Caribbean RoundUp
CARICOM
Two CARICOM states which includes Haiti and Trinidad and Tobago have declared state of emergencies (SoE) eight days apart due to increasing murders and gun and gang violence in both countries.
After a series of violent gun attacks in Haiti by gangs the government had to implement a SoE which took effect on Dec. 22, 2024, and will end on Jan. 21.
Eight days after Haiti declared its SoE, citizens in T&T woke up to the news that a State of Emergency had gone into immediate effect as the government sought to address a similar problem with escalating criminal violence and the nation’s highest murder rate of 623.
The Government is aiming to target violent criminal activity, particularly illegal firearms, ammunition and explosives being used by gang members. It’s T&T’s seventh SoE.
Jamaica who is a CARICOM member has also declared numerous SoEs under Prime Minister Andrew Holness’ administration to clamp down on the country’s worrying crime rate and gun violence.
Belize, another CARICOM nation, has had more than six SoEs since 2018.
The remaining 11 CARICOM countries have declared SoEs over the years but were specifically for natural disasters.
Grenada
The Grenada government says the Public Sector Employees (Pension Fund) Bill, which will establish a new system of paying pension to government employees and public officers, is better than the existing plan because it allows workers to have access to their funds before retirement age.
Currently, more than 2,500 established retired public officers receive a non-contributory pension from the government, which they allocated EC$109.4 million (One EC dollar=US$0.37 cent) for pensions and gratuities in its national budget for 2024.
The new Bill mandates that each employee or public officer who meets the criteria to join the new scheme contribute 3% of the salaries/wages to the Fund with a matching 3% from the government.
There will be an actuary review every two years to determine if the contributing amount should be changed.
Minister of Legal Affairs, Claudette Joseph, speaking in Parliament, said that some people are of the belief that the new scheme is less favourable but that is not accurate.
“Workers are now required to contribute to this fund, some believe that it is automatically less favorable, that is not correct Madam President. First of all, you have the voluntarily contribution which you can take advantage of and save more, you have your fund vested so you have a return on your investment,” she said.
“The other things is that against your contribution you can withdraw up to EC$2,000 twice per year, so you could actually, it is a savings, it’s going up as the 401K in the USA, you can actually withdraw, so instead of going by fast cash and paying 15 per cent interest or wherever else you are paying interest, you can a withdraw twice yearly,” she added.
Joseph said another benefit is that when the funds become vested, workers are able to receive the money.
However, lawyers who contributed to the legal argument which declared the Pension Disqualification Act as unconstitutional, are of the opinion that the new legislative scheme is also unconstitutional because it violates section 92 of the Constitution.
Government is hoping to enforce the Act this month following its approval in Parliament.
Guyana
Defending the country’s gas-to-energy project, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo defended has insisted that the United States Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM Bank) would not have approved a US$526 million loan for the project if it was not feasible.
He said approval followed an independent, technical and environmental feasibility study, and that before the loan was approved, EXIM Bank conducted a thorough review to determine the viability of the venture.
“This loan went to the United States Congress and it would have been blocked by the Congress if we didn’t have adequate answers,” he said.
Guyana’s President Irfaan Ali was notified by President and chair of the EXIM Bank, Reta Jo Lewis of the approval.
“For those people who have been opposed to the project and said, it’s a fossil fuel project, I just want to draw their attention to what the press release from EXIM Bank pointed out,” Jagdeo said, noting that it will reduce 460,000 tonnes of carbon emission annually, equivalent to the emissions from approximately one million barrels of oil per year.
In addition, the government will be saving approximately US$100 million annually on fuel costs, while electricity costs will be slashed by 50 per cent, leading to an annual saving of US$250 million.
Jagdeo further explained, “It has an impact on both balance of payment of the country and also in the pockets of Guyanese companies and individuals.”
He added that the project will deliver substantial benefits to Guyanese citizens, with strong support from the US Government.
Haiti
The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is calling for the urgent protection of medical facilities and health services as violence continues to increase rapidly across Haiti.
