Start mediation process now, Minister Ramadhar Published: Friday, November 7, 2014 Legal Affairs Minister Prakash Ramadhar is reported to have said, “There were efforts to mediate by Minister Rambachan and it was rejected by civil society,” as a basis of his doubts that mediation is possible in the current highway impasse. This is, firstly, a misrepresentation of the position held by the 42 civil society groups. Secondly, Minister Rambachan is a party to the dispute and cannot be a mediator. The civil society groups have been consistent in our stance on this issue as evidenced by the following. Our press release of Sunday, October 12, states: “The HRM and Dr Kublalsingh agreed to mediation of this issue from the time it was called for five days ago by religious leaders. Our role as civil society is to support calls for mediation to resolve differences through dialogue and to encourage the Government to follow due process in accordance with good governance practices.” When on October 13, some civil society groups received a written invitation to a meeting on October 15, with the Minister of Works and Nidco, we readily accepted this invitation especially as it ended with “We look forward to a productive discussion.” Our letter of acceptance of Minister Rambachan’s meeting said, “As our letter to the Hon Prime Minister stated ‘solutions can be arrived at through dialogue and commitment to achieve win-win outcomes.’ The creation of the space for this dialogue can properly take place in a meeting such as you have now proposed in your letter.” Our opening statement at the meeting explained: “On Sunday, the Prime Minster stated that her government had considered the Armstrong report. We accept this assertion but we do not have expertise in these areas and therefore cannot judge the merits of such an assertion. We cannot assess any particular aspect of the Armstrong report or the optimum connectivity proposal. Our concern is the process, which would help us be able to live together in our communities.” As a civil society group, we see the arguments on both sides and seek for there to be a discussion between the parties. The people who are able to make these assessments are the experts in the field. The Armstrong committee was accepted by all parties to do the initial independent review, so it seems to us that they ought to play a part in this resolution. We suggest that there also ought to be a qualified and independent broker to chair such discussions. The civil society groups, of which the HRM is a member, welcome Minister Ramadhar’s invitation to have the mediation process started. 42 civil society groups, via e-mail Letters Source:: Trinidad Guardian The post Start mediation process now, Minister Ramadhar appeared first on Trinidad & Tobago Online. #trinidad
Posted on: Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:43:00 +0000
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