Self-emancipation, self-realisation

We are so racially sensitive that once “outsiders” or “others” criticise our race, tribal leaders immediately train their snipers at the messenger, in an effort to obfuscate the message.

It, therefore, falls upon someone from within the flock to rise to the occasion and say what needs to be said. This is the only route to self-realisation and self-emancipation.

Barack Obama and comedian Bill Cosby are the most recent examples of hard-talking, frontline black leaders.

I wish to remind readers of Cosby’s historic May, 2004, speech on the 50th anniversary of the landmark racial discrimination decision of the Supreme Court, in the case of Brown v Board of Education. Here goes:

Cosby’s comments:

“Ladies and gentlemen, these people set; they opened the doors; they gave us the right, and today, in our cities and public schools we have 50 per cent drop out.

In our own neighbourhood, we have men in prison. No longer is a person embarrassed because they’re pregnant without a husband. No longer is a boy considered an embarrassment if he tries to run away from being the father of the unmarried child.

The lower economic and lower middle economic people are not holding their end in this deal…I’m talking about these people who cry when their son is standing there in an orange suit.

Where were you when he was two?

Where were you when he was 12?

Where were you when he was 18, and how come you don’t know he had a pistol?

And where is his father, and why don’t you know where he is? And why doesn’t the father show up to talk to this boy?

We cannot blame white people. White people don’t live over there. They close up the shop early. The Korean ones still don’t know us as well…They stay open 24 hours.

I’m telling you, and people in jail, and women having children by five, six different men. Under what excuse, I want somebody to love me, and as soon as you have it, you forget to parent. Grandmother, mother, and great-grandmother in the same room, raising children, and the child knows nothing about love or respect of any one of the three of them.

All this child knows is ‘gimme, gimme, gimme.’ These people want to buy the friendship of a child….and the child couldn’t care less. Those of us sitting out here who have gone on to some college or whatever we’ve done, we still fear our parents.

And these people are not parenting. They’re buying things for the kid; $500 sneakers, for what? They won’t buy or spend $250 on Hooked on Phonics.

Are you not paying attention, people with their hat on backwards, pants down around the crack. Isn’t that a sign of something, or are you waiting for Jesus to pull his pants up.

Isn’t it a sign of something when she’s got her dress all the way up to the crack…and got all kinds of needles and things going through her body.

What part of Africa did this come from? We are not Africans. Those people are not Africans; they don’t know a damned thing about Africa.

With names like Shaniqua, Shaligua, Mohammed and all that crap and all of them are in jail.

(When we give these kinds names to our children, we give them the strength and inspiration in the meaning of those names. What’s the point of giving them strong names if there are not parenting and values backing it up)?"

Start parenting

“I can’t even talk the way these people talk. ‘Why you ain’t where you is go, ra,’ I don’t know who these people are. And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. Then I heard the father talk. This is all in the house.

You used to talk a certain way on the corner, and you got into the house and switched to English. Everybody knows it’s important to speak English except these knuckleheads.

You can’t land a plane with ‘why you ain’t… ’You can’t be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth. There is no Bible that has that kind of language. Where did these people get the idea that they’re moving ahead on this?

I just want to get you as angry that you ought to be. When you walk around the neighbourhood and you see this stuff, that stuff’s not funny.

These people are not funny any more. And that’s not my brother. And that’s not my sister. They’re faking and they’re dragging me way down because the State, the city and all these people have to pick up the tab on them because they don’t want to accept that they have to study to get an education.

When you go to the church, look at the stained glass things of Jesus. Look at them. Is Jesus smiling? Not in one picture.

So, tell your friends. Let’s try to do something. Let’s try to make Jesus smile.

Let’s start parenting.

Thank you.”

 

By Anand Ramlogan

 

Site Admin Note:

The full text of Bill Cosby's speech is available at: (click) American Rhetoric

The Clinton factor

The success of the Democratic National Convention, during which Barack Obama was confirmed as the presidential candidate for the Democrats, depended on Hilary and Bill Clinton.

A staggering 18,000,000 democrats voted for Hilary during the preliminary internal battle for presidential nomination (primaries).

As a confident Hilary saw the Obama snowflake develop into a huge snowball that gathered strength as it rolled down the hill, as desperation set in, her campaign strategy changed. She broadened her focus to include personal attacks on Obama himself. It was “do or die,” and she had to take off the kid gloves, dip into the political bunker and shoot from the hips with all the ammunition she had. Naturally, this included her husband Bill.

Obama survived and prevailed, converting every crisis into an opportunity to showcase his political dexterity and natural talent. He beat Hilary by a significant enough margin. Many felt Obama had won the battle, but the Democrats would lose the war. Hilary’s attacks against Obama were bound to boomerang and hurt the party.

Unification of the party was imperative, and the Clinton X-factor was worrying. Not any more. No doubt disappointed at not being chosen by Obama as vice president, Hilary rose to the occasion and delivered a masterful speech during the convention. She was gracious, dignified and compelling. She endorsed Obama, but remained faithful to the issues she raised during her campaign (healthcare for all, liberation through education, women’s rights and equal pay for equal work).

She credited herself with nearly breaking the glass ceiling that prevents women from reaching the top in politics, and successfully targeted and connected with the powerful female vote.

Enthusiastic crowd

Her connection with the audience was genuine, as she did not read from a prepared text, and made a lot of eye contact. Most importantly, Hilary managed to do all of this without upstaging or overshadowing Obama.

She seamlessly weaved her unconditional endorsement of him as the party’s presidential candidate into her speech, so that it was well-punctuated by references to Obama’s strengths and ability to lead. She cleverly linked him with the issues that were important to her supporters (“I can’t wait to watch Barack Obama sign a healthcare plan into law that covers every single American”), and hailed his wife as a good first lady.

Die-hard Hilary supporters who were reluctant to support Obama were reminded of what was at stake and sternly warned: “I want you to ask yourselves: Were you in this campaign just for me?” she asked. “Or were you in it for that young marine and others like him? Were you in it for that mom struggling with cancer while raising her kids?”

If Hilary was good, her husband was great. Bill Clinton has a charismatic appeal and rapport seldom seen in politics. The thunderous applause and electrifying welcome continued endlessly, and threatened to steal vice presidential nominee Biden’s (who had to speak later on) thunder, until he firmly stopped the enthusiastic crowd from continuing.

At a time when politicians in the US seem to be resigning every day over sex scandals and indiscretions, Bill’s popularity is incredible. One African-American delegate sought to correct history by reminding people that Obama was going to be the second black President of the USA, as he (Bill Clinton) was, in fact, the first black President of the USA.

This underscored the special connection and love Bill had with the black community—one of his strongest support bases during his tenure as president.

Unite party

Whether it’s the rumoured child he fathered with a black woman, or his ability to play the sax, Bill’s legendary relationship with this community was sincerely obvious.  Bill sought to neutralise the attack on Obama’s inexperience (a point he himself made in support of Hilary’s campaign) by reminding the crowd that this was the very criticism made by the Republicans against him when he ran for president.

He hailed Obama’s diplomatic skills because he understood that America needed to lead “not by the example of power, but by the power of example.” He attacked Obama’s Republican opponent frontally, saying he would simply continue the failed policies of the Bush administration:

“More tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans that will swell the deficit, increase inequality, and weaken the economy...

“More going it alone in the world, instead of building the shared responsibilities and shared opportunities necessary to advance our security and restore our influence.”

The Clintons have succeeded in uniting the party. Hilary has made herself critical to Obama’s presidential campaign and demonstrated her value to the White house if Obama wins.

The McCain camp has already started running advertisements with clips of Hilary’s attacks on Obama. The damage this will do can only be overcome by genuine unity.

It is left to Obama now to seal the cracks the Clintons have filled and sell himself as the next leader of the American people. As Bill said, “History is on his side.”

A Loveless Thing

Hundreds of millions of dollars have been literally dumped into the CEPEP project. Clever middlemen who managed to negotiate lucrative contracts have siphoned off these funds in a system that is as transparent as canal water.

