Yesterday's solutions

IF THE observance of Indian Arrival Day today sends us any message at all, it could hardly be a call for unalloyed rejoicing. There can be no doubt, of course, about the tremendous contribution which the East Indian community has made to the all-round development of our country; their members can be proud of it and the rest of the nation should be glad to recognise it. But the national holiday, intended to commemorate the arrival of this vital section of our population 158 years ago, finds us in a situation where, instead of seeking to advance the level of harmony and tolerance we have achieved as a multi-ethnic society, some influential voices are still intent on sowing the seeds of discord by their continuing emphasis on discrimination, alienation, victimisation and their depiction of East Indians as a suppressed community of second class citizens.

What our nation and its citizens need now is a greater feeling of love, respect and appreciation for one another. But that idea is nothing original. We remember one particular voice, at a certain time, proclaiming the truth that our country will only achieve its full potential when the two major ethnic groups come together in a spirit of unity. An obvious observation, but was it only lip service? That consummation, indeed the encouragement of efforts to achieve it, should, in our view, be part of the central message of today's observance.

More than a century and a half after the freeing of African slaves and the importation of Indians to replace them on the colonial sugar plantations, Trinidad and Tobago is still a society in transition, still seeking its true identity. Maybe we will never find it, as the evolutionary process of integrating so much diversity, so much plurality, so many different traditions, seems a long and difficult one indeed. But, as history and fate would have it, that is our destiny; whatever our origins might be, we are "doomed" to share these two small islands as one society, one aspiring nation.

As we travel that road, willy nilly, the voices of division and dissension and protest and dislocation can only serve us ill. They are yesterday's voices, offering yesterday's stale solutions. They can only lead to a turning back of the clock. Let us, on this special day, recognise that our society has made remarkable strides, thanks in part to the industry of the East Indian community. And the results and benefits of their success are there for all to see. But we are still a long way from achieving the kind of development that would wipe out poverty and deprivation from our land and the kind of social unity that would mould us closer to true nationhood. Whatever the problems may be in this regard, whatever the seemingly insurmountable barriers that appear in our way, the fact is, we can only hope to progress by approaching them honestly and constructively, on the basis of demonstrable truth and mutual good will, and always by an unwavering commitment to the principle stated in our anthem, that here every creed and race must find an equal place.

Ours is an open society grappling with the challenges of a rapidly changing world. The opportunities for individual, group and corporate growth and achievement are open to all. We have a free and democratic foundation on which to build. We have national institutions that have served us well. We are free to agitate for changes that would improve our effectiveness and ensure the equity of our dealing. We have an intelligent society that should know the uselessness of divisive agitators, offering yesterday's solutions.