#BTColumn- One little car

The views and opinions expressed by the author(s) do not represent the official position of Barbados TODAY.

In response to governments oppressing their citizens, the United Nations established two conventions. The first is the ‘Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment’.

The second is the ‘Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance’. Barbados has signed neither – we did not need to.

Any citizen of Barbados can publicly oppose any Government policy. Politicians who take such criticisms personally may seethe in anger. But the limit of their power is to get the dissenter fired. When in opposition, both BLP and DLP politicians typically complained that their supporters were being politically victimised.

Tolerating dissenting views

In Republics, the political leaders normally control the nation’s armed forces. When despotic leaders realise how easy it is to have others silenced, they tend not to stop. The historical evidence for this is overwhelming.

In Barbados, our political leaders cannot order our torture or disappearance. They do not yet have that power. So regardless of their temperament, they must all learn to tolerate criticism. The last DLP administration did so by ignoring all criticism and rewarding political supporters.

To their credit, the current administration has allowed competitive tendering for projects from their first year in office. They also appear willing to listen to complaints, and may alter their position if a convincing argument is made. That is wise leadership – but it is not transferrable.

Barbadian privilege

The Governor General commands our armed forces, not our politicians. She is supposed to be immune from politisation, so that she can meaningfully protect all Barbadians. Behind her stands the entire British military, including enough nuclear weapons to deter any nation who wants to harm us. This gives us a privilege that few other countries have.
With our privilege, we have no excuse for not representing the oppressed. We can tell China that their genocide of the Chinese Muslim Uyghurs, and their persecution of Chinese Christians, is wrong. We tell the US that it is not heroic to spend 20 years to train Afghans to kill other Afghans more efficiently.

Losing freedom

In a Republic, I am concerned that Barbadian citizens will lose this freedom to speak and engage in evidencebased discussions. The only beneficiaries of Barbados being a Republic are our politicians, who will finally have the absolute power they craved.
In the mist of celebrating our own destruction, we have a small window to sign and ratify both UN conventions. The associated conventions that allow the families of the tortured and disappeared to make complaints, should also be ratified, otherwise a glaring loophole will remain.

Something is happening

Something is happening in Barbados. No evidence-based discussions seem to be allowed in our newspapers, on our television, or on our radio stations. Only one view is allowed on all issues.

Our journalists appear terrified to challenge easily verifiably false claims made by politically influential radical activist leaders. Our artists, calypsonians, poets, and writers appear to have all kissed the ring, and have stopped being the conscience of our nation.

Some dancehall artists attempted to fill the glaring void, by providing the best explanation for the guns, drugs and killings in Barbados. For their creative efforts, we witnessed big men being reduced to fearful primary school boys being chastised at assembly.

Lost integrity

The Integrity Group of Barbados advertises itself as a non-partisan diverse group. It is allowed space in our newspaper, where they tend to support the Government’s agenda – then they found themselves in a predicament.

The Auditor General published his 2021 report, which showed that the mismanagement and potential corruption had not changed under the current administration.

Surprisingly, the Integrity Group criticised the Government (Nation, 16 June 2021). I applauded their rare bravery, but predicted that it would not last. It did not. Two days later, they published a letter clarifying their earlier criticism of the current administration.
In their letter, they blasted the DLP for possible corruption, and recommended that the BLP administration investigate the DLP “without delay” (Nation, 18 June 2021). The DLP currently have zero seats in the House and Senate, but we understand why integrity had to be sacrificed.

In Republics, politicians no longer need to tolerate dissenting views – they send out waves of trucks instead. In Barbados, only one small car will be required.

Grenville Phillips II is a Chartered Structural Engineer. He can be reached at NextParty246@gmail.com