Ex-DLP leader: Barbados’ democracy fragile, needs reform

Former leader of the Democratic Labour Party Dr Ronnie Yearwood has issued a dire warning about the state of democracy in Barbados, citing voter apathy, soaring inequality, and growing distrust in political systems as critical factors threatening the foundation of governance in the nation.

“Democracy is under threat in Barbados, across the Caribbean, and around the world,” he said in an interview with Barbados TODAY. “People don’t believe that democracy is working for them. They feel it works for some, the elite, but not for the masses.”

Referring to the region-wide issue of low voter turnouts, Dr Yearwood said: “People are just tired of the democratic project in many ways because it keeps disappointing them. There’s failure, there are a lot of promises, but nothing coming of it.”

The university law lecturer further pointed to other events as evidence of democracy’s fragility: “We saw, I think it was in Martinique, the riots recently over rising food prices. We’ve seen the outcomes in US elections and prior elections. We’ve seen what’s happened in the UK with basic minority government.”

Turning a critical lens to national developments, Dr Yearwood identified what he described as systemic inequality in Barbados as a key contributor to the disconnection between people and the democratic system.

He highlighted gun violence among young people as a warning sign.

“What is a teenager doing with a gun in his hand?” he asked. “That is madness. Something is wrong. That tells me that you’ve been robbed of an entire life, and then you rob somebody else of their life because you’ve been robbed of yours.”

Dr Yearwood suggested that youth disengagement stemmed from a lack of opportunity and systemic barriers.

He said: “They need to be heard because nobody’s hearing them. They’re not being heard in their households, they’re not being heard in their communities, and then the people that are hearing them are sometimes not the elements of society that you want them to get attention from, like the gangs.”

He called for reforms to make education and programmes more accessible, especially in underserved areas: “You can’t talk about empowering young people if they can’t afford bus fare to get to a programme.

“We’ve talked about why there isn’t a campus for a community college in the north. As small as Barbados is, travelling can be hard, especially with an inefficient bus system.”

Dr Yearwood further stressed that democracy must deliver more than elections.

He told Barbados TODAY that through his work with Friends of Democracy, formed since his ouster from the DLP, he and his team aim to address systemic inequities and engage marginalised communities.

“For democracy to thrive, people need to feel that it works for them. That means tackling the barriers that keep them on the margins and ensuring they have a real chance to participate in society,” he said.

He declared that his vision for democracy extends beyond governance, noting the need to improve the quality of life for citizens.

“Democracy isn’t just about elections; it’s about the quality of life people experience every day. If we want to secure democracy for future generations, we must start by addressing the inequalities and disconnections that undermine it today,” he said.