. Nowhere is this truer than in the United States.

The Washington Times reported that according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, major work stoppages — situations when 1,000 workers or more go on strike or are locked out — dropped 95 percent in 2009 compared with the previous year. This is the lowest level since the U.S. government began keeping a tally in the 1940s, the Washington Times said.

Even the mighty automobile unions of Detroit, in order to save the jobs of their members who are employees of General Motors and Chrysler, agreed to no-strike clauses which expire in 2015 as conditions of the government bailout.

However, here at home it seems the threats, and sometimes follow through, of work stoppages have not gone dormant because of the recession. Union leaders continue to threaten to withdraw labor and shut down essential services.

It’s not much of a stretch to say that the trade union movement has been flexing its muscles recently because of the looming general election. Union leaders, and their members, know that politicians will say and do anything to quell any discord that could derail their political ambitions.

“Unions tend to try to get what is duly, rightfully theirs at this time in the political season because over the past years unions have not been getting their fair share before elections. So if it takes a union this period of time to save their problems until now, then there you have it,” said Dwayne Woods, president of the Bahamas Utility Service and Allied Workers Union (BUSAWU), which represents workers at the Water and Sewerage Corporation.

“It doesn’t mean that they are not entitled, and it doesn’t mean that they are being political. Whatever is going on here is non-partisan and non-political. I don’t play games; [these are] the wishes of the membership,” Woods added.

A few dozen of his members protested and withdrew their labor for at least two days last week. They were pressuring government to immediately address a list of labor concerns, including the regularization of several contracted workers, some of whom had been working with WSC for 11 years, and who did not enjoy the same benefits as permanent workers. The union is also pushing for the corporation to revisit its ‘unfair’ promotion policies; pay separation packages to workers made redundant after government ended its practice of water barging from Andros, and rehire two employees who were recently let go from the corporation or pay them severance packages.

Over the last few months, unions representing Customs and Immigration officers, air traffic controllers and the public service have also been agitating against government to address their issues – or face industrial action.

Labor Minister Dion Foulkes said while some unions do have genuine concerns, it is no coincidence that they have ramped up their efforts to conclude trade disputes as the next election draws nearer.

“It does seem that some of the unions are using the election season as leverage in their negotiations. Some of the issues that have come forward have been very legitimate issues by the various unions. Some of the matters have been in negotiation for quite some time and they are just coincidentally coming to head at the same time when the next elections are due.

“It seems to be there may be some political motivation behind the actions by some unions, but the public will have to draw their own conclusions from the facts presented,” Foulkes said.

Mar 05, 2012

thenassauguardian

Bahamas Blog International

Greece in the Mediterranean, like Haiti in the Caribbean, needs to start creating a new generation of citizens who accept the concept that duty is the reverse side of privilege... ...The nation will move forward when each citizen does his part, in paying taxes, in volunteering for the common good, and forsaking the vain desire of spending what you do not have...

Haiti, the Greece of the Caribbean


By Jean H Charles


St Lucia dubbed herself the Helen of the Caribbean. Helen was that goddess of Greek mythology, daughter of the god Zeus and the goddess Leda. She was so beautiful that she had hundreds of suitors, including king and princes. Wedded to Menelaus, prince Paris of Sparta abducted Helena, causing the mythical Trojan War.

Because of the beauty of the land and the charm of its people, St Lucia was abducted by France and England successively some forty times, justifying the legendary surname of Helen.

Haiti’s connection with Greece has more to do with modern Greece than with Ancient Greece. I was inspired by two recent columns in the New York Times to draw the comparison between Haiti and the debacle happening these days in Greece.

Russell Shorto in a New York Times Magazine essay: The way the Greesk live now laid down the underpinnings of the economic setback that caused social disruption in Greek society.

It all started with the legacy of the culture adopted during the Ottoman Empire. Greece, abducted by the Arabs, tried to defend herself the way she knew best. To fight the distant ruling of the Caliphate against paying taxes, the Greeks adopted the concept of fakelaki (little envelopes) for bribery or looking the other way.

The culture of faking the sentiment of patriotism according to Aris Hadjigeorgiou (a Greek writer) is now ingrained in insidious ways where upper echelons of Greek media intertwined with the political structure prevented reporting of financial mismanagement that may cloud any hope for resolving the crisis.

