President and Khan talk reparations

And I also saw that Mr Israel Khan SC had written to Queen Elizabeth II stating that Her Majesty and the Parliament of Britain should offer a sincere apology for the British participation in the enslavement of Africans and should apologise to Africa and the African diaspora throughout the world for the cruelties that Britain inflicted upon the enslaved Africans.

As the incumbent head of the Trinidad and Tobago National Committee on Reparations (TT NCR), I had written to the media on a prior occasion about the indifferent attitude toward the committee that has come from the Minister of Foreign and Caricom Affairs, the Honourable Senator Dennis Moses, under whose responsibility the TT NCR falls.

Just recently, on Friday 28, July I delivered a letter to the Honourable Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley seeking a meeting with him regarding the status of the committee.

I stated that the TT NCR is a Cabinet-appointed committee, established following the collective agreement at the Conference of Heads of Caricom, held in Port of Spain in July 2013.

In addition, I informed the Prime Minister that the matter of reparations was tabled recently at the recent 38th Regular Meeting of the Conference of Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community held in Grenada from July 4-6. And I quoted a statement captioned “Reparations for Native Genocide and Slavery” which was included in the Communique released at the conclusion of the Conference.

It is very inspiring to read in President Carmona’s press release that ,“Trinidad and Tobago should support the efforts of Caricom governments as expressed by Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor of the University of the West Indies and Chairman of the Caricom Reparations Commission, in an address to the British House of Commons on July 16, 2014”.

The President’s release added, “As a former judge and a firm believer in reparatory justice, I am of the view that as we celebrate Emancipation Day 2017, we must examine affirmatively the case for reparations as adopted by Caricom governments and advocated by Sir Hilary and other spokespersons”.

“We in TT must view the call for reparations in the context of the duty we owe to our forefathers who made the ultimate sacrifice and whose contribution to our present well-being must be recognised in a world which now accepts that compensation and reparation are prerequisites in the dispensation of justice”.

What is thought-provoking in Mr Israel Khan’s letter is that the attorney has referenced the very first item on the 10 point Plan of Action of the Caricom Reparations Commission’s strategy for Reparatory Justice captioned “Full Formal apology” which says: “The healing process for victims and the descendants of the enslaved and enslavers requires as a precondition the offer of a sincere formal apology by the governments of Europe”.

“Some governments in refusing to offer an apology have issued in place Statements of Regrets. Such statements do not acknowledge that crimes have been committed and represent a refusal to take responsibility for such crimes”.

“Statements of regrets represent, furthermore, a reprehensible response to the call for apology in that they suggest that victims and their descendants are not worthy of an apology”.

“Only an explicit formal apology will suffice within the context of the CARICOM Reparatory Justice Programme”.” Notwithstanding their support I wish to remind President Carmona as well as Mr Khan that the mandate of the Caricom Reparations Commissions also includes reparations for the First Peoples.

Aiyegoro Ome Mt Lambert