BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – LESS than 48 hours before regional heads sign the revised Treaty of Basseterre to establish the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Economic Union, parliamentarians on both sides of the aisle have raised concerns about the initiative.
The economic union will make the sub-region a single financial and economic space without barriers to trade between national markets, with joint action in the areas of agriculture, tourism, civil aviation and telecommunication.
In lengthy discussion on the matter last Friday (June 11), former Minister of International Trade Hon. Dr. Timothy Harris said that given the failures of previous regional integration efforts, a stronger case must be made as to why this move will benefit the Federation.
“Is there anything now to convince us that the limited successes which we achieved in that particular area would be more pronounced now? We walked that walk before. We walked it in London and in London that joint mission dismantled by and large. We walked it in Brussels and in Brussels I think it was Grenada eked out of that particular framework. We walked it in Ottawa with limited success.
“Is there anything now in our efforts to build this union, and to proffer as some have already proffered, that we are have efficiencies in terms of foreign affairs representation?” Harris asserted.
Though failed efforts at closer integration litter the history of the region, the Eastern Caribbean in particular has benefited from some key integrated institutions. These include the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, the Eastern Caribbean Aviation Authority and the Eastern Caribbean Telecommunications Authority.
However, Harris argued that the nation must have reasonable expectation that the new framework would bear realistic fruit and better the life of the common man.
“The unity process…and conceding some of our sovereignty in favour of a broader display of supra-natural sovereignty would only make sense if, in the end, it advances us forward toward the goal of better welfare for all,” Harris said.
Harris complained of the “slowing down of enthusiasm” regarding the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) and called for prolonged education if an OECS union expects results.
Similar concerns were raised by opposition parliamentarian for Constituency Number Eight Hon. Eugene Hamilton, who argued that a greater effort should have been made in the education of the public.
“I think much more ought to have been done for public education towards the signing of this treaty. There appears to be a top-down approach to this process and more prefer to see a bottom-up approach,” Hamilton stated.
He went on to outline the developments in integration in the region, showing that efforts to reach an economic union span decades of different generations and governments. One thing that has remained, however, is the need to partner with opposition members in educating the public and implementing the provisions of the new arrangement.
“If there is one thing which opposition and governments can agree, it is moving towards integration in the region because of what it means for our region’s people.
“It may require more than a simple majority to pass something in parliament…thus, the importance of public education and involving opposition in promoting that public education across the nation,” Hamilton added.
Last Friday, Parliament agreed in principle to the conditions of the revised Treaty of Basseterre and on this Friday (Jun. 18) the leaders will sign on to the document. The date marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the original Treaty of Basseterre, which brought the regional organisation into existence.