In business as in politics, mismanagement leads to debacle. In such a situation, still citing Aris, the people who can, angle for escape routes abroad and the peasants flee to the cities.

National political leadership is at a low web. The Greeks keep talking about Sarkozy, Merkel and Obama as the guiding lights to get them out of their mess. Yet Greece was the mother of democracy where, before Christ the concept of collegiality, hospitality and patriotic instinct was the norm in the res-republica.

Patriotism or the lack thereof is not only the province of the Greek boundaries. An article in the New York Times 1 March edition described how some Russian immigrants who settled themselves in the Brighton Beach section of Brooklyn have organized themselves to bilk successively the health system, the housing industry and the insurance business. (Who says the communist system produce good citizens?)

According to a senior law officer prosecuting the case, “The Russian mind set is: if you are not scamming the government, you are not doing what you are supposed to be doing, you are looked upon as a patsy.” The Soviet system helped to groom a generation of post Soviet criminals in the United States with a culture that breeds disdain for the rules and a willingness to cheat to get around them.

Transporting ourselves into the Caribbean, we find the same scenario in Haiti, the motherland of nation-building.

There is a huge discrepancy between the concept of liberty, equality and fraternity enshrined in the Haitian flag and the reality on the ground.

Jean Pierre Boyer, the third president of Haiti, introduced a rural code in article 19 and 20th that prevented any store to operate wholesale or retail in any of the rural counties of the country, as such blocking national commerce in the hinterland.

While it is not the law of the land today, it is still the practice. The majority of the people who live in the rural areas are regarded as marginal citizens who can be exploited on a whim. Boyer, who agreed to pay to France the indemnity debt of 15 million francs, laid upon the peasants and the Dominican territory, then part of Haiti, the tax earmarked to pay the ransom. The Dominicans rebelled, leading to their independence on February 27 1844.

The Haitian peasants are still under the yoke of that political, economic and social discrimination, which explains why Haiti is so poor.

The rest of the population, akin to the Greeks, develops a fake patriotism culture that makes the country an easy prey for foreign meddling. Successively, the French, the Germans and the Americans, through usury loans to satisfy the debt, contributed to exacerbating the contradictions that nourish unpatriotic sentiments in Haiti. The Haitian governments were almost without exception predatory governments that used state resources to either remain in power or to terrorize their own population.

The promotion of common good, the very essence of government, is replaced by the naked search for individual interest and advantages. This practice vitiates even the altruistic motivation. The non-profit organizations, national and international, established in the country found it easy to engage in the fake service mode, compounding the misery of the population. The United Nations, with its gargantuan scheme, the MINUSTHA, is one of the biggest culprits. Haiti, under the guise of prime war assignment, is one of the most coveted foreign posts.

The perversion of the term of democracy is pervasive. From the former president Rene Preval, who prescribed the doctrine of each for thyself to the present legislature that puts roadblock at each step of the executive because entrenched interests have not been satisfied, we have a country that keeps failing to become a nation.

Greece in the Mediterranean, like Haiti in the Caribbean, needs to start creating a new generation of citizens who accept the concept that duty is the reverse side of privilege. The nation will move forward when each citizen does his part, in paying taxes, in volunteering for the common good, and forsaking the vain desire of spending what you do not have. It was Abraham Lincoln who promoted the notion that a nation is the aggregate sum of moral citizens working for the common good, providing individual satisfaction for each one.

To conclude, I would like to share this poem posted on the web by the prolific Haitian poet-attorney, Serge H Moise:

These loudmouths
They always know what to do
And once at the helm of affairs
One never sees them hone
What they say they wanted to redo
They grow like leopards
Yet these are just the loudmouths
And once the situation is confused
They meet every empty handed
They can be heard on FM signal
Play to flaunt
They are also at Ramasse
Where the same hackneyed
Verbiage is
As for those in the Diaspora
They do not care that they will
Praising exuberantly all skills
Unable to imitate their bosses
Militating in action and advance their holes
They are intoxicated with their megalomania
They are available as saviors
Always turn out cheaters
And when the situation is confused
They meet every empty handed
With their air of buffoons
Attitudes of cowards
Those who treat us to con
Seem to be right
Despite these claims
Devoid of convictions
The small republic back
Curling up on the ridiculous

March 6, 2012

caribbeannewsnow

Bahamas Blog International

CARICOM: a failure of effective leadership

By Byron Blake, jamaica-gleaner GUEST COLUMNIST



Leadership - political, institutional and business - has failed the Caribbean integration process and people over the last decade in the thrust to move from common market to single market and economy and to cope in an unsympathetic global environment.

