History of West Indian Federation Effort

Remembering a four-year exercise in futility
KEEBLE McFARLANE
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Source- Jamaica Observer

To many of us who were around at the time, it seemed like a great idea - all the British colonies in the Caribbean region banding together in a federation, the better to chart their future. After all, isn't unity more desirable than operating separately? Aren't some of the most successful countries in the world federations? Wouldn't we be able to have much more clout in the world with a unified voice rather than as a collection of micro-states? Wouldn't our economic affairs be much more efficient?

Well, 50 years ago this week, it happened - the Parliament of the Federation of the West Indies was inaugurated in Port of Spain with Princess Margaret representing the Queen.

The federation came into being on January 3, 1958, and an election was held on March 25. The West Indies Federal Labour Party, made up of Norman Manley's PNP, Eric Williams's PNM and the urban-based parties in the eight other islands handily won the election, with the Democratic Labour Party, led by Bustamante's JLP and the rural-based parties throughout the islands, as the much smaller Opposition. Grantley Adams of Barbados was the first (and only) prime minister, and Britain sent out a career Conservative politician, Patrick Buchan-Hepburn, to serve as governor-general. He was a baron, and we knew him as Lord Hailes.

The idea of a federation of the British Caribbean territories was not a new one - it had been kicked around for years. The first serious consideration, though, took place at a conference in Montego Bay in 1947. It was attended by delegates from Barbados, British Guiana, British Honduras, the Leeward Islands, Trinidad and Tobago, and the Windward Islands. The conference voted to accept the principle of political federation and struck a committee to examine the possibilities and to draft a constitution. The committee submitted its report to a second conference held in London, and it was circulated to all the legislatures for their consideration.

With some reservations, all the legislatures, except those of British Guiana, British Honduras and the British Virgin Islands, accepted it. The final decision on federation came out of a third conference in London in 1956. It left open the possibility of the reluctant territories to join later. After that came prolonged and difficult discussions about where the capital should be situated. They chose Chaguaramas in Trinidad, but that didn't work since the US had a naval base there. The idea was soon abandoned and Port of Spain stood in as the capital.

One Commonwealth country which showed considerable interest in the new federation was Canada, which itself began as a confederation of former colonies with large tracts of unknown territories added later. It contributed two merchant ships, the Federal Palm and the Federal Maple, which visited all the islands twice a month. When the federation was dissolved not long after it was born, the ships continued their rounds for a while, then seemed to disappear without a trace.

Despite the good intentions and the efforts of many, the federation was doomed from the start. For one thing, the constituent territories had each developed in its own way, with varying degrees of cooperation commingled with large dollops of suspicion and insularity. Jamaica, the biggest territory by far, and separated from the eastern string by 1500 kilometres of water, was the most suspicious. Its leaders, Manley and Bustamante, did not personally enter federal politics, and Trinidad's Eric Williams stayed away as well.

In addition, the British created a weak government structure, with the governor general having executive, rather than mere ceremonial powers. Money was a serious problem - the budgets of Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago were both larger than the federal budget, and all the territories remained as separate entities, able, for instance, to hide behind tariff walls against other members of the federation. Contrast this with the present-day European Community, which has a high degree of cooperation and commonality.

The differences and divisions very quickly began to fester, and by 1960 the JLP began agitating against the federation. Bustamante and his cohorts kept the heat on, and in 1961 Manley asked his compatriots for their opinion. The campaign was a contrast between the concepts of the two parties. Manley and the PNP discussed the merits of joining with others to work towards the goal of eventual independence, which he had promoted from his first entry into politics in the late 1930s. Bustamante and the JLP, on the other hand, appealed to the basic concerns of the poor - "Can you eat federation?" In the end, it was no contest - the "No" side won a decisive 54 per cent in the referendum on September 19, 1961. The event was special for me, as I served as a presiding officer at a polling station located at my home.

Britain had proposed in 1961 that the federation should become independent the next year, but the idea was now moot. The vote was followed by a flurry of talks among the leaders of the remaining territories, but these soon came to naught, and Williams was strongly re-elected in December of that year. He declared that "ten minus one is nought", and followed Jamaica's lead in going it alone. Formal independence came to both countries in August of 1962, and the others were left to fend for themselves.

About the only solid regional entity remaining is the university, which had been set up long before all this anyway. The cricket team had long preceded the federation, and all the endeavours since then, such as Caricom, have come up against the same insular attitudes and distrust. The Caribbean Court of Justice is a perfectly logical and intelligent idea, but, as we have witnessed, it has been having a very difficult time getting airborne. Part of the unease among Jamaicans in this regard can be attributed to the underlying suspicion that this could be a form of federation by the back door. When I first went to Toronto and began working for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, I met an older editor who had been correspondent in Bonn and London.

He used to joke that the Secretary of State for the Colonies of the day, Duncan Sandys, had the habit of inviting colonial leaders to London and locking them in a room until they agreed to form a federation. Several were formed, including the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland, the East African Federation (Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika). The only one of note to have survived is Malaysia, after Singapore seceded soon after it began.
keeble.mack@sympatico.ca

Let the People Decide

Jamaicans will decide on regional integration, says PM

Source: Caribbean Net News
Published on Friday, April 11, 2008

Print Version

KINGSTON, Jamaica (OPM):

Prime Minister Bruce Golding said only the people of Jamaica can decide if the country should enter into a unified political structure with the rest of the region. His comments were made on Tuesday, during a courtesy call at Jamaica House by Stuart Jack, Governor of the Cayman Islands.

