Thursday, November 13, 2014 - The International Labor Organization (ILO) is an agency of the United Nations (UN). And Article 23 of UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights states that everyone has the right to just and favorable conditions of work, while Article 25 states that motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance, and Article 26 states that everyone has the right to education.
Meanwhile, the ILO’s mandate, simply put, is to preserve and enhance safety, health and justice in the workplace.
St. Kitts & Nevis is a member of the UN and a party to the ILO Convention. Accordingly, we’re obligated to abide by the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to follow the ILO’s guidelines for safety in the workplace, and to establish and implement ILO-compliant national policies and programs to promote that safety.
Do you believe that the conduct of the Denzil Douglas Administration with regard to the Basseterre High School (BHS) situation has been in compliance with our Federation’s UN and ILO obligations? Do you believe that they’ve exhibited the humaneness and compassion of true and worthy leaders?
Now, Section 3 of our Federation’s Constitution protects, among other things, security of the person. That security of the person refers, not only to security against bodily assault and criminality but also to security against threats to the person’s health and wellness.
Further, the Education Act mandates the Minister of Education to ensure that premises are suitable for use and occupation and that proper health and sanitation standards are applied.
As you’ll note from all of this, the legal infrastructure is in place to ensure the safety and good conduct of the educational facilities of this country.
But look at what’s happened at the Basseterre High School. The history of this matter is well known to most of us. And although the facts are as straight as straight can be, the Denzil Douglas propaganda machine has nevertheless, and, I suppose, not surprisingly, come up with distraction after distraction, lie after lie, and a ballooning and now notorious arrogance in a bid to demean and dismiss the proponents of justice for the children, teachers and families of the BHS, while the health of many innocent people has been put at risk, and their education and lives disrupted.
Remember, injustice against the teachers, children and parents of the BHS is injustice against all teachers, children and parents, and against our nation.
In their perpetration of this colossal and abominable injustice, Douglas and company have breached our country’s obligations to the UN, to the ILO, and to our own Constitution and Education Act. And most of all, they’ve breached their sacred obligation to the preservation and enhancement of the health and well-being of 900 souls at the BHS and their families and loved ones.
In doing so, Douglas and company have exposed their utter heartlessness, callousness, disdain and contempt for the people of this nation. To Douglas and his gang, you all are votes, not human beings, to be kicked around, marginalized, lied to, laughed at, made fools of, and even sold!
And when I use the word “company” I’m referring to Douglas and every one of his old and new candidates, and everyone else in his cabal. Both those who have opened their mouths on the matter, and those who, by their silence, have exposed their support of this atrocity against humanity in this land.
The entire Douglas candidate team, the entire Douglas set up, are a danger to this society.
You’ll recall that after years of silence on the matter, Douglas, two weeks ago, staked his credibility on the line when he declared that he was a father and a medical doctor, that he had studied the CARPHA And CARIRI Reports, that the BHS was safe, and he urged everybody to settle down and allow the School’s activities to proceed.
Well, just one week later, the Arbitration Committee, upon examining the same CARPHA and CARIRI Reports and all other available evidence, and in very quick time, found sufficient grounds to order the School closed.
What does that say about Douglas’ credibility?
But only yesterday, it was revealed that there was a third report, this one coming from the ILO and submitted since June of this year.
Dr. Yuka Ujita, Occupational Safety and Health Specialist for ILO’s Decent Work Team and Office for the Caribbean had visited St. Kitts from May 26th to 28th of this year, and had inspected the BHS, accompanied by the Labor Commissioner. And she submitted her Report on June 6, 2014.
In that report she said that “tap water in the building had a very strong smell of sewage”, and she said that she experienced “irritation in my eyes at the storage room of the Chemistry Lab”. She also reported that in several rooms new paint was already peeling and falling off.
Her findings were that: (i) health problems may exist and the symptoms suggested allergic reactions: (ii) the health problems seem to be related to the school environment but caused by multiple factors; and (iii) while this is an occupational safety issue for the teachers and staff, given the fact that a nursery school nearby was affected, this is also a public health issue. And based on her findings she made a number of recommendations.
Only God can convince me that Denzil Douglas didn’t see this ILO Report. And I’ll take it as a given that Nigel Carty, Marcella Liburd, Patrice Nisbett and other Cabinet members, as well the Labor Commissioner, saw this report. And not only would they’ve seen it, but they would’ve seen it in June of this year, six months ago.
Yet it seems that the Teachers Union and the BHS Parents-Teachers Association were allowed to see it only a week ago. If so, why did the Government withhold and conceal this very critical ILO Report? Why didn’t they admit that they had it? Why didn’t they share it as soon as they got it?
And, just as disturbingly, notwithstanding the fact that his Government was in possession of the CARPHA, CARIRI and ILO Reports, as well as the BHS Nurse’s Report, what on earth could’ve motivated Denzil Douglas to stake his credibility as a doctor and a father on the line like that?
Let’s cut to the chase here. Is this the kind of leadership you all want in this country for five more years? If so, what does that say about your self-respect and your love for your children, the nation’s children, and the nation itself?
In 1993, when there were no known problems at the BHS, he told you to keep your children out of school for you to join him in town to help get Kennedy Simmonds out of office. Now plenty is wrong at the BHS, he’s telling you to keep your children there! Not his and his buddies’ children. Your children!
Douglas is all about himself.
And do you also see how his propaganda machine is trying to turn Washington Archibald High School’s teachers and parents against their counterparts from BHS? Do you see the dastardly effort to create a tribal war among innocent parties, all suffering as a result of a very serious and sad situation for which he and his cohorts are responsible?