This became crystal clear to me in 2009. Then, in the throes of the global economic and financial crisis, CARICOM political leaders refused to adopt and advance an innovative and internally driven strategy based on collaboration, Caribbean creativity and innate strengths. They consciously and explicitly decided to go visionless and without a strategy to the international financial institutions to provide them with the solution to the crisis as it was manifesting itself in the region.

That, together with their retreat from the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME), which should have been the strategic bulwark of the region in the global crisis, and increasing public cynical statements by leaders, caused me to fear for the Caribbean. I, however, decided to avoid writing, or commenting, as far as possible, lest I added fodder for the cynicism of the general population.

Three recent pieces of writing have caused me to reconsider. These are:

(i) Bits and pieces from Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves' letter to CARICOM's secretary general, Ambassador Irwin La Rocque,

(ii) Two articles by veteran Caribbean journalist and long-time integration observer Ricky Singh, and

(iii) The editorial in the Observer of February 29, titled 'CARICOM must be enlarged to survive'.

I fear that these are again laying tracks for debate, apportioning of blame, avoidance of responsibility and action and the further disillusionment of the population, especially the young ones. I have, therefore, decided to break my self-imposed silence to offer a few suggestions for action.

Accountability and agriculture

First, political leaders, at their next opportunity, must make this short declaration, without preamble: "We are all culpable, we are all responsible for the state of the Caribbean economy. We commit to work together to raise the CARICOM economic boat on which we are all adrift."

Second, political and business leaders must recognise that even with the various global crises, there are significant economic opportunities for Brand Caribbean. Important here, are:

CARICOM has a large and unsustainable food-import bill. In addition to this large and growing regional market, there is an insatiable international market for food - especially foods produced under environmentally healthy conditions such as those which still exist in the Caribbean.

Further, unlike the situation which prevailed in the 1980s, 1990s and the first half of the 2000s, when areas such as the Caribbean were discouraged and punished for indulging in food production, the international community is now encouraging and facilitating investment in agricultural production for food and other global benefits such as mitigation of environmental degradation and climate change; the provision of raw material for alternative energy; pharmaceutical and nutraceutical production; and for the achievement of several of the Millennium Development Goals.

Investment in agriculture is a private-sector, not budget-driven, activity. Leaders should agree unequivocally to operationalise the provisions of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas. This would give investors in agriculture, agro-industry and allied services rights to the resources and to invest as envisaged by the treaty. Also, agree to immediately reconstitute the group which has been looking at agriculture for the past 10 years or so to include a much larger private-sector component.

Solving energy woes

Energy is critical to international competitiveness. International competitiveness is one of the foundation objectives that differentiates the CSME from the 1973 Common Market. In a region comprising small, closely located economies, international competitiveness can only be achieved and sustained by combining resources.

Leaders must accept that it is against the letter, intent and spirit of the Revised Treaty to use the existence of a natural resource in a particular jurisdiction to create competitive advantage over other members of the CSME.

A priority of the region should be to put in place an appropriately structured technical group to advise on how best to utilise resources such as the sun, sea and airspaces, fisheries, forests, bauxite, oil and natural gas to drive sustainable and balanced development. Balanced development is a fundamental concept in both the 1973 and 2001 versions of the treaty.

Export Services

The CARICOM Secretariat has had in its possession, since January 2011, the final report of a study it commissioned on 'New Export Services'. The study, among other things, recommended five broad areas in which the region can collaborate for immediate, spread and sustained benefits. These benefits would include not just increased income and employment but the stimulation of the region's creativity and entrepreneurial talents, and the linking of the culture, music, athletic and sporting prowess of the young persons, especially in urban areas.

