BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE Opposition St. Kitts-Nevis Labour Party staged its first in a series of planned protest action against the ruling tri-party Team Unity.
Beginning shortly after 5:00 p.m. on Friday (Feb. 19), the protest march started outside the Craft House, where a few hundred protesters had gathered in their red and black garments before proceeding to the Ferry Terminal in Basseterre at which point they grew in larger numbers.
Speaking with the media along the route while protesters chanted “Dr. Harris must go”, the Opposition Leader and former Prime Minister the Rt. Hon. Dr. Denzil Douglas said the march was in solidarity with those whom he alleged were victimized by the current Administration.
“This is a march, the first in a series to protest against the wickedness and the practices of the Harris Government. The march is a march against victimization. It is a march against discrimination. Too many Labour supporters, over 200, have already been dismissed from the public service.”
However, the Opposition, while distributing pamphlets on the march, had only highlighted the names of some 50 individuals who they claimed were victimized by the Government.
“We are saying that a government must be for all of the people, all of the citizens, not just for a family,” Dr. Douglas lamented.
Against that backdrop, he stressed that “Harris must go and must go now”.
Dr. Douglas, who is no stranger to criticism, alleged that the Government of National Unity was not willing to grant permission for them to march in the designated areas his party had requested.
He pointed out that approval was not granted for them to use West Independence Square Street but rather Westbourne Ghaut; an area which they refused.
“We have a right to march and that is why today we are marching in solidarity for democracy and freedom,” Douglas added.
Appallingly, the outspoken leader lambasted the Government for scheduling a sitting of the National Assembly on a day that they (the Administration) had planned for other events.
“When we applied for the march since the 5th of February, there was no notice sent out to us to come to the Parliament. This was a concoction of this concoction government to distract our attention, having Parliament on a day that they themselves said they were having a peace rally. If you're going to have a peace rally the leadership of the country should at least be at the rally. But instead of that they slated Parliament.”
While a guest on the most recent Government’s weekly radio programme ‘Working for You’, Deputy Prime Minister the Hon. Shawn Richards had indicated that the Government of National Unity is democratic and transparent, and rally such as the one held by the Labour Party exemplifies that fact.