The plan to expand and “improve” the programme is as retroactive as the belated back pay our smiling PM confidently dished out in his budget speech. The original idea was that these unskilled workers would be taught a skill or trade during the mostly unused afternoon period. They would then be weaned off CEPEP, because this programme was not a source of permanent gainful employment, but simply a stepping stone towards greater things.

The laudable idea was to empower the less fortunate and teach them a skill, so they could become self-sufficient and independent and earn a decent living on their own. Politically, CEPEP workers are to the PNM, what Caroni workers were/are to the UNC. It is a significant bloc vote comprising young, energetic youth who can enthusiastically (and perhaps, aggressively, if necessary), campaign and mobilise support in a general election.

If a political paternity test was done on CEPEP workers, the word “PNM” will have to be inserted in the column for father.

I remember listening to former Prime Minister ANR Robinson criticising the PNM for the mental enslavement of its own people. This was in the days when the NAR administration was encountering difficulty in selling the YTEPP to people who had become accustomed to living without working and working without living.

YTEPP was a success. CEPEP is not.

Whilst there are many positive measures in the budget, the retroactive back pay and salary increase given to CEPEP workers on the eve of a general election is the most vulgar abuse of public funds. It is an obscene attempt to “bribe” a significant and important section of the electorate. They might as well just collect their pay packets at Balisier House!

CEPEP has actually created an artificial labour shortage on the local market, as businessmen and state corporations are forced to resort to importing skilled labour from as far as China, India and the Philippines to work in the construction and health sectors. Would CEPEP workers actually face the harsh political reality about their allegiance? Do they realise that they are no better off today when compared to their parents who solidly supported the PNM since 1956 to the present?

Which parent dreamed of having his or her child become a CEPEP worker? Is this what the original grandfathers in PNM heartland areas expected after almost half-a-decade of PNM rule? Surely, the dream was that their grandchildren will be the ones driving past in air-conditioned cars on their way to work, waving to the less fortunate in our society who are forced to resort to cutting grass by the roadside to make a living!

There is no future in CEPEP. It is a dead-end road. It is not a serious career option. It does not add value to the economy. To perpetuate this dependency syndrome is a crime against humanity and makes the PNM “a loveless thing.”

The increase in old age and NIS pension, disability and public assistance grants and the minimum wage are welcome and commendable.

The frivolous, but inventive, approach to agriculture simply reinforces the pain and suffering of ex-Caroni workers, who now find themselves having to deal with the reality that the VSEP monies were not the endless pot of gold they thought it was.

Food prices will continue to rise.

The failure to spend any time or money to improve the criminal justice system, especially in the Magistrates’ Courts, is painful. Crime will not decrease until swift justice is possible. The PM sidestepped this important issue, but the almost daily murder statistics remain a potent reminder that crime is prevalent and cannot be solved by helping the police alone.

The time has come for the PM to spend some time on what his Government intends to do to improving the timeliness and effectiveness of the administration of criminal justice.

The PNM failed to diversify the economy during the oil boom and seems set to repeat the mistake. The architecture of macro-economic framework is such that unless lots more oil and gas are found in the near future, the lines to join CEPEP will increase.

Repeating the mistakes of the past might invite the recession of the 1980s, when oil and gas prices or production decrease. This time, the beast of crime will make things a lot worse.

By Anand Ramlogan 2007-08-26

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A Space for All

The South African Constitution is one of the most progressive in the world. Nelson Mandela took great care to ensure the concept of equality was wide and comprehensive. Discrimination on the basis of one’s sexual orientation is for example illegal. Elton John could therefore sing and dance as pleases.

In March, the South African constitutional court ruled that it was discriminatory for a school to ban an Indian girl from wearing a stud in her nose on the basis that this was an integral part of her cultural and religious identity. To allow the school to force her to remove her stud on the pretext that it offended school rules would affect the dignity of the human being. Indians are a visible racial minority in South Africa and the court gave maximum protection under the equality provision.

The right to be comfortable about one’s identity and enjoy living in a free society that affords maximum liberties curtailed only by the John Stewart Mills principle that restrictions be imposed to avoid harm to society or another individual is the cornerstone of civilization. The destruction of a people’s identity is by far one of the worst social crimes possible.

Thus, locally, Israel Khan’s legal battle to be allowed the right to wear Nehru suit in the Magistrate’s Court and his symbolic shredding of his tie is an important social statement about his own quest for equal space for his cultural identity. The successful fight by Sumayaah Hosein against a denominational school for the right to wear her hijab and the more recent controversy over the right of African students to wear their dread locks in school, are local manifestations of our own problems with diversity.

In last weeks column I confronted a demon that has stalked the Indo-Trinidadian community since I was a child. It has always been a topic of heated discussion that many fear publicizing because of the risk of being misunderstood or worst yet branded a racist. The issue is the exclusion of Indian men in advertisements in the print and electronic media and in particular in the portrayal of man-woman relationships. Women are invariably portrayed as partners to non-Indian men who are portrayed as modern, sexy and desired. Indian men are seldom used and when they are, their role is subsidiary and peripheral.

The avalanche of e-mails, calls and congratulatory messages confirmed the burning nature of this long-standing grouse. It generated an intense discussion on the website created by a handful of overseas Trinis who religiously follow this column (http//:www.anandramlogan.com) and showed that people wanted equal respect.

The subtle forms of discrimination are the more difficult ones to spot and accept as prejudice is often unconscious. To this day, many in our society fail to understand how the Trinity Cross as our highest award could have been discriminatory. There is always some justification or explanation and people get very defensive over discrimination. An advertising executive called me to say he never noticed the exclusion of Indian men in ads that portray relationships but admitted to having conducted his own informal survey in last week only to realise that there was much merit in this perception. He defended it as a mere coincidence but accepted that if the tables were reversed he would have felt slighted.

One African leader highlighted the ‘colour coded form of discrimination’. There was a clear preference for the fairer complexion among us regardless of race. This is what accounted for the disproportionate representation of white and light-skinned (mixed people). “When was d last time yuh see a kinky-hair black African woman with her luscious thick lips and generous sexy proportions in an ad?” she asked.

Nelson Mandela is perhaps the greatest advocate for gay rights but this fact is conveniently hidden because it is difficult to see discrimination against gays through the same telescope as apartheid. Many cannot bear to associate their hero with homosexuals. The quest for comfortable expression of one’s identity is part of the legitimate struggle for genuine equality. It is for this reason perhaps Panday disagreed with the word ‘tolerance’ as one of our national watchwords. ‘People no longer want to be ‘tolerated’ but respected and appreciated’, he said.  Those who enjoy the status quo must do some soul searching and pose the question “what if it were me?”

By Anand Ramlogan

Site Administrator's note:
This site commends Dominic Kalipersad, Editor-in-Chief of the Trinidad Guardian, for his courage and leadership in promoting Freedom of Expression through his newspapers.

It is recommended that comments submitted to this site also be sent by email, fax, or post to the editor of the Trinidad Guardian Editor-in-chief, 22-24 St Vincent Street, Port-of-Spain. Fax: 625-7211. E-mail: letters@ttol.co.tt. This will give opportunity for the Guardian to publish select responses for those without internet access.

ANAND RAMLOGAN'S SPEECH - COP Rally 6th October 2007

I always felt that I was lucky to have been in a unique position whereby I could practice law and comment on national and political issues without necessarily taking an official position in any political party. Although my opposition to the incompetent and bounding PNM is well-known, so too is my independent criticism of all political parties.

To abandon the luxury of being able to engage in politics without holding a formal position was a extremely difficult one. My passion lies in the practice of law. I have waged a virtual one-man crusade for social justice for the victims of discrimination and victimization such as Devant Maharaj, Marlene Coudray and the Maha Sabha. In my last case, I was able to get a court order for George Daniel to force the judiciary to re-model the Hall of Justice itself and provide wheel chair access for the disabled community.