With armed groups targeting healthcare centres and hospitals, PAHO said the country’s already fragile healthcare system is under “unprecedented strain, severely affecting access to essential medical care”.
It said the situation in Haiti has become increasingly dire, with over 700,000 people displaced due to violence.
PAHO said the Bernard Mevs Hospital in Port-au-Prince was partially destroyed recently, “further exacerbating the already limited healthcare capacity.”
“The attack on Bernard Mevs Hospital is a tragic blow to Haiti’s already fragile healthcare system.
I am deeply concerned about the escalating violence and stand in solidarity with Haiti’s health community,” PAHO Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa said.
“Protecting healthcare facilities, patients, health workers, equipment, and medical activities is essential.”
Prior to this, PAHO said Doctors Without Borders (MSF), suspended operations in the capital for three weeks.
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Prime Minister Dr. Ralph Gonsalves has written to Russia President Vladimir Putin, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and United States President Joe Biden calling for an end to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
“I write in a quest for global peace, justice, security, prosperity for all humanity, grounded in the fundamental tenets of international law, the precepts of the Charter of the United Nations, and multilateral engagement,” Gonsalves said in his letter dated Dec. 2, that was also sent to the Secretary General of the United Nations, António Guterres.
“I am making a humble plea for an honorable, negotiated end, immediately, to the war in Ukraine,” Gonsalves added in his letter.
Gonsalves in his letter, noted that the war has been raging since February 2022 and has “recently entered a most dangerous phase of escalation which portends an hitherto unthinkable nuclear Armageddon.”
“To civilised men and women across the globe, this war is senseless, as it has been brutal and completely unnecessary. It is as though the most powerful and advanced nations of the world have learnt nothing of lasting value from the history of humankind.”
Gonsalves said he has followed the course of the war very closely from its beginnings and through its various twists and turns.
He said it was not his place to prescribe what a likely, negotiated peace would look like “but I feel sure, conceptually, that neither side in this war would be completely satisfied with any terms of a peace settlement.”
He said each side must, therefore, be prepared “to arrive, in peace, in a mutually-agreed condition of dissatisfaction.”
Gonsalves said his “solemn and urgent plea to the distinguished Presidents of the Russian Federation, Ukraine, and the United States, with the assistance of the esteemed Secretary General of the United Nations, is to bring the war in Ukraine to a negotiated peaceful end now, in honor to the actual combatants, their suffering families, and all humanity who are in pain.”
The letter is the second that Gonsalves has written to Putin since the war began.
Trinidad and Tobago
Prime Minister Dr. Keith Christopher Rowley announced his planned retirement from politics at a post-Cabinet media briefing last Friday at the Office of the Prime Minister, Central Administrative Services, in the island of Tobago.
He confirmed he will not contest the next general election and plans to step down as prime minister before the end of his current term, honouring a pledge he made in 2020 not to seek re-election and marking the end of a 45-year career in public service.
“I will not be offering myself again to represent anyone, either in Trinidad or in Tobago,” Rowley, revealed.
“Forty-five years is a long time, and I would like to say thank you appropriately to all those who have supported my efforts and benefited from what I hope were positive impacts on this country,” he added, as he reflected on his political journey.
Rowley, 75, who is T&T’s seventh prime minister, added, “At the last election in 2020, I brought a number of young people into the political arena. Many of them are still in Government today, having gained valuable experience. They are now prepared to lead this country forward,” he said.
He reiterated that his decision to step away from politics was not a new one.
“In 2020 at Balisier House, I said I would not do this again, and I meant it,” he said.
“Before the end of this term, I will step down and go after my family,” Rowley said.
While he continues to serve as PNM political leader for now, he said, “I will oversee nominations for the seats and ensure continuity, but I will not be offering myself again,” he said.
Rowley took time to outline the steps being taken as the PNM prepares for the general election and explained, “2025 is a very important year. It is definitely an election year. Half of it is already behind us, and the other half lies ahead. Parliament dissolves at the end of August, and within 90 days, elections must be called. The population will then decide who manages the affairs of the country. But I will not be part of that decision-making process as a candidate.”
— Compiled by Devika Ragoonanan