These recommendations require relatively small financial outlays. In any event, the region is not short of financial resources for export promotion. In addition to the resources it expends annually in areas like tourism promotion, it has access to more than €28.1 million from the European Union through CARIBBEAN EXPORT and US$40 million from the Inter-American Development Bank, the Canadian International Development Agency, and the Department For International Development under the Compete Caribbean Programme. These are two relatively new facilities. The resources should be largely untapped so that governments should agree to direct their use to areas of likely greatest impact.

One of the priority recommendations relates to London 2012. The basis of the recommendation is the serendipitous coincidence of XXX Olympiad, the Special Olympics and the associated Cultural Olympiad; the burst of the Caribbean (through Jamaica) on to the Olympic stage in London in 1948, followed by Helsinki, 60 years ago, and the expected excellence of the Caribbean in sprint events in London, based on performances in Beijing and Berlin.

Add to this the 50th anniversary of independence from Britain, of Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago, and the 40th anniversary of CARIFESTA, together with the large Caribbean diaspora population in the United Kingdom, it creates a one-time opportunity to project all aspects of Caribbean life. The spin-off benefits for creativity, culture, music, cuisine, investment opportunities, export potential, tourist attractions, and Caribbean people in general, would be tremendous.

This would not only create a lasting legacy in the UK but provide the basis for a Caribbean programme at the 2014 football World Cup and 2016 Olympics, both in Brazil.

Five months out from the Olympics, which opens on July 27, there is no Caribbean or even national programme to take advantage of the unique opportunity. It is late. But in the words of the chair of the Cultural Olympiad, "It is never late for a good idea." A strong Caribbean participation was considered by her to be "a good idea".

CARICOM leaders must now resolve to work together and launch a specially selected task force to pull together a rescue programme. This should be delivered within one month. Pieces of work have been done and there are individuals who have worked with key persons in the UK side who were, up to late 2011, anxious to work with the Caribbean. The task force would have responsibility to coordinate the implementation.

Third, political leaders must complete the implementation of some high-profile outstanding decisions. In this regard, the full implementation of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ).

CCJ

The Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) is a financially costless act through which CARICOM leaders A drilling rig in the twin-island republic of Trinidad and Tobago as depicted on gstt.org. Byron Blake says that CARICOM member states should coordinate the use of natural resources to benefit the region.

can demonstrate to the people of the region their seriousness about Caribbean integration.

In the 50th anniversary of the independence movement in the English-speaking Caribbean, leaders should resolve to make the CCJ their final court of Appeal. Jamaica, with the largest caseload, and Trinidad and Tobago, the seat of the court, should complete the process before the end of the anniversary year.

Fourth, leaders must seek quick resolution or defusing of differences before they become disputes.

The Reverend Wes Hall will confirm that in 1971 when the prime minister of Guyana, Forbes Burnham, decided to ban Gary Sobers from playing cricket in Guyana, the then prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago presented him with airline tickets and a letter of apology, over Sobers' signature, to take to Barbados to Gary to sign and then to Guyana to Prime Minister Burnham. Burnham accepted Sobers' apology; matter resolved.

Few but those directly involved knew about Eric Williams' hand in the resolution.

Fast-forward to today. A misunderstanding between Chris Gayle and the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has been left for a year to balloon into a dispute between Jamaica, the Jamaican prime minister and the WICB, with no intervention at leadership level - political business or civil. Leaders must put in place mechanisms to resolve this and be vigilant in the future.

Fifth, political leadership must resolve to appoint institutional leaders based on proven competence and experience; provide them with clear mandates and resources; and hold them responsible. In a time of crisis, a new secretary general has been in office for six months without issuing a statement of vision or direction. This will not instil confidence in a region and an institution under siege.

Byron Blake is a former assistant secretary general of the CARICOM Secretariat. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.

March 4, 2012

jamaica-gleaner

Bahamas Blog International

Making the case for Caricom 'priorities'

By Rickey Singh:



AGAINST the backdrop of the recently reported "crisis" assessment of the Caribbean Community outlined in a document currently engaging attention by our Heads of Government, Secretary-General Irwin LaRocque now speaks of the region's economic integration movement in terms of being at the "crossroads" and of "a critical juncture" in its 38-year history.

Clichés? Not really. In his own manner of "telling it like it is", LaRocque, who has been secretary-general for just about six months — though he previously served as assistant secretary-general for trade and economic integration since 2005 — has chosen to share an optimistic vision for Caricom's future.

