Georgetown: Host and Chairman of the 23rd Intercessional Meeting of the Leaders of the Caribbean Community Desi Bouterese, used the opportunity of the opening ceremony earlier today to hail the occasion of International Day of Women singling out premiers such as Kamla Persaud-Bissesar of Trinidad and Tobago and Portia Simpson-Miller of Jamaica.
He said that their recent success at their respective polls is reason for celebration for the women of CARICOM even as he called on the regional leaders to hone in on their resources and reduce a dependence on the international community.
Bouterese also used the occasion of Phagwah that is also celebrated in Suriname as a National Holiday to impress on the regional leaders that its significance of a new beginning and the planting of a new seed are relevant to the CARICOM in its current state. “I therefore call all my fellow leaders to join me in a renewed commitment to the Region badly in need of a new seed….As we throw water, light the Holi and celebrate with our Hindu brothers and sisters the Holi Phagwah, let us celebrate our diversity and be guided across our own religious and spiritual beliefs to the importance of joint endeavor.”
Staying true to the theme of the meeting in Suriname, Bouterese said it is the women that stood firm through the various challenges of the region namely slavery, indentureship as well as the independence struggles. “They are still the foundation of all care given,” said Bouterese as he underscored the role of women in the community. He said that were the contributions of the women of the community truly recognized then it would be illustrated adequately, “how much the women of this Region contribute to our well being.”
In talking about the Community’s repayment to the incredulous debt to the women of the Region, “(such as) our mothers and grandmothers we can begin by honouring our commitments that we have made in this Region to make our countries safe…but perhaps the greatest intervention can come from improving the economic circumstances of poor and vulnerable families throughout this Region.”
While his comments were well received by the various delegations that have gathered in Suriname, Bouterese warned that the goals could only be achieved if, “we treat with renewed vigor and renewed beginning…we must not only take account of our failures but permit new energy to infuse our possibilities.”
He called for the leaders to commit to “marking this day, March 8, as a day that CARICOM Heads committed to a new partnership with our women.”
Bouterese called on those in the Secretariat Headquartered in Guyana to enable the process with a view to ensuring “that we begin our institutional arrangement with a promise of partnership and inclusivity of our women in the Region.”
He said that an in-depth analysis of the institutional arrangements would yield, “a better way of doing things…a faster response to false starts.”
He conceded that the requests’ being made of the CARICOM leaders with respect to women is “a tall order,” in light of the global challenges. “We not only require a better and more empowered Secretariat, we need also the political will from us elected officials to further the integration agenda even as our peoples do on their own, sometimes traversing unfriendly waters.”
