LET’S GET SERIOUS

Perhaps we think it isn’t worth jumpin’ an’ wavin’ about, but that’s hard to believe. Might it be perhaps that the Christmas and New Year festivities wore us out, or that we’re waiting for the official signing of the declaration on January 23? To my mind, the possibility that the birth of the CSME escaped our notice or that we just do not care are more plausible reasons.

I was not a fully functioning adult at the time of the West Indies Federation in the late ’50s and early ’60s but I can still recall the mood of excitement that penetrated my childhood bubble. I sensed that something really important was about to happen.

So where’s the buzz now that, finally, after 40 plus years we are coming together again in the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME)? This is a huge leap for us, a sign of a growing political maturity, a realisation that our economic future is linked to the future of the rest of the region.

In case we are not celebrating because we do not know what it is, very briefly, the CSME is a group of 12 countries that decided to pool resources to improve our competitiveness and alleviate our small-size disadvantage.

It is happening in two stages: The Single Market (CSM) which is aimed at the free movement of goods, services and certain categories of skilled workers between member states will lead eventually, in stage two, to a deeper integration when we harmonise our economic, fiscal and monetary policies and have a common currency in 2008. That the average person here understood anything about the CSME would be quite an achievement, in spite of the CSME Unit’s media strategy of running ads on TV and radio and in the press during 2005. If I did not know better I might imagine that there is a desire to play down this episode in our history.

In Barbados, one of the national radio stations of the state-assisted Caribbean Broadcasting Corporation is running a 6-month long series of short programmes that provide listeners with the background to the CSME and explain how it works for the Barbadian.

The newspapers there are full of it too. It may be that since the Barbados Prime Minister, Owen Arthur, has lead responsibility for implementation of the CSME he has managed to communicate the significance of the event to his countrymen.

In TT, on the other hand, no such kind of useful focused programming has taken place consistently on either TV or radio. I imagine if we had a national broadcaster with a public service remit, such as the now defunct NBN, we might be better informed. And the newspapers have been cursory, according to the CSME Unit, in their coverage.

I have been speculating whether the experience of the failure of the West Indies Federation might have sapped our enthusiasm for this new venture.

It was a pretty devastating time but there is now much to look forward to.

Since 1989, Caricom governments have been working towards this moment and it is a tribute to all concerned that we have got this far.

We should stop to consider what we have already gained, little incremental improvements, but time-saving ones, such as the single line at airports for nationals and Caricom residents that cut out some of the hassle of travelling. And big steps forward, such as the establishment of the Caribbean Court of Justice, which is headquartered in Port-of-Spain but which we, as yet, cannot fully utilise because the Government needs a special parliamentary majority to amend the Constitution and the opposition has refused to support it, having signed the original agreement when in office.

Of course, we are all primarily self-interested. And we cannot see how the CSME can affect us personally. We cannot see the benefits either, so we leave it to the politicians.

But we do not hold our politicians to account, then we complain when things get really out of hand.

Politicians only represent us in Parliament, not in every aspect of our lives and we should really be prepared to play a part in this process.

We should be asking how we can get our voices heard in the CSME, outside of the formal structures, and be pushing for a region-wide approach to some of our social ills.

But we get what we deserve, most of the time. It is not enough to say "nobody told us," regardless of how inadequate the information might be.

The simple fact is that we are not serious citizens.

Happy partying in 2006.