It's a vision that calls for an end to the setting of unrealistic goals and perceived slothfulness in implementation processes of decisions unanimously adopted; and with arrangements and mechanisms in place to effectively "meet the legitimate expectations of the people of our Community..."

The 56-year-old Dominica-born economist, who last year succeeded the retired Edwin Carrington from Trinidad and Tobago who served for 18 years at the helm of the Georgetown-based Caricom Secretariat, chose the event of a business luncheon, organised by the Guyana Manufacturing Association (GMA) as his platform last Wednesday to do more than correct what he views as some wrong perceptions of the Community.

Simultaneously he sneered at policy-making decisions that contribute to some of the cynicism and frustrations across the Community by the setting of unrealistic goals — most significant being target dates for attainment of a single market and the envisaged seamless regional economy.

LaRocque also challenged the Guyanese business leaders and, by extension, the regional private sector in general, to become more involved in partnership with governments, the Secretariat and related agencies and institutions to make a reality of the primary objectives of Caricom as outlined in the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas.

Facing the challenges

It is not without significance that LaRocque's address to the Guyanese business representatives came a week ahead of the two-day Inter-Sessional Meeting of Caricom leaders that begins this Thursday in Suriname with the future administrative architecture of the Community Secretariat as a major work agenda issue in facing up to the challenges confronting the region's integration movement.

Let me share with readers some highlights of his address:

It must be recognised that "meeting the legitimate expectations of the people of our Community has become more challenging at a time when the effects of the global economic crisis and financial crises, first felt in 2008, are still reverberating...

"I am not all suggesting that the malaise in which we find ourselves is only and totally due to the global crises; but it certainly has exacerbated it. Also, it certainly has brought to the fore the need, once again, to take stock of what we are doing and how we are doing it; how effective we are, and are we delivering..."

Conceding that the Community "is not without a vehicle" for realising the legitimate expectations of the region's people, LaRocque contended that the CSME still remains as relevant today as when the idea was first conceived in Grand Anse (Grenada) in 1989.

"It still represents tremendous potential to achieve the goals of growth and employment and to provide business opportunities... But the CSME continues to be a work in progress which has been characterised by some as being slothful."

'No business as usual'

In recalling what he said last August in his inaugural address as secretary-general, LaRocque emphasised that "it could not be business as usual... this dictum applies not only to the Caricom Secretariat but to the entire Caribbean Community, in other words, to all stakeholders.

"This view has (now) been supported by the report of the team of independent consultants... There is just so much that can be done, given the realities (an allusion also to human and financial resources), and the time has come for us to cut our suit to fit the cloth with which we have been endowed...

"The Community needs to prioritise", he stressed, recalling that at their special retreat in Guyana last year the Heads of Government had agreed to do so with an approved list of priorities..."

LaRocque, who did not consider it prudent to give some idea of the "list of priorities", and may even be accused unfairly of attempting to rationalise perceived shortcomings of the Secretariat and Community's political directorate ahead of this week's meeting of Heads of Government, was emphatic in declaring that the current mode of trying to get everything done at the same time is inefficient and contributes to gridlock, the so-called implementation deficit... The role of the Secretariat in all this will be determined in large measure by the response of the Heads of Government to the report of the independent consultants...

"However," he stressed, "the view that all things Caricom are within the purview of the Caricom Secretariat is erroneous. There cannot be responsibility without authority."

A harsh reality

"A critical element in going forward, therefore," LaRocque contends, must be a clear understanding that the Secretariat can no longer be all things to all persons. If we are to be more effective, we must be focused and adequately resourced to play any role that is envisaged by our Heads of Government. Or, to repeat, we must prioritise in keeping with the resources available.

Well, so far as his argument that "there cannot be responsibility without authortity" is concerned, LaRocque, the seventh confirmed secretary-general of Caricom, would know that the West Indian Commission had offered specific recommendations to overcome such a problem in their 1992 report, and principally the proposal to have a management mechanism with "executive authority".

That harsh reality was confronted some 20 years ago. Since then, there have been numerous reports, as mandated by the Community's leaders, with specific proposals to enable the region's integration movement to achieve its defined goals. No luck for implementation.