I had come to see myself as the sling shot and pebble in the hand of poor David in his battle against the mighty, evil Goliath. I used the instrument of the law to achieve social equity, justice and fairness for one and all. Politics was a relevant, but mere hobby.

Why did I, therefore choose to leave this comfort zone?

1.  Why now? This election is not about who will rule T&T for the next 5 years. If the PNM wins it will be a repeat of 1956-1986 – 30 years of uninterrupted rule – as they will continue their aggressive housing programme and transfer votes in the areas they need it the most. In short, the results of this election shall outlive Manning, Panday and Dookeran but haunt and hurt my generation and the next for a long time to come.

2. As we monetize our oil and gas reserves, over $200 billion will flow through the hands of the next government in the 5 years to come I know we cannot trust the PNM to manage that money less to end up with more mansions and high rise buildings with a Prime Minister’s private jet flying above while people continue to die in the corridors of our nation’s hospitals without beds, crime forces us to retreat into the prisons that were once our homes and food prices continue to soar beyond the reach of the average man and woman because Caroni was destroyed.

3.  It is not just who, but what will rule the next generation as the dictator-like tendencies of Emperor Manning takes full flight. Our constitution will be altered and the erosion of fundamental human rights entrenched in the constitution will continue at a greater pace.

I understand the issues. I identify with your pain and suffering and I know I can make a difference. I come from Ben-Lomond village in Willimasville - the last of the sugar-cane indentured barracks - am the 16th child in a family of 18 children and grew up in a rum shop. No one can dare accuse me of being a knife and fork Indian. I come to you not with a knife and fork, but ah brushing cutlass and a crook-stick and ah does still enjoy eating meh rice and dhal and bhaggie in ah enamel plate with meh hand more than I do knife and fork food.

Why COP? The political vehicles with ethnic number plates have exhausted their utility and have become obsolete. They have served their purpose but do not have what it takes to take us into the future. If we continue to rely on them, we will continue to run a two-legged race hopping on one foot as one ethnic camp will always feel left out in the cold.

Why not the UNC? Although I am about new politics and not personalities, I know that I cannot avoid this question. Mr. Panday shall forever be a hero to many but this does not mean that I must be blind to his obvious avoidable mistakes. The UNC had a chance and blew it. The destruction of Caroni is painful but the truth is, Panday assisted in the destruction of Caroni by failing to strengthen and re-structure it when he was in power. He killed Caroni and Manning lowered its coffin with the UNC performing the last rites, arti and all!

The UNC has no appeal beyond its dwindling hard core base and more importantly, no life beyond Panday. Panday is the UNC and the UNC is Panday. It is no longer the vehicle that can unite the people and take us into power and I know you are fed-up of being in Opposition.

It is not so much that I am against any one but that I am for a new political vehicle in which we are all equal passengers heading towards genuine social transformation based on the principle of equality and fairness for one and all.

Don’t be distracted by the guttered politics of the old vehicles. Pity them for they know not how to rise above it. Already, Marlene Coudary and Clyde Weatherhead are traitors and Anand Ramlogan and Prakash Ramadan are Maha Neemackharams. Let them attack our characters if they so desire because by now people know who the true neemackharams are. They are the ones that failed their people when they had a chance to make T&T a better place for us to live in.

WE have betrayed no one; we have simply decided to free ourselves from the shackles of the past. We have gotten off the maxi taxi of the PNM and UNC because we believe they are taking us down a dead-end road and chosen to hop a ride with the COP bus driven by Winston. He is heading in a different direction.

Lets make it clear, we will not be distracted by malicious personal attacks. The stakes are too high and human relationships should not be corroded by politics. I have many friends in the UNC and PNM and ask that we conduct our politics in a decent manner that deals with the real issues affecting the people as opposed to the gutter politics of attacking personalities. That is the politics of the past.

The mistakes and wrongs of the past cannot be corrected from the Opposition benches and I know that you can trust the COP headed by our esteemed former Governor of the Central bank Mr Dookeran to spend the $200 billion that will flow through the economy in the next 5 years.

That said, the COP and Winston Dookeran is the only way forward. I am sensing a political revolution and know that you are ready to revolt with the ballot. One fella does only talk about licks; Well ah hope he ready fuh de cut arse that coming his way on Nov 5th! I know that you are ready to share licks in the East, West, North and South.

We are happy to have a leader with integrity. He is a good man with no malice. He will even allow Manning to come and bathe in the pool at the new PM’s residence! Just be careful he doh confuse him with de two pot hounds that was bathing there before! This election must be a political revolution. It will happen as I am sensing it on the ground. For those of you that play All Fours, Ah want a full six days on Nov 5th.  High, Low, Gamble and…Hang Jack!! TIME TO REVOLT WITH THE BALLOT….

 by Anand Ramlogan 2007-07-06

Agreeing with Bartholemew

The response of Central Bank to the complaint from the Global Organisation for People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) about the non-selection of Indo-Trinidadian students for its vacation internship programme was predictable and shallow.

It explained that no Indo-Trinidadian student was among the 14 students hired because the programme catered for the children of the employees of the bank. (Perhaps this was the bank’s way of implicitly admitting that the bank’s employees are predominantly non-Indians). Faced with the problem posed by the fact that there were students who did not fall into this category, the bank said other students were selected from ‘unsolicited applications’. How these students came to know that the bank had an internship programme and that it was willing to entertain unsolicited applications remains a mystery.

With Selwyn Cudjoe as a director one would have thought that the bank would have been a bit more racially sensitive towards the Indo-Trini community. Let’s face it: if Sat maharaj was a director, Dookeran was Governor of the bank and 14 Indian students were hired in a central bank full of only Indian employees, the Afro-Trinidadian community would have been understandably upset. The Central bank defended the racial bias in its staffing with the trite statement that race is not a factor in its recruitment and promotion policy which is based on merit. Apparently the bank has not been able to find any meritorious candidates in the half of our population that is of East Indian descent.

Gopio is as right to complain about racial imbalance in the staff at central bank as Prof Bartholomew is to complain about the preponderance of Indo-Trinidadian students accepted to study medicine. My problem is the former is roundly condemned as racist whilst the latter is viewed as having a legitimate complaint. Cudjoe has expressed the view that “the larger communal interest of a multiracial society cannot be served if 80% of the students UWI and 75% of the students of Trinidad and Tobago Institute of Technology (TTIT) are Indians." (Guardian, August 26 th 2003). I agree with this. Social development cannot be one-sided but balanced and equitable or else racial resentment is bound to occur.

My problem is whenever I try to make the same point regarding the relative absence of Indians in the protective services (army, police, prison and fire services), the hierarchy of the public service (permanent secretaries, chief technical officers and directors) and the foreign service (ambassadorial appointments and staffing at overseas missions), the very people that are so vocal in their support for Prof Bartholomew remain silent or rush to paint it with a racial brush. I am asked to produce impossible statistics to prove my point and have regard to the ‘historical and cultural factors’ but no one is singing that tune now.

Is it not true that Indian students have traditionally gravitated towards sciences whilst African students gravitate towards the social sciences and arts? What do the statistics show? Is it not true that Indian students are less involved in traditional extra-curricular activities when compared to non-Indian students? What does Prof Bartholomew define as ‘extra-curricular activities’ that should merit bonus points when evaluating applications from students who wish to study medicine? Is it confined to playing pan and football or does it include playing the dholak in the village temple and being active in the mosque?

Career PNM activists of long standing Ferdie Ferreira and Prof Selwyn Ryan came out in full support of Bartholomew’s call for more African medical students. The insinuation is that the criteria are too favourable to Indian students. Who comprises the admissions committee at the Faculty of Medicine? It is chaired by the Dean of the Faculty Dr. Phyllis Pitt-Miller (daughter of the highly respected late Lord David Pitt of Hampstead) and the majority of the admissions committee is non-Indian. It is therefore mischievous to make it out as if the Indo community deliberately created this situation with the intention of excluding others.

