Some hail it a paradise on earth; an island gem; a well kept secret where one is sure to find solace and unearth inner peace away from the daily hustle that life deals us.
On the world stage, the federation of St. Kitts and Nevis is regarded as two islands, one paradise.
Underneath the layer of magnificence that the natural beauty of these sought after islands exude, there is a ripened polarized political energy that is seemingly so toxic that it threatens to destroy lifelong relationships, families and the sanctity of our nation. With such an abundance of tattered wounds, one cannot help but wonder how to heal a broken nation?
While impending elections will certainly turn tensions up a notch in any nation, it seems in St. Kitts and Nevis, we are prepared to exist in a "me against you, political party against political party bubble" where not even Church leaders have the ability to dissuade those willing to perpetuate practices that hurt our nation. For some of our leaders, this political division is the ultimate benefit, realized in the Almighty dollar.
The unfortunate issues that impact the principal, staff and students of the Basseterre High School is a real test in leadership and maturity. While part of politics is advancing an agenda that one party believes can outdo the other in a bid for parliamentary dominance, politics has no place in dealing with resolving real life issues such as the education and well being of our young people and the teachers who educate them.
The facts now reveal that had the contamination at the Basseterre High School been handled with the utmost urgency and without the dismissive stance meted out in the initial stages - in part by the Ministry of Education - the matter may have been addressed and resolved more expeditiously having been a sore since 2012.
Today, a newly implemented shift system affects not one but two institutions of learning. When leaders become so petty that they cannot separate the message from the messenger, how effective are they at leading? A lesson in Diplomacy 101 must be mandatory for all of our politicians. Likewise, messengers, irrespective of who they support, must convey their findings and messages as professionally and above board as possible, holding their ground firmly on the issues absent the political punches particularly in matters as sensitive as the education of our young people.
It is heartening and certainly reassuring to parents and Teachers that a temporary solution has been found and students will be allowed to complete the last term of the school year, albeit with some added duress. How we heal a broken nation requires sacrificing our personal agendas for the well being of our children; our federation's future.
It is impossible to truly understand the hurt or void that fills the hearts of families who have lost their loved ones. Every individual's experience is unique. Part of the tradition of celebrating Labour Day in St. Kitts has been about honoring the stalwarts of the Labour Party for their work not only in the Labour Party but for the good of regular workers and union workers in the federation. Unfortunately, because the Labour Day celebrations have been politicized, those who do not identify with the Labour Party have never embraced the political celebration that comes on that day.
The Honourable Sam Condor and Dr. Timothy Harris, former Labour government ministers who parted ways with the current Denzil Douglas lead Labour Party, have been fighting tooth and nail to prove to the electorate that their belief system is more in line with the tenets of the Labour Party and the ordinary working class hence their interest in founding the PLP. They declare that they stayed with the Denzil Douglas administration to keep the party together but fought in vain against a leader who moved away from the founders of the over 80 year old Labour Party. While their actions have not found favor with the entire nation, it seems their message has been heeded by many a citizen. Unity has been the end product of a merging of like minds prepared to restore dignity and integrity to leadership and public office.
As mere mortals, we can only assume exactly what our dear deceased loved ones would accept or condemn if they were alive today given the current politically divided climate we exist in. One can only wonder how would they have helped us today to heal our broken nation?
It has been reported that several family members of the first Premier The Right Honorable Robert L. Bradshaw along with Premier Paul Southwell, Lee L.Moore, Joseph N. France and others through a press release openly disapproved of any efforts by former Labour Ministers and their supporters to visit the grave sites of these national heroes and stalwarts. The visit to the sites, which eventually occurred on Sunday May 4th, evoked such deep emotions that on top of verbally interrupting the group that journeyed to the Springfield cemetery, it is alleged the wreaths were removed and thrown into the yard where the Honorable Sam Condor's constituency office was opened on Friday, May 2.
With emotions and political tensions running at an all time high, if nothing else, last weekend's events prove that we are a nation of gangs. I am red! I am yellow! I am orange! I am green! I am blue! ." We are to watch what colors we wear and not incense others by upstaging a color that can be identified with a party one does not support! If that is where we are as a nation, Unity advocates should have known better than to use a wreath adorned with red and white flowers punctuated with an orange ribbon. The hard question after last week's episode however is how to heal a broken nation? Do we identify with a political party in everything we do when we must first exist as citizens of the federation of St. Kitts and Nevis?
The hurt that families of our national heroes have expressed over a choice in color and the persons who visited their buried loved ones may be symptomatic of deeper issues which none of us may ever really be able to understand. In fact, in an interview with Winn FM's Toni Frederick Armstrong, one of the family members of our nation's first Premier, the Right Honourable Robert L. Bradshaw, made it clear that among other things, their past experiences have them angered about the current alliance of former Labour leaders with CCM and PAM parliamentarians. While we can only imagine what our heroes would have done if they were alive today, one still wonders how we can embrace those things that make for a better federation with so many painful emotional scars. How can we heal a broken nation?
While our Basseterre High and Washington Archibald High School students adjust to the newness around them and while we expend our energies on political party prowess, foreigners are living like celebrities in our paradise. Many of them have found their Eldorado here. They have discovered the wherewithal to exist comfortably in our twin isles, some with resources they acquired overseas, others by slowly building their financial nest.
As they come in droves and as we cater in abundance to their every need, every local born citizen is challenged with the prospect of losing one more alliance, one more friend, one more neighbor because of the venomous nature of how we handle politics. As these little communities of Americans, Nigerians, Dominicans, Guyanese, Jamaicans and other nationalities grow stronger, born Kittitians and Nevisians continue to grow further apart.
How to heal a broken nation where wounds of old so often seem to keep us mean? Mean spirited; mean hearted, just plain old mean! Ahead of us is a road to prosperity, which can only be realized when we respect and embrace the differences we share! We cannot endure or succeed mired in division and hate. We cannot prosper when we relish in hate for others. It is a tall order to forgive those who offend us but a dark world of misery and unhappiness awaits us if we are prepared to live out our days in hate one for another!
How to heal a broken nation? Sai Baba, a renowned Indian guru said it best: "Love one another and help others to rise to higher levels, simply by pouring out love. Love is infectious and the greatest healing energy."
Healing a broken nation begins one individual, one family, one community at a time!
*************************
DISCLAIMER
This article was posted in its entirety as received by SKNVibes.com. This media house does not correct any spelling or grammatical error within press releases and commentaries. The views expressed therein are not necessarily those of SKNVibes.com, its sponsors or advertisers