Last year, as LaRocque has recalled, the leaders came up with a list of "priorities" for action, in the context of prevailing resources. Instead, having effectively placed the flagship CSME project "on pause", it is doubtful that they will come forward at this week's meeting in Suriname with a much-needed positive response on "priorities" to arrest the spreading "crisis" situation in which the Caricom Secretariat seems to be functioning.

March 04, 2012

jamaicaobserver

Bahamas Blog International

Over 60% of the world cruise ship fleet is in the Caribbean in the winter high season... ...bigger and bigger ships today... which apparently have less than adequate emergency back-up systems to allow safe operation of the vessel in the event of a major fire or severe grounding or collision

Is the Caribbean prepared for a cruise ship environmental disaster?


By Robert Maclellan



In the last six weeks, two cruise ships from the same company, Costa Cruises, have experienced very serious incidents that could have resulted in potentially disastrous damage to the marine environment in tourism sensitive areas of the world.

Both ships drifted helplessly, without power or steering capability, the Costa Concordia capsizing on rocks near the Italian tourist island of Giglio and the Costa Allegra coming within 20 miles of the pristine Alphonse group of coral atolls in the Seychelles.

In the Caribbean -- which is THE most tourism dependent region in the world – Costa Cruises have ships calling in ports in Jamaica, the Turks and Caicos Islands, St Maarten, The Bahamas, Antigua, the British Virgin Islands, Belize and the Cayman Islands. Costa is part of Carnival Group and their ships, including Princess, P&O, Holland America, Cunard, Seabourne and Aida cruise lines, call at almost every major island in the region and the group’s financial resources dwarf the GDP of most Caribbean economies.

In total, over 60% of the world cruise ship fleet is in the Caribbean in the winter high season – bigger and bigger ships today, which apparently have less than adequate emergency back-up systems to allow safe operation of the vessel in the event of a major fire or severe grounding or collision.

The Italian Coast Guard employed multiple vessels and helicopters in rescue attempts at the scene of the Costa Concordia and a large French fishing vessel first took the Costa Allegra under tow. A Dutch salvage company was soon alongside, pumping out the Costa Concordia’s fuel tanks to reduce the pollution potential, although the ship apparently may still break up on the rocks and scatter all kinds of debris. What resources exist in most Caribbean islands to limit the effect of a similar or greater cruise ship disaster?

Off the Italian coast the ship hit rocks, while in the Seychelles and in the Caribbean the resulting damage would likely be caused to reefs. The damage to Caribbean reefs and the marine environment -- simply from cruise ship anchors and disposal of garbage overboard -- has been well documented in the past. However, a serious grounding or collision could result in a devastating long term environmental disaster. Most cruise ships move to other regions of the world at the end of the winter season and detailed Caribbean island cruise itineraries can be readily changed. Therefore, in the event of a disaster, it is a single or small group of island governments that will bear the full impact.

How much assistance and cooperation have Caribbean governments received from cruise lines to finance and resource effective disaster planning to mitigate these risks? In recent years the spend on island per cruise ship passenger appears to have declined significantly, while Caribbean government port taxes have not even kept up with inflation in the region. Today’s cruise ship business model is a highly aggressive one, in terms of both its competitive position with Caribbean hotels in high season, and its resultant negative impact on inward investment for new resorts. Is it not time that the fiscal contribution of cruise lines to the Caribbean more fairly reflected their impact on the local environment and, ultimately, their potential for environmental disaster in the region?

Robert Maclellan is CEO of MacLellan & Associates, the largest hospitality, tourism and leisure consultancy based in the Caribbean. He has worked in the hotel industry across the Caribbean and was a cruise ship hotel officer and vice president hotel services of a cruise line earlier in his career.

March 3, 2012

caribbeannewsnow

Bahamas Blog International

Legal gambling versus illegal gambling in The Bahamas

The Bahamian gambling saga

By Arinthia S. Komolafe

The election season is well in full force in The Bahamas.  All of the major political parties have cranked up their machinery and politicians are making their presence felt on the talk show circuit.  No one would argue that crime and the economy are two of the biggest concerns on the electorate’s mind as we move toward the 2012 general election.  However, politicians should not make the mistake of campaigning on these issues alone.  The Bahamian electorate want answers and proposed policies on a multitude of issues including immigration, exploration of natural resources for economic benefit and future plans to address our failing education system.  One of the issues that the next government of The Bahamas must confront is the more than half a century topic of gambling by Bahamians in The Bahamas.