Ethnic monitoring policies are now a standard feature in most developed cosmopolitan countries. Universities are very careful to monitor their intake to ensure racial diversity without compromising the integrity and transparency of its admissions policy. This is also needed in our society but not just in the medical faculty for the benefit of non-Indians. It should apply to the protective services and the public service as well in favour of Indo-Trinis. There are as many Indians who qualify for employment with the central bank as there are African students whose excellent extra-curricular and academic record justifies their place in medical school. We cannot run a two-legged race on one foot.

By Anand Ramlogan 2007-07-21

Arrogance unforgiveable

The Dharmacharya (spiritual head) pundit cut a lonely picture at the National Awards celebration. For the brief moment that I looked at the awards ceremony, he sat by himself in a row of empty chairs. To me, his conspicuous lonesomeness reinforced the isolation and marginalisation many in the Indo-Trinidadian community felt, as only two of their own merited recognition by the State in the award of national honours (two out of 27 awards!).

The insensitivity of the continuing racial imbalance in the recipients of national awards was more pronounced this year, because this was the first awards ceremony after the abolishment of the Trinity Cross. Many Hindus and Muslims felt that the award of the Trinity Cross amounted to indirect discrimination by the State, because of its religious connotation, symbolism and affiliation with the Christian faith.

Historic litigation led to a finding by the High Court that this award was, indeed, discriminatory, and hence the invention of the brand new “Order of Trinidad and Tobago.” 

The political insensitivity is made all the worse by the ethnic tribal nature of our politics, as the ruling party has its base in the Afro-Trinidadian community. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, attorney Atticus Finch said that to understand another man’s feelings one should step out of one’s shoes and walk around in his. I thus pose the question: What if the Indo-dominated UNC administration, led by Panday, conferred national awards on mostly Indians?   To be more specific, what if only two out of 27 recipients were Afro-Trinidadian? And what if this developed into a trend or pattern year after year? How would the Afro-Trinidadian community feel?

Racial imbalance

I would not be writing this article if this year’s racial imbalance was a mere aberration. I feel compelled to do so because it is not. In a nation where Indo-Trinidadians comprise the single largest ethnic group, there isn’t a single year when they outnumbered their non-Indian counterparts in any category of national awards since 1969, when the awards began.

Does the community suffer from some unidentified collective deficiency that disqualifies them from national recognition by the State?  For the Government to demonstrate such crass political arrogance is unforgivable. Mr Manning’s political desire to reach out to the Indian community is a matter of public record.

In his previous term, he publicly announced that he was “looking for Indians” to include in his Cabinet, so that it would reflect the plural nature of our society. In 1991, he established the Centre for Ethnic Studies at the University of the West Indies, and commissioned a report to investigate allegations of racial discrimination in the public service and address the racial imbalance therein.

Only eight Indo-Trinis have ever been awarded the nation’s highest award since 1969. Out of these eight recipients, at least four of them received this award ex officio (to the office). Six Trinity Crosses were given to foreigners and/or non-resident Trinis who arguably made no national contribution.

The continued exclusion of Indo-Trinidadians from national awards has, perhaps, given rise to a feeling of inferiority, of not being able to measure up; alternatively, it can fuel a feeling of resentment, based on the suspicion that their contribution to the nation is constantly bypassed without any recognition from the State.  

It is amazing that an experienced politician such as Manning does not understand the need for greater sensitivity in the selection of national award recipients. There is no political gain by causing unnecessary hurt to the Indo-Trinidadian community, and it is imperative that the State applies a soothing balm to sensitive wounds. Given Mr Manning’s penchant for preaching, it is not inappropriate for me to call upon the preacher to “apply the healing touch.” I trust that this issue would be handled with better discretion, dexterity and equality in the future.

I wish to end this column by paying public tribute to my legal colleague, Mr Terrance Thorne, who was posthumously awarded the public service Medal of Merit (Gold). Terry served this nation with loyalty and distinction, and was a source of tremendous inspiration to me. He waged a long battle against cancer and continued to perform his duties in a diligent and professional manner, despite his blindness. We fought many legal battles, but remained excellent friends. His jabs in court were of the highest quality, and his spunk was something I looked forward to. If ever there was a deserving recipient for a national award, Mr Thorne was. It’s a pity that he was not honoured while he was alive.

By Anand Ramlogan

Balancing the scale

THE public outrage over the death of baby Luke is understandable. The instinctive reaction is to blame someone. And, ultimately, someone must accept blame.

When I dubbed this a case of institutional murder, however, I had in mind the fact that the issue was larger than the negligence or incompetence of one individual. It was a continuous, systematic and procedural failure that could be caused only by poor management and policies.

I received an e-mail this week that sought to give a balanced view from the other side:

“Dear sir, I am writing with regards to my own opinion about this tragic issue.

I am a medical doctor (a children’s one at that, too.) I have worked at the Eric Williams Medical Sciences Complex (EWMSC) in the past as an employee in the paediatric A&E department, and since then been to the UK and now (I have) returned to try and play my own part in building our nation and improving the lot of our people.

So that there must be no misunderstanding of the intention of my message, let it be stated categorically that:

This is a very unfortunate and tragic event. My condolences go to the family. I would appreciate if you let them know that persons (including a doctor) have expressed this via this medium.

There is no doubting this fact, and there must be no attempt to trivialise or cover it up at all.

That a wrong diagnosis resulted in the end point of the death of this child must not be denied.

That the right diagnosis at the time of the Monday night visit would have made a difference in the outcome—we can ask that question forever and never answer it with certainty.

Still, this cannot reduce the dreadful impact of this event on the family involved. The hope that goes with ‘what if’ can never materialise.

During my time in the A&E in EWMSC Paediatric Department, we were exceedingly short-staffed.

We worked eight persons per day—three from 8 am to 4 pm, three from 4 pm to midnight and two from midnight to 8 am—eight-hour shifts, and frequently through our lunch time (I recall holding a sandwich with my left hand and sitting to write a patient’s notes with my right).

Those days we attended to about 200 before midnight and about ten-12 overnight (six persons multiplied by eight hours multiplied by two day-time shifts per day equals 96 person hours). Ninety-six person hours to attend to about 200 patients—a patient in 30 minutes, assuming each patient had only to be attended to once and not reviewed!

The A&E in EWMSC is now (slightly) better-staffed, but the fact remains that the staff there work under very trying circumstances.

(Compared to the UK, the word ‘under-resourced’ is a bad joke), patients walking past the door and staring in, persons knocking on the door and interrupting a consultation asking, ‘I here for — number of hours! All yuh know when I am going to be seen?’

The sound of a patient cussing and threatening to beat somebody up if they are not attended to “now” is all too common.

The picture I am hoping to paint is that this is a stressful area of work, but we all have, within our chosen field of work, stresses to overcome!

It can be very busy, especially Monday 8 am to midnight (add 50 patients to the figure above).

My point: I do not know the young doctor involved. I now, like half of Trinidad, know only her name. She has been subject to stress and threats to her life and well-being.

The girl has reportedly shed more buckets of tears than ought to be due to someone. I feel the last statement is meant to underline my feeling that this individual recognises that an error in judgment has had dire consequences, but she is a human being.

She is subject to errors in her judgment. She is a junior doctor working in a stressful environment. She did not go out to work with an intention to slaughter, before shift’s end, some innocent child.

I respect your efforts at seeking redress/justice on behalf of this family. I hope I am not being seen here as trying to interfere with that process.

I would recognise that whatever form of justice that is extracted or dispensed is not going to reverse this tragedy. It shall unfortunately not bring this baby back to his family.

Address the shortcomings of the system as you have pointed out.”

By Anand Ramlogan 2008-03-23

Blood Bank Blues

Capturing our terrorists

Police Commissioner Trevor Paul and PM Manning enjoyed a respite from public criticism over the appalling crime problem because of the arrest of ‘terror suspects’ wanted by the US. Lest we fall prey to the glib praise gushing from the US and UK ambassadors, perhaps we should remember our predicament where we face terrorism from criminals on daily basis.

