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That the new incumbent is a woman, of rural background, of Indian descent, forces academics to work outside the traditional tool box of investigation.
First out the post is Dr. Kris Rampersad, a journalist, lecturer and political observer in her own right. Rampersad has brought out a selection of Persad-Bissessar’s speeches showing how the path to power was cut and maintained right up to the weeks before that euphoric night of celebration.
What gives the author’s book an insightful quality is that it was launched the week before Persad-Bissessar’s massive electoral win. Few guessed what the result was going to be because commentators, inured by decades of assessing a two-party system along racial lines, hardly bothered to look behind the scenes at a fluid seething electorate, many voting for the first time.
Rampersad’s opening essay to the book, titled “A Clash of Political Cultures: Cultural Diversity and Minority Politics in Trinidad and Tobago”, sets new interpretations for future elected office holders. This essay could be a good starting point for political scientists taking a new look at the twin island republic’s evolution into its now open accepted multicultural face.
“The whole perception of TT society is that it is race-based, and projections coming out of this, are false,” she said in Toronto to promote her new book.
“We inherited a Westminster style system and interpreters of the two party system it posits presents and represents that in terms of race and in the process overlook that Opposition politics was really accommodating elements of the country's diversity that could not seem to find a place in the ruling party.
Both in terms of the physical presentations and in representations of the country as a whole, you get wrong interpretations of what this country is all about. Take for example, our Embassies, High Commissions and Consulates, they do not reflect, or represent the fullness of TT society; not the kind of society we know of a place where we have moved beyond racial tolerance to a casualness and comfortableness with each other and as a result we don’t have the kind of animosities and antagonisms seen in other societies coming to grip with their diversity.”
Rampersad points out that one of the enduring myths is that in sections of Trinidad there are Indian-only villages, or African-only suburbs. She insists that from times as long as one can remember, there have been peoples of different races living side by side, sharing ancestral values, and cuisines, for examples. Then you have the inevitable process of racial mixing. But it’s more than African or Indian; there’s Chinese, Syrian-Lebanese, European and Taino/Carib/Arawak. “There is no race based community in Trinidad, all are diverse. You must understand this if you want to understand the political face of the Republic and it seemed that the politics of the last 30 years has been unable to catch-up with this reality.”
Rampersad states with conviction that the evolution to a diverse political representation became more and more evident in the 1970s when cracks began appearing in the People's National Movement when key figures like Karl Hudson-Phillips and ANR Robinson abandoned the party. The victories of the National Alliance for Reconstruction (NAR) in 1986, and the United National Congress (UNC) in 1996 are the manifestations of a broad power sharing.
It was in this period that the young wife of a doctor, Kamla Persad-Bissessar was thrust into the role first as alderman, then a parliamentarian, then Attorney General, then Acting Prime Minister. She might have come from a Hindu home, but her parents also had her baptised into the Spiritual Baptist Movement. During her law studies in Jamaica and otherwise, she expanded her cultural appreciation of other societies, strengths and weaknesses. Indeed, through the campaign and on election night, on stage, she danced to Bob Marley’s “One Love”, even as possibly a couple hundred tassa drums reverberated around the party headquarters.
Reading through this selection of speeches, you also see the wordings of broad representations, Persad-Bissessar’s loyalty to her boss, the Leader of the Opposition, and former Prime Minister, Basdeo Panday, in spite of jealousies and putdowns.
Remember too we are working in an outwardly machismo society, yet still inherently matriarchal. Feminists generally call this the “glass ceiling”.
Persad-Bissessar’s speeches, which represents over 60 years of the political history of the country and some 21 years of the political life of Mrs Persad-Bissessar shows she is no fluke to the nation’s highest elected office, that she had been addressing issues and problems when few cared to debate them. That she was not ever afraid to confront her allies or government ministers with blunt language. But she tempered her rhetoric with diplomacy, smiles and a sense of logic that was hard to refute; for example, her action confronting the Speaker of the House with his stupid decision banning laptops in Parliament when every other democracy in the world was incorporating them into the era of information led debate.
For lovers of Trinbago society, this is a good book to have, to appreciate the fullness of its roots, and as the author’s says, a good template for other emergent multicultural societies the world over.
The book is called Through The Political Glass Ceiling, Race to Prime Ministership by Trinidad and Tobago’s First Female – Kamla Persad-Bissessar.
(Reprinted with permission of The Caribbean Camera, Toronto, Canada).
International Federation of Cultural Coalitions commend progress made by efforts for advancing cultural diversity
'Kris Rampersad have organised three very important regional meetings in Port-of-Spain in 2007 and again in 2009, as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting'
A promise made. A promise kept. The Persad-Bissessar Government had committed in its 2010 manifesto to ratify the Unesco Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diver- sity of Cultural Expressions in its first 50 days in office.