Gambling no doubt is one of the most controversial topics of discussion in The Bahamas.  There are many proponents and critics.  It remains uncertain, however, what percentage of the Bahamian population is for or against legalizing gambling by Bahamians.  The reality is that we as a nation continue to go round and round in circles on this matter, while thousands of Bahamians patronize the multitude of what are commonly referred to as ‘number houses’ in The Bahamas.

The arguments

An argument against the legalization is that it will bring with it a myriad of social issues that are opposed to Christian values and will cause a decadence in Bahamian society.  While it is accepted among some that gambling may not be an outright sin in the Bible, gambling done in excess is sinful.

Others opposed to the legalization of gambling have put forth an economic argument claiming that gambling is an open form of regressive taxation that will affect those of the lower income brackets more than those of the middle and upper class.  As a result, those of the lower income class will fail to take care of their financial obligations at home such as paying necessary bills and caring for their families.  A perception exists that individuals below the poverty line gamble more than persons who are not poor.  However, studies in America suggest that the reverse is true as it was found that more persons of the middle class played the lottery as opposed to those of the lower income class.

Proponents of legalizing gambling assert that government cannot legislate morality.  Further, proponents claim that there are many potential benefits including an increase in government revenue which can contribute toward charitable purposes, infrastructure and most notably education.  Advocates of the legalization of gambling also argue that it is another legitimate source of income for a government that has limited ability to increase its revenue intake.  Although this argument has been successful in persuading a lot of Americans to vote in favor of a national lottery, it was found that the eventual revenue was not utilized in the manner that many had hoped for.  For instance, the additional revenue from the lottery did in fact go towards education; however, many states reduced or offset the allocation to the educational budget against revenue received from the lottery.  Hence, the education budget was not increased overall but education was merely funded by another source of revenue.  To remedy this effect, a few states in America have passed legislation to ensure that a certain percentage of revenue received from the lottery is allocated for the specific purpose of education.  This ensures that the funds are used for the purpose intended on the one hand, and on the other hand it ensures that the states do not decrease their allocation to education.

The greatest issue with gambling in The Bahamas is the fact that there is much hypocrisy surrounding the point.  Several decades ago, the government of the day approved policy for hoteliers and casino operators to provide gambling services, however casino gambling and ‘playing numbers’ was outlawed for Bahamians.  It is interesting to note that civic organizations, churches and schools still have the ability to distribute raffle tickets as a major fundraiser.  However, provisions have been made for such activities under the Gaming and Lotteries Act.  Over the years, law enforcers have conducted random raids of ‘number house’ establishments in an attempt to discourage the practice of gambling by Bahamians otherwise called ‘buying and selling numbers’.  However, the truth of the matter is that neither the government nor the law enforcers have done an adequate job ‘shutting down’ the number houses.

There is widespread hypocrisy in that the government allows foreign investors to enter the country and provide amenities for casino gambling for their guests, but Bahamians though guests of these hotels quite often are unable to utilize these gambling facilities.  It is unclear whether the operators of ‘number houses’ want gambling by Bahamians legalized.  Any potential legalization will certainly decrease their profits, reduce market share and relinquish their current control to a government authority.  Liberalization of the gambling market will foster competition and encourage the entrance of more competitors.  Hoteliers and casino operators may not prefer any gambling policy that allows Bahamians to gamble not because of a threat to their market share, but because it will provide Bahamians with the licence to enter these establishments and patronize all the amenities just as the foreign tourists and non-residents do.  Arguably, hoteliers and casino operators may not find such a policy good for their businesses.

It appears that there are arguably many special interests who prefer to keep the status quo.  However, maintenance of the current state of affairs will increase hypocrisy and anarchy among Bahamians.  It is advisable for the next government of The Bahamas to ascertain the gambling appetite of the Bahamian population and propose a referendum on the matter.  We must take a “what is good for the goose is good for the gander approach”.