In the midst of the unprecedented bombings in Port of Spain PM Manning confidently boasted that he knew who ‘Mr. Big’ was and hinted at an early arrest. To date not even a house fly has been arrested.

This - from the same man who on the eve of the last general election announced that he was going to hand over a lucrative and sizeable piece of State land to Abu Bakr’s Jamaat Al Muslimeen. This is the same land that the army had fenced and occupied in an effort to protect the State’s right of ownership and resist the bullying tactics of the Jamaat.

Of course, these facts must be neatly ignored or avoided by diplomats who must praise and thank the government for its cooperation in securing the arrest of the terror suspects who allegedly plotted a bomb attack on JFK International airport.

Over 6 years has elapsed since the costly importation high-tech spy equipment from Tel Aviv in Israel with no explanation as to why such sophisticated equipment which was supposed to be used in the fight against crime has failed.

Over 2 years ago National Security Minister Martin Joseph indicated that the country’s horrible crime wave was being caused by a mere 500 persons who belonged to mafia-style gangs. He promised they would be monitored, targeted, arrested and prosecuted. Despite the thankful drop in kidnappings and murder rate, the country could hardly be described as a safer place.

Sophisticated weapons have gone missing from the army and ended up in the hands of gang leaders who operate and control “crime hot-spots”. There was a lockdown and soldiers were prevented from leaving the base. The weapons were recovered but to date the entire affair remains shrouded on political and criminal mystery while our brigadiers attend cocktail parties and pose for pictures.

This of course, is not the first time a direct link was established between the nation’s protective services and the criminal underworld. Several police officers and soldiers are presently before the local and foreign courts on charges of kidnapping and murder. How many more undetected rotten eggs are in operation in the protective services?

State guns in the hands of criminals are not a new or recent phenomenon. There have been several instances of police guns mysteriously disappearing only to surface in the hands of bandits and murders. To date, no one has explained how a gun that was logged for safe keeping at the Arima Police Station ended up in the hands of the kidnappers that eventually murdered Uttamdeo Maharaj in Palo Seco. The laughable conspiracy theory about police officers renting their guns to young bandits for a fee is no longer a laughing matter.

As if to remind us of the ridiculous state of affairs, this week four revolvers mysteriously disappeared from the Morvant Police Station where they were secured in a police locker. Two of the fire arms along with several rounds of ammunition were recovered by the North Eastern Divisional Police.

Three young men were arrested but no explanation has been given as to how they were able to gain access to a secured locker and remove guns and ammunition in the full view and glare of police officers in charge of the station.

In keeping with our finest tradition no mention was made about any investigation into the police service itself with a view to disciplining the officers who were on duty at the material time.

There is no doubt that the major break-through in the crime in the crime situation occurred because of the invaluable involvement and assistance of the FBI and the Scotland Yard detectives. Had Balliram Maharaj not been a US war veteran his undiscovered dismembered body parts would have continued to melt and disappear into the earth. It is the results of the tests conducted by forensic experts in the UK that led to break-through in the Vindra Naipaul kidnapping and murder.

No local DNA lab as yet but hundreds of millions spent on a new residence for the PM and an unnecessary stadium in Tarouba the prognosis isn’t good.

Now that we have helped the US capture its terrorists perhaps it can return the favour and help us capture the criminals who have been terrorizing our people. We clearly need outside help.

By Anand Ramlogan  2007-06-08

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Cause for concern

The Guardian editorial on Friday made an important point regarding the need for accountability in the next budget. Surely, ministers must explain how monies voted in the previous budget were spent in a way that enables us to determine whether we got value for our tax dollars!

Year after year, more money is voted without any serious critique on the previous year’s expenditure. A cost-benefit analysis is surely needed. The editorial hit the nail on the head when it said: "The Ministers of Health, National Security and Education, for a start, have to account for no fewer than $20 billion spent on these portfolios in the current fiscal year. Have there been real and tangible benefits?"

A cursory glance at the newspapers in the last few weeks shows that San Fernando General Hospital (SFGH) is either mismanaged or terribly underfunded. Here are some of the stories:

Air-condition malfunction derails Sando surgeries
( Thursday, July 24, 2008)

"The two central air-conditioning systems at the SFGH collapsed yesterday evening, causing the cancellation of operations at the Radiology and Urology departments as well as the Blood Bank."

Hospital chaos, 17 patients in one room, await beds for over 8 hours  (Thursday, July 10, 2008)

“One female patient, who had been waiting for a bed since Tuesday night, said: ‘This is real hell in a country with so much money. We cannot even get a place to rest we head’

The patients were willing to speak about their plight, but did not want to be identified, for fear of victimisation.

Imtiaz Ahamad, chairman of South-West Regional Health Authority, told the Express that ‘the only way to ease the overcrowding is to have another facility.’

He said the board had done all it could to ease the overcrowding, adding that the old ICU unit had been refurbished to accommodate 11 patients.

The bed management system is working and we are thinking about a new initiative which we cannot disclose at this point,” Ahamad said.”

Bed shortage forces patients to leave (Friday, July 4, 2008)

“Several patients left the SFGH disgusted yesterday, while others remained lying on stretchers for several hours inside the Accident and Emergency Department.

And nurses complained that they were unable to admit them to the wards because there were no beds available.”

Surgeries off again at Sando hospital (Saturday, June 28, 2008)

“Neurosurgery and plastic surgery services are once more not available at the SFGH, and all patients requiring such operations are being referred to other institutions.”

Health and postal strikes in Trinidad  (April 22, 2008)

“Overcrowding has gotten so bad at the hospital, that the asthma room, a room supposed to be dedicated for those awaiting emergency asthma treatment, is being used as a holding bay for those awaiting hospital beds. Patients admitted for emergency asthma treatment also complained of overcrowding in the asthma room.

There has been a perennial shortage of beds in the medical wards, and patients are even kept overnight in the asthma room, with no facilities for showering.

The nurses have raised the problems with the authority, ‘but no one listens to what we have to say.’”

No running water at San Fernando General (Saturday, July 26, 2008)

“‘Almost the whole hospital was shut down, Wards 3, 6, 8, Urology, Burns and the medical wards could not function,’ the hospital source said, adding that kidney and diabetic patients were also affected.

Patients were unable to take baths, and nurses were also concerned about their hygiene, since they are required to wash their hands after dealing with each patient.

Throughout the wards, a stench emanated from the washroom as patients were unable to flush toilets.

One patient said the washroom was filthy...

A hospital official said: ‘There is no cause for concern.’”

Bathing with bottled water at Sando hospital

"The SFGH has been without water since Friday, which has resulted in patients having to clean themselves with bottled water supplied by relatives.

A pregnant woman from Ste Madeleine, who asked that her name be withheld, said she did not have a shower in 36 hours, because ‘It have no water and if it continues I would have to leave the hospital until water come.’

She said there were scores of patients on the labour wad who had not had a shower for two days.

The woman said: ‘Some of the toilets have not been flushed for the whole day, and the smell in those areas is disgusting.'"

Before we blindly vote more money for the health ministry, shouldn’t we first inquire why the substantial monies voted last year did not improve the service the SFGH provides to citizens?

If by now we can’t solve the problem of bed shortages, it’s time to ask “Mr Minister, whey de money gone?”

Changing the Mirror

What a week! Not a dull moment: Panday blocked from entering parliament by armed policemen; the true identity of dirty dancing teenager Danah Alleyne exposed – daughter of a popular pastor; the greatest batsmen in cricket history our beloved Brian Lara resigned from international cricket; Machael Montano involved in an altercation that leaves a youth seriously injured; no less a person than the Prime Minister came out in support of Danah and the PNM trained its guns on Johnny Soong in an effort to shift blame from the pastor and his daughter.