T&T became the 112th country to ratify the convention adopted only five years ago. This unprecedented pace of endorsement by the international community is a clear indication of a large consensus in favour of this new international instrument intended to counterbalance trade agreements and affirm the sovereign right of countries to promote the expression of their own cultural diversity by adopting appropriate policy measures. By comparison, 90 countries had ratified the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change five years after its adoption in 1987; 192 countries now have.
To most citizens of T&T, this seems so far removed from day-to-day preoccupations that one could even wonder why should a government busy with so many other priorities even consider spending much time on this. For a country whose future is so much tied to the social cohesion made possible by the adequate protection and promotion of its cultural diversity, this is a significant gesture. The new Government thereby sends a strong signal both to the international community and to its own people that cultural expression is a central priority of the country's well-being and development. Cultural diversity is to mankind what biodiversity is to the living thing. It is our collective wealth. The collective wealth of the people of T&T that calls for adequate protection and promotion.
As with any other international instrument, universal acceptance through ratification increases the convention's legitimacy in the international legal system. But more importantly, proper implementation by the international community is key to success. The Gov- ernment of T&T must now take up the challenge of actually using the convention it sought to have. By ratifying the Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions so early in its term, the Government has given itself a head start in planning for its implementation so it can report that progress has been made when its turn comes to report back to Unesco, as is expected from all signatory states every four years after ratification.
This is a long journey and so there is no need to press ahead too hastily until a good plan has been devised. A first step would be for the people of T&T, the cultural sector and especially artists and creative industries, to be properly informed of their rights and of the international commitment made by their Government. A second step could be for the country to take stock of the current level of protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions and define the roadmap of measures that could be taken to achieve the convention's objectives: where are we now, where do we want to go, how are we going to get there and, most importantly, how are going to know that we are getting where we want to be?
A third step might be for the Parliament to adopt a law specifically addressing how it intends to implement the Unesco convention, which could prove very useful to ensure co-ordination between the various ministries and agencies involved. The civil society movement of T&T has played a leadership role in garnering support for the convention at national and regional levels in the Caribbean. The University of the West Indies, St Augustine campus, as well as Kris Rampersad have organised three very important regional meetings in Port-of-Spain in 2007 and again in 2009, as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.
Consistent with article 11 of the Convention on the Diversity of Cultural Expressions, which states that "parties shall encourage the active participation of civil society in their efforts to achieve the objectives of this convention," one can hope that this leadership role will continue to be fully recognised. This can only be possible if there is a willingness on the part of the Government to keep civil society informed of its intentions and actions. By doing so, one can expect that the people of T&T will better be able to appreciate the efforts made by their government to ensure that the country's diversity of cultural expressions is rightfully protected and promoted alongside the diversity of cultural expressions coming from abroad.
* The International Federation of Coalitions for Cultural Diversity (IFCCD) is the voice of cultural professionals worldwide. The federation brings together 43 national coalitions comprised of over 600 organisations
In conjunction with the Commonwealth Foundation, the IFCCD facilitated three very important regional meetings in Port-of-Spain in 2007 and, as part of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, again in 2009.
Ouedraogo also thanked the Commonwealth Foundation, and its programme director for culture, Andrew Firmin, for supporting these initiatives. “The UNESCO Convention was intended to counterbalance trade agreements and affirm the sovereign right of countries to promote the expression of their own cultural diversity by adopting appropriate policies and measures.
As for any other international legal instrument, universal acceptance through rapid ratification by a large number of countries, from all regions, is essential to give the Cultural Diversity Convention its full legitimacy in the international legal system,” stated Ouedraogo.
He however added that this is only the beginning of a long journey towards implementation, and warned that it would indeed be regrettable to see the Convention fail through poor implementation.
Ouedraogo expressed the feeling that the Government must now take up the challenge of actually using the Convention it sought to have. He stated: “It is vital that the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago are satisfied that by ratifying the Convention, their Government has begun to take action to ensure that the countries diversity of cultural expressions is rightfully protected and promoted.”
Ouedraogo then outlined three steps the Government must take at this time. The first would be for the people of TT, and especially the cultural sector, artistes and creative industries, to be informed of their rights and of the international commitment made by their Government.
The second, for the country to take stock of the current level of protection and promotion of the diversity of cultural expressions and define the roadmap of measures that could be taken to achieve the Convention’s objectives and the third, for Government to adopt a law specifically addressing how it intends to implement the Convention, which could prove very useful to ensure coordination between the various ministries and agencies involved.
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