Legal gambling in The Bahamas should benefit both Bahamians and non-residents alike.  The same is true for illegal gambling; neither Bahamians nor non-residents should benefit.  If Bahamians agree to legalize gambling, it follows that the government must take the necessary steps to comply with the wishes of the people.  However, if the overwhelming response is to keep gambling by Bahamians illegal, the government and relevant government agencies must enforce the law and uphold the provisions of the Gaming and Lotteries Act.  This is the essence of democracy – a government of the people, for the people and by the people.

 

Arinthia S. Komolafe is an attorney-at-law.  Comments can be directed at: arinthia.komolafe@komolafelaw.com

Mar 01, 2012

thenassauguardian

Bahamas Blog International

Living and surviving in today's Caribbean

By Julie Charles



Gone are the lazy days of summer where you were experiencing the pleasures of a Caribbean childhood. Eating mangoes till you had a serious bellyache and Grandma decided you needed a proper clean out; riding on the village donkey until the animal had enough of you and decided to kick you off; being sent up the road to catch water to be used for cooking and other sanitary purposes; playing childhood games such as Mississippi, ladder, hide and seek, or just plain out hunting lizards with your catapult just for the fun of it.

You waited patiently for Grandma to finish baking her famous coconut pie from the stone oven; or for her to take her soup off the coal pot and share it out in your enamel bowl. Helping to raise the goats, pigs, chickens, and any other animal that would help to feed the household was a chore that taught you to care for and love the animals that were around you.

Those were the days where we had no care in the world. It did not matter what fashion it was in or the clothes we wore, although the dread of having your hair ironed was definitely not a thing to look forward to, but it was either that or the endless hours of plaiting our kinky hair. All our needs and supplies were taken care of as far as we were concerned.

We did not see the struggles of our parents to put food on the table; the concern in their faces as to how they would pay the bills; or how they wondered and worried if their children would grow up to well-adjusted and contributing citizens of our islands. We were free to think, feel, play, and relax our little minds and fully believe that we would be anything we wanted to be.

Now those days are gone and we are now in our parents’ shoes but this is a different Caribbean. We are all now having to face the trials and tribulations of this modern world. Politics, economics, and social issues are all intertwined in our decisions. Everything is different and difficult and we wonder what happen to the carefree days of our childhood.

Politicians offer the Promised Land but all we receive are hardships as we are working three times as hard for the exact same pay from three years ago; crime is everywhere for it does not discriminate and worry sets in as you wonder if the things that you worked so hard for would disappear in the wink of an eye.

As for the social issues, they hit us like bricks, as we step over one another but it appears there seems to be no solutions readily available. Relationships, which should assist with these adversities, become strained, difficult, and unsupportive; friendships no longer appear to be real and churches, whose duty it is to provide ease and spiritual comfort, now appear to only want what the bill collectors want and that is money.

Where is the relief for us in this modern Caribbean? Our foundation has always been a spiritual one but in the face of such misfortune, are we doomed to be consumed by our problems? No, we are not, as we are a strong people, a resilient people; a people who understand that where there is a valley there must be a mountain.

We will continue to strive, push, and crawl if we must but we will survive and eventually succeed. It is innate in us, as Caribbean people to always thrive no manner the obstacles that are placed before us. We may wallow, complain, and stress ourselves until we see grey hairs begin to appear but deep down in us is always the will to persist. It is not in us to give up on our problems but instead we are always driven to find solutions. We are now realising that we cannot win every battle but we also know that given our faith and belief systems anything is possible.

So to my Caribbean people facing these difficult times understand the following:

• Know thyself and if you know thyself then you will know what you deserve and work towards it

• Understand that problems will come as they are a part of life and do not allow your vision to be clouded by those problems, for if all you see is problems then you will never see the solutions

• Always remember your spiritual foundation, as in times of extreme difficulty it will teach you to persevere and survive

• Nothing is ever as bad as it appears. Life is a balance where there is sunshine; it must be followed by rain. Rain is not a bad element. It may prevent us from doing certain things but its true purpose is to cleanse the earth and nurture our food

• No matter your trial or tribulations, always seek the positive. It is a change of thinking that changes our path.

Life in this modern Caribbean is definitely more difficult than what our ancestors may have experienced, but luckily for us we have been given the tools to navigate these turbulent waters. Therefore, we will shape the present and assist our children in their future by passing down the tools of survival.

February 29, 2012

caribbeannewsnow

Bahamas Blog International