Murder and mayhem took a back seat as the hypocrisy of our half-baked society took front seat. We refuse to accept the reflection in the mirror and seek to blame the mirror and try to change it. Perhaps we prefer to enjoy the status quo in a suspended state of disbelief than face the raw social reality.

Some say it started with the junior secondary school shift system of education. Children were left with far too much idle time during working hours when it was impossible for parents to monitor their movements. The result is that they were exposed to maxi taxi conductors, drivers and touts, bullies and other idle people who had nothing else to do with their time except exploit their adolescent vulnerability.

The liberation of carnival exposed children to party songs with sexually explicit lyrics and bumps, wines and grinds. Far from simulating romantic sex, it glorified horning, having a good time and zipless sex. Add to this the rap, dub and hip hop culture that praises all the bitches, ho’s and niggas in the house and chutney performances that now threaten to make even the worst dutty wine girl blush and you have Danah’s generation.

I have been lecturing to schools as part of the Guardian Leadership Series Programme and interacting with students all over the country. The bad boys and rude gyals rule ting now, marn. Smoking and drinking, sexing and drugging, boom box blasting, they have their own nirvana-on-wheels in the maxis.

In the same way parents blame poor teachers, everyone wants to blame Akon and Johnny Soong. At the tender age of 15, Danah sports a provocative tattoo above her butt, pierced belly button, oozes sex appeal and bares the sides of her breasts in a risqué outfit that would make a chutney dancer blush. On her HI 5 profile available on the net, she states: “i am really outgoing, wild, and luvvvv to have fun, luvv to be around frendz and hang out and off course PARTYYY!! oh well... ima bitch,ive got class,mess wid me and i'll kick ur ass!!neways u'll jus have to get to knw me if u wanna knw nemore!! "

Complete with photographs in sexually provocative poses, young Danah described her occupation as ‘professional slacker’. Her response to ‘employment’ is “Nahh, I dohh work – I livin off Pappiii!!!" So much for those tithes and offerings in the name of the Lord, I guess.

How can we blame Akon? How was he supposed to know her age? Far from being shy and coy, Danah was wukkin it up quite nicely with a crowd of adults (policemen and all) cheering on in true Trini style.

In the same way parents are quick to blame teachers, everyone is quick to blame Soong. Yes, she should have been denied access to the club. That was wrong, yes; but so is selling cigarettes and alcohol to minors.

We have created a culture that is based on and glorifies flesh and sex and everyone is in on the act – the young, the old, the good, the bad and the ugly. Be it the poom poom shorts, pajama party or wet fete, its all hypocritically passed off as good natured fun.

The infamous Manzanilla Ash Wednesday cool down fete saw women strip naked and allow men to cool down their private parts with water from melting ice in full view of everyone (including policemen). This was no more than an uncomfortable social hiccup. The same police that are so quick to target Soong have taken no action against the women or the promoter. Why?

In the final analysis there is no substitute for good parenting. If Soong prevented Danah from entering Zen would that have helped? One night at club Zen did not make her the person she was on stage! The signs were all there (tattoo, pierced navel, sexy outfits in the wardrobe etc) but Danah’s parents ignored them, pretended they meant nothing or flippantly dismissed it as ‘a phase’. And yes, good parents can have bad children, but good children seldom have bad parents. Let Danah Alleyne ask Choclate Alleyne.

By Anand Ramlogan

2007-04-29

Costly battle

In retrospect, had former Chief Justice (CJ) Sat Sharma not filed for judicial review to stop his criminal arrest and prosecution, the entire fiasco may have been over a lot earlier.  Sharma would have probably resumed his rightful place and function as the country’s CJ until retirement. The protracted legal challenge was costly in many ways. It created a cloud of doubt over his integrity, cost millions of dollars, and proved futile, as he was not spared criminal prosecution in the Magistrates’ Court. Add to this the emotional damage, frustration and despair that Sharma no doubt suffered, and the tip of the iceberg barely reveals itself.

Of course, it is easy to argue that public confidence in the administration of justice would have been better served by immediate submission to criminal prosecution, as Sharma’s vindication would have alleviated the fears and concerns of a weary population. This ignores the fact that the constitution provides a specific and special procedure for the impeachment and removal of a Chief Justice, and hence, Sharma, perhaps, felt duty-bound to defend what he perceived to be a political assault upon the office of Chief Justice.

It would have been a travesty of justice to allow Sharma to retire without “facing the music.” This would have led to the inescapable conclusion that he had manipulated the justice system, over which he had presided, by a series of delaying tactics and succeeded in suffocating the claims of misconduct without any trial.

Chief Magistrate Sherman Mc Nicolls is the author of his own present misfortunes. It is either that he deliberately misled the Government into fighting tooth and nail for the right to criminally prosecute Sharma, or either the Government was itself guilty of misusing the judicial process to keep Sharma out of office. How else can we explain his sudden decision not to testify in the long-awaited criminal trial? If he never intended to testify against Sharma in a criminal trial, then why did he give statements to the police in the course of their criminal investigation?

Why did he not write the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) to inform him that he did not wish to testify in a criminal trial, so that the unseemly sight of heavily-armed police officers rummaging through the CJ’s desk and trying to arrest him at his home could be avoided? An expensive, unnecessary protracted legal battle was waged at taxpayers and Sharma’s expense for no good reason. Mr Mc Nicolls’ inexplicable silence is, without a doubt, the main cause of this.

Already, fears are being expressed that Mc Nicolls would “try the Sharma dance” and drag things out in the courts, until he comfortably retires in June and places himself beyond the reach of the Judicial and Legal Services Committee (JLSC). This could simply reinforce the public’s perception that justice in this country is a case of “different strokes for different folks” and further undermine confidence in the strength and independence of the judiciary.

It cannot be right that such high office-holders be allowed to retire with their full benefits in the face of serous allegation of misconduct that have not been tried. This means that the unresolved allegations against Sharma, regarding attempted interference in the Vijay Narinesingh murder trial, should be heard and determined. It also means that Mc Nicolls should face a disciplinary tribunal. To this end, the courts should move swiftly to deal with both matters. The JLSC can appeal the decision of Justice Jamadar to dismiss some of the disciplinary charges preferred against Mc Nicolls, on the ground that this was a matter for the disciplinary tribunal, and not the High Court.

Mc Nicolls can appeal the decision to clear the way for him to be tried for two disciplinary offences. To Justice Jamadar’s credit, Mc Nicolls’ judicial review application was dealt with expeditiously. In the event of an appeal, one would expect the Court of Appeal to give this matter the priority it deserves.

I am not certain that I share the view that once a public officer retires, he is immune from disciplinary action that was already in train. Barring the anti-climactic effect, it limits the range of possible penalties that could be inflicted in the event wrongdoing is proved. It would seem to me, however, that appropriate action could, nevertheless, be taken to preserve and vindicate the rule of law.

Footnote: In my column on the appointment of Chief Justice Archie, I erroneously stated that Kangaloo, JA, was a member of the tribunal that heard the equal opportunities appeal in which Justice Archie delivered the lead judgment. Justice Kangaloo was not, in fact, a member of the panel that heard this appeal, and the error is regretted.  

By Anand Ramlogan 2008-02-10

Crime, Crime, Crime!

The Government has lost its grip on the reins of governance. No one is listening to ministers, except themselves and the audience in front of them that must.

The ground beneath the upper and middle class is moving, as the earthquake of uncontrollable crime creeps and cuts across barbed wire fences, remote-controlled gates, security alarms, gated communities and security guards, deep into the belly of families. People are packing up and leaving, forced out of their homes by savage crime. Every family with young children wants to have a foreign passport, as the option of leaving is now becoming a serious imperative.

Fourteen-year-old Amrika Ramdial was kidnapped by four men in a grey Honda Civic outside her home in Gaston Street, Chaguanas, last Friday. People who witnessed the abduction recorded the number plate of the getaway car, but the plates were traced back to a trailer truck.