In responding to a question from Jack about the pace of Caribbean integration, Golding said there is a limit to which any region can integrate without having a political structure. He said however that the decision as to how that political structure will derive its legitimate authority rests ultimately with the people of the region.

Jamaica's Prime Minister Bruce Golding. JIS Photo"If we are going to invest in a sovereign authority, only the people can decide," Golding stated. He said the process of integration has been moving along very slowly, especially with regards to the free movement of skilled nationals. He said Jamaica is the only country where the system seems to have worked, adding that a lack of capacity may be one of the reasons it has not worked in others.

He cited the Economic Partnership Agreement and the staging of Cricket World Cup in 2007 as examples of how regional cooperation has worked. He said much more could be achieved especially in the area of security. Turning to US/Caribbean relations, Golding said there is a feeling that the United States has been distracted from its interest in the region by events unfolding in emerging democracies, as well as the war in Iraq.

He said it is hoped that there will be an enlightened approach to the region as a whole and not just towards Cuba, where there was a recent change in leadership. Golding expressed the view that Cuba should be brought into the mainstream of the international fold as there are structures within the United Nations to deal with contending issues. He said now was the time for the region to hold hands and engage in deeper collaboration, as there was enough wealth that could be generated for all countries. He said Jamaica will be seeking to expand its cooperation with Cuba outside of those areas in which both countries are already engaged.

Region Losing Speed to CSME

Region losing speed to CSME

Published on: 3/16/08.
by: RICKEY SINGH

Source: Nation Newspaper - Barbados

AFTER LAST WEEK'S 19th Inter-Sessional Meeting of Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders in The Bahamas, it seems that CARICOM is losing speed in advancing arrangements for the realisation of the promised single economic space by 2015.

There is a growing perception that amid all the intense paperchase associated with rounds and rounds of technical, ministerial and Heads of Government meetings, there continues to be a yawning gap between official assurances and decisions and actual implementation results.

While the ministerial and Heads of Government meetings continue to reflect a spirit of camaraderie the question is whether they are really singing from the same hymn sheet at on specific regional issues.

Like, for instance, crime and security; effective governance (an issue that cannot continue to ignore the need for an administrative mechanism, empowered with executive authority); regional air and sea transportation and, of course, transformation of the region's agriculture sector with a focus on poverty reduction, enhancing food security and job creation.

It is disappointing to note that the multiplicity of meetings, involving valuable time and money, do not seem to be producing the quality of results normally envisioned in the public rhetoric of the leaders.

Nor would it have escaped attention that at the opening session of last week's Nassau summit, the Community's Secretary General, Edwin Carrington, himself felt constrained to sound a warning that the deadline for inauguration of the CSME, seven years from now, may not be met as there are member governments lagging behind in required readiness-arrangements.

Such concerns were previously expressed by others, among them former Barbados Prime Minister, Owen Arthur who until two months ago, had been shouldering for some 14 years CSME-readiness responsibility. This responsibility is now assumed by his successor, David Thompson.

This worrying scenario exists in the face of no known new initiatives to get the establishment of a long promised CARICOM Commission on track, or some similar administrative mechanism to help improve governance of the Community's business.

Then came last week a puzzling declaration from Jamaica's Prime Minister, Bruce Golding, during the Nassau meeting. He resorted to that familiar refrain of past leaders of the Jamaica Labour Party he currently heads: "There is no interest by us (Jamaica) in political union," he said.

Truth is, political union remains taboo within CARICOM--as it has been since the collapse of the short-lived West Indies Federation in 1962. It is not an agenda item for any CARICOM Heads of Government Conference. Most member governments even continue to betray timidity to sever relations with the Privy Council and access, instead, the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as their court of last resort.

Of immediate concern, however, about Golding's unnecessary warning on the "ole' talk" on political unity, is that he should have expediently linked this far-fetched development with current efforts to achieve a single economic space through the CSME.

He said that juncture could be the moment for Jamaica's withdrawal (under his JLP administratin of course) from the process because it would also require political integration and, he said, ""once you get there, we have to get off because we are under a mandate that we are not going there . . .".

The crucial question is whether Golding's government is likely to rock the CSME boat when the Community reaches the crucial stage of having to make tough decisions that would involve some measure of devolution of national sovereignty by ALL to give life to the laudable goal of ushering in a common economic space.

At present arrangements are being made for a "special meeting" of Community leaders in Port-of-Spain next month to deal with crime. It also appears that different strokes are being played on different occasions by some, while all leaders keep reassuring us of their "commitment" to make a reality of the policies and programmes of CARICOM.

For example, there is this curious development – as announced from Washington, with no prior signal from the Nassau Summit – of three new CARICOM prime ministers being invited for a White House talk with President George Bush on Thursday. They are Barbados' David Thompson; Belize's Deane Barrow and The Bahamas' Hubert Ingraham (current chairman of CARICOM).

Last June 20, however, there was a full house of CARICOM Heads of Government who had a meeting in Washington with President Bush at the United States State Department as part of a "Conference on the Caribbean".