Amrika was abducted in daylight at around 3.45 pm. A car pulled alongside her, and two men came out with guns and snatched her as she walked towards her home in Orchard Gardens. She left behind one side of her shoes and book-bag. Police roadblocks failed to stop the getaway. What if Amrika was your child?

The day before, Ryan Naipaul, the brother of businesswoman Vindra Naipaul Coolman, who was kidnapped in December 2006, and killed, was robbed. Naipaul-Coolman was kidnapped from Lange Park in Chaguanas. Her brother, also from Lange Park, reported to police that at around 9 am on Wednesday he was in his front yard when two men with guns ran in and grabbed him. Money and jewelry were taken, but—perhaps more importantly—the thieves made off with his two licensed firearms: a pistol and a shotgun.

A few days before, Philippa Talma, daughter of former Independent Senator Prof Julian Kenny, was kidnapped and held captive for nine days.

There could hardly be a better definition of a model citizen than Julian Kenny. He has served this country with loyalty and distinction, and has quite a sense of humility and dignity. His contributions as an independent senator, academic and environmentalist are invaluable. The destabilising torture is seen in his description of the events:

“A normal humdrum routine before the evening ritual of the news; a brief phone call; puzzlement, a brief drive to Philippa’s boutique; her empty car; security arriving; police arriving; Dan arriving; Jean arriving; a neighbour describing to the police the event; the car number; internal confusion; a desperate call to Martin, his visit; his cellphone calls as he paced about the lawn; a wretched sleepless night and endless waiting; two chilling telephone calls; absolute panic, blood pressure 190/120, our family doctor’s visit and a drug-induced sleep—and the machinery moves into full gear.

The ups and downs of blurred time for all of us in the next few days; the calls from many; visits, some simply taking over the routine tasks; the e-mail, really frightful thoughts; mostly deepest despair mixed with hope, and eventually, the one call from Peter on that Sunday morning, nine days later, Mother’s Day—we’ve got her.

Then release.”

The incompetence of a minority PNM government allowed a handful of criminals to blossom and grow from strength to strength. The PNM nurtured these infant gangs with lucrative URP and Cepep contracts. It exploited their vulnerable dependency syndrome, because it wanted to ride the back of the black tiger into political office. Now, it cannot dismount or wound it, for fear that this powerful tiger will indiscriminately devour even the hands of those that once fed it.

Martin Joseph remains firm, despite the proliferation of gangs under his watch. He has probably lost count and can’t be bothered any more. He has armed security.

Blood and tears are flowing like water, and the soul of our nation has been ruptured. The haemorrhaging continues unabated and the situation is desperate and critical. When would Mr Manning realise his government needs to reorganise its priorities to focus on the things that are literally killing us?

Is it too much to ask of our PM that he should stop looking up into the sky at his beloved skyscrapers, so he could see the bloodshed and anguish of those with who live and walk on the ground?

 

By Anand Ramlogan 2008-05-25

Critical changes needed to rescue T&T

The traditional year-end wish list column has become so trite and predictable that I cannot find the energy to do one this year.

In reviewing my previous year-end columns I noticed that most of the wishes remain unfulfilled as T&T has moved from bad to worse in several critical areas.

We have progressed from a murder a day to one in every 20 to 22 hours. People write, as we expect, condemning this year’s figures and expressing hope for improvement in the new year.

For the last six years however, the seamless transition from the previous year’s murder rate into the new year’s bloodshed seems to have gotten easier with time.

The current trend has raised fears that we may soon graduate to the stage where 2,000 people are murdered every five years.

Young men no longer live to take care of their parents or children (if they were lucky enough to experience fatherhood). The internal sickness that seems to have afflicted our once carefree society has spread to the point where it has crippled our normal daily life. Everyone is exposed and feels naked and vulnerable. Easy targets who can easily become a mere statistic at any time.

Economic fortunes and a buoyant economy have done precious little to arrest the social decline because the wealth has not trickled down in sufficient measure.

The Government is yet to understand the difference between handouts that fuel a dependency syndrome and the empowerment of citizens who can utilise State resources to create sustainable personal wealth.

People skim through the small Laventille murder articles and quickly turn the page because it is yet another gang-related murder that doesn’t touch and concern the rest of society.

Newspaper editors could easily cut and paste yesterday’s Laventille murder story onto tomorrow’s newspaper with the minor adjustment of the name change.

There is no compassion as the pain and anguish of the mothers in Laventille continues to be ignored despite the fact that their loss and pain is no different to any other mother who has lost her son to crime.

Instead of declaring a limited state of emergency and flushing out the criminal elements from their nests in the North, the Government’s inaction allowed them to migrate and spread their wings so the police are now complaining that if they plug one leak in the North three more spring up in Central and South while their backs are turned.

The upshot of all of this is that our crime-infested society is slowly disintegrating. People are leaving and many are thinking twice about remaining. Most leave with a heavy and unwilling heart but feel they have no choice as the criminals have driven them from their own homeland.

The current police service cannot solve the crime crisis. Superintendent Chandraban Maharaj did his country a great service by going public with his concerns about criminal activity within the police service itself by senior officers who facilitate and promote the illegal gun and drug trade.

The addition of more SRPs will further dilute the quality of our policing.

The criminal justice system will continue to malfunction unless adequate resources are immediately invested to salvage and preserve what is left of public confidence in the administration of justice.

Last week, a defendant accused of the PriceSmart robbery was freed because the police officer did not show up in court for a second time.

A friend called to report a robbery that was in progress and was actually asked by the officer “which side of the road yuh livin’ on?” because they fell in different police districts.

Millions of tax payers’ money have been spent in paying compensation to citizens whose constitutional rights were violated by police officers.

The Ministry of the Attorney General actually represents the police officers in these cases and knows who the culprits are. Amazingly, no attempt is made by the Attorney General to ensure that these officers are disciplined or removed.

At minimum they should be made to repay the monies paid to their victims by the State as a result of their illegal abuse of the power. No one monitors calls to the E999 service or police stations in general to ensure quality customer service.

In the same way WASA promptly arrives on your doorstep within six months after a road is finally paved to dig it up and run a pipeline, so too it is only a matter of time before the tentacles of criminals elements reach into the so-called crime-free safe zones.

Urgent fundamental changes are necessary to save T&T in 2008 or else many more will leave our beautiful shores.

By Anand Ramlogan 2007-12-29

Don't be so Cross

The Trinity Cross is about to be replaced with an award that would eliminate the friction and grumbling protests from non-Christians in our plural society. Today, I wish to remind readers of a piece I had written during the controversy.

It wasn’t about the Trinity Cross. It was about much more than just that. The reason I decided to file a constitutional motion to challenge the Trinity Cross had less to do with the cross and more to do with how it was perceived by the Hindu and rural Muslim communities.

The PNM had/has a predominantly Afro-Christian base. It attracted some Indian support from the Presbyterian and urban Muslim communities, but remained a fundamentally “Christian” party. This explains why, for 30 years (1956-1986), there was no Hindu government minister under the PNM, and why a Bhagavad-Gita could not even be found at President’s House when Panday was being sworn in as Prime Minister.

The Trinity Cross was perceived as a manifestation or symptom of what was, in substance if not form, a Christian state that tolerated non-Christians. The objection was not purely religious; it had a political and psychological dimension.

The resentment stemmed from the fact that no one seemed to care about the obvious arrogant injustice that such an award could lead to in a multi-religious society. You are an equal citizen and have the right as a free citizen to decline the award.

Of course, it’s a bit like saying that the race is open to everyone, vegetarians and meat-eaters alike, and no one should make trouble simply because the top prizes are a good steak or ham. The battle, therefore, wasn’t really against the Trinity Cross per se. It was against a status quo that preached equality on paper, but had unofficially and informally declared the supremacy of Christianity as the religion of the leaders and party in power, and, by logical extension, the State.

It was heartening to hear PM Manning remind himself that ours is a secular democracy and accept that having the Trinity Cross as the nation’s highest award was inconsistent with this concept. It conflicted with the constitutional guarantee of the right to equality of treatment and undermined the idea of every creed and race finding an equal place in our society.

The judgment of Justice Jamadar shall forever remain one of the finest examples of an independent judiciary protecting the supreme rights of all citizens to be treated equally by the State. 

Ms Wilhelmina McDowell Benjamin, one of the designers of the Trinity Cross, said Christianity or religion never entered her mind when she did the design, and that she simply felt anyone would feel proud to wear such a medal. She never intended to discriminate. This is where the people need to understand the fundamental development in the law of discrimination.

It is not necessary to prove that there was an intention to discriminate in order for there to be a violation of the right to equal treatment. The correct approach is whether the matter complained of has, in fact, resulted in discrimination. It is a results-oriented approach to the whole question of discrimination. Had Ms Benjamin designed an OM for the nation’s highest award without any intention to discriminate against anyone, that would not mean that distressed Christians were not being discriminated against?

This historic and landmark case will remain one of my most cherished. I remember the disbelief of many when I told them I intended to challenge this award. I found willing clients in Sat Maharaj and Inshan Ishmael. Let history record it was a challenge to the political and religious status quo that succeeded.

Might it forever remind us of the importance of equality. In the words of Justice Jamadar:

"This general prohibition against non-discrimination thus prohibits laws that differentiate between people on the basis of their inherent personal characteristics and attributes.

A court is entitled to consider granting constitutional relief, where the claim is that a person has been discriminated against by reason of a condition which is inherent and integral to his/her identity and personhood.

Such discrimination undermines the dignity of persons, severely fractures peace and erodes freedom. Courts will not readily allow laws to stand, which have the effect of discriminating on the basis of the stated personal characteristics."

Equal Rights, please

 There has been a lot of debate about the exclusion of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation from the government’s new Equal Opportunities Bill. Today, I wish to quote what the Court of Appeal said via the judgment of Justice of Appeal Archie (with whom the CJ Sat Sharma and Mendonce JA agreed), in the constitutional motion that discussed the constitutionality of the old law that was declared unconstitutional.

 In Civil Appeal No 64 of 2004, the court said:

41. This (homosexuality) may not be a fact that is palatable to most persons in Trinidad and Tobago where homosexual acts are generally disapproval and are still subject to criminal sanction, but orientation or preference is not the same as behaviour. I say this with the greatest of deference to the learned trial judge who undertook a very detailed and sensitive analysis of this point. It is not a crime to have a homosexual or lesbian orientation. In fact there is no evidence, at least in this case, that one can choose an orientation although there are those who argue that the sex towards which one’s romantic or sexual desires are focused is more a matter of ‘choice’ or ‘preference’.

 42. It is not for this court to resolve that debate, but it is axiomatic that all legislation has to be construed and applied so as to remain in conformity with the Constitution and in particular the guaranteed rights to equality of treatment and equality before the law under section 4 of the Constitution. To the extent that the EOA is inconsistent with the Constitution it is void. In respect of the exercise of statutory powers, the authorities are clear that, in the absence of some compelling justification, it is unreasonable for a decision-maker to reach a decision that contravenes or might contravene fundamental rights. Similarly, any law that is on its face discriminatory has to be justified on the basis of some reasonable distinction between those who are differently treated, otherwise it offends against section 5 of the Constitution. Sexual ‘preference’ or ‘orientation’ cannot, by itself, afford such a distinction. In any event, how does one determine such a thing unless it is self-confessed? It is a subjective distinction based on prejudice and stereotyping with no countervailing factors to justify it.

43. The effect of specifically excluding  a particular category of persons, on the ground of sexual orientation, from the protection afforded by the EOA to others, is to deny them a fundamental right on a basis analogous to one of the grounds enumerated under section 4 of the Constitution (i.e. ‘sex’). It is a denial of the protection of the law and of equality of treatment under the law. The flaw in the appellant’s argument lies in the conflation of orientation with actions. It is revealed in the reasons of the trial judge in the following passage.

“Legislative intent and policy in Trinidad and Tobago, unlike in Canada and in the U.K., is to continue to treat homosexuality as a very serious criminal offence and it would be contrary to public policy to vest rights in individuals which stem from their condonation and practice of what the legislature has deemed to be serious criminal offences…”

It is a fallacy to assert that any real or claimed rights may stem from one’s sexual orientation. No one can seek special protection on the basis of his orientation. The fundamental rights are aptly so called because they arise from our inherent dignity and value as human beings.

 44. In treating with the arguments in this way, it should not be assumed that I am accepting without question the proposition that it is justifiable for anyone, and more particularly for the State, to discriminate against anyone in relation ton employment, education or the provision of goods and services purely on the basis that they have committed a criminal act, to wit, a homosexual act! It would be double punishment to deny a person access to the things enjoyed by other members if the community in addition to the severe criminal sanctions that his behaviour would attract. The EOA is invidious because in respect of criminal behaviour, it is generally accepted that once one pays one’s debt to society, it is over.

45. While it is understandable that a conviction or even an orientation may be a relevant consideration for certain types of employment, the general nature of the discrimination that the EOA permits is unjustified and unconstitutional.”

Why is the present administration repeating the mistake of the UNC administration? The Act was supposed to be ‘born again’.

Exposing Discrimination

The case filed by former prisons officer, Khimraj Bissessar, against the State for discrimination lasted an entire decade. I remember the first visit from Mr Bissessar like yesterday.

He was a tall, well-built man, full of energy. He was broken and depressed because he had dared to articulate his ambition to aim for the post of Commissioner of Prisons, and was ridiculed and told: “No Indian will ever see that position.”

He was lecturing, in the training college, to junior officers whom he would, later, have to salute, as he was constantly bypassed for promotion without explanation. The racial imbalance in the protective services (Army, Police, Fire Service and the Prisons Service) is glaringly obvious.

This may not be because of racial discrimination, as historical, political and cultural factors are relevant.

In recent times, the photographs of applicants for these jobs have been published, and it shows that few Indians applied for these jobs. Assuming that these are pictures of all the people who applied (as opposed to those short-listed for recruitment), then the myth of the discrimination against Indians in this area is baseless. This does not, however, mean that the State can simply fold its arms, as diversity is considered essential in a nation’s protective services.

The London metropolitan police service introduced ethnic monitoring policies and racial minority programmes to ensure racial diversity in the police service. The research data showed that there were good reasons to explain why ethnic minorities were not applying. For example, the interview panels were all white, recruitment centres seldom targeted minorities, and the careers of the few non-white officers were stifled by covert and institutionalised racism. The signal sent to non-whites was that they were neither welcome nor wanted.

Bissessar’s experience sends a similar signal. He endured 15 years of discrimination, and would probably have been the country’s first Indo-Trini Prisons Commissioner, but hit a glass ceiling that he was unable to shatter. A letter was secretly placed on his file to say that he could not be trusted and had no integrity.

The PSC (then chaired by Kenneth Lalla) unwittingly facilitated and perpetuated the discrimination against Bissessar by making subsequent promotions on the advice of the Prisons Commissioner, without even bothering to advertise the vacancy, as required by law, far less consider Bissessar.

Bissessar’s experience shows that cries of racial discrimination are not always imaginary. The recent reform of the promotion system in the Police Service was supposed to have paid heed to the need for diversity in the evaluation and evaluation panels. This has, sadly, not occurred, with the result that many Indian officers have been complaining that the panel is biased and naturally favours non-Indian officers.

This flies in the face in the ten-year-old recommendation by the Centre for Ethnic Studies, which confirmed that Indians were grossly under-represented in the public service, that the interview panels and examination boards should strive for some measure of racial diversity, to give the appearance of fairness.

At present, there are rumours that senior officers have been secretly giving sensitive information about the evaluation exercise about the areas in which the candidate would be tested. The conspiracy theory is that this is leaked to ensure that the status quo is preserved. We can’t afford to