What a tremendous evening we had yesterday! The Gathering was indeed a gathering that reflected Trinidad - the callaloo! And it was powerful in terms of the numbers of persons who came out in spite of the very short notice and with minimum advertisement. This speaks volumes to the moment that we are in. The vibrations were positive and resonated clearly, we all said: Yes! to Mediation I wish to say a very big Thank You to all of you who attended and who contributed to the success of The Gathering, whether it was by spreading the word and encouraging people to attend; or by organising some aspect of the activity, or by speaking/performing. It was indeed a Gathering in every dimension! Particularly heart warming was the participation of young people and their special contributions - from Arianns design of the flyer to the singing of We Shall Overcome and in between was Chikes announcement of Project 40, the decision that some 40 young people would each fast for 24 hours, thus creating a chain of 40 days fasting! The Gathering was also an Awakening! I also wish to thank those of you/your members and friends who stayed outside the St. Clair private hospital until the Prime Minister left, following her meeting with Wayne. I can share that while the Prime Minister may have thought her visit to Wayne was going to be a gesture, it became a very rigorous meeting at which Wayne articulated the concerns and issues which led to his hunger strike. However, the PM did not concede to the proposal for mediation. She did state that the letter which was sent to her by the 39 civil society organisations had been sent by her to the line Minister Dr. Rambachan. A delegation representing the civil society organisations will be meeting the Minister on Wednesday morning. There will be no helicopter tour. We will not facilitate any gallerying by the Minster. What is required is a serious meeting. The meeting will therefore be focused on the three issues that we collectively put to the PM as the basis for a Win-Win Solution to the Debe to Mon Desir Highway Impasse. These three issues are: 1. That the government properly considers the Report and recommendations of the Highway Review Committee (otherwise known as the Armstrong Committee); 2. That the government gives serious consideration to the new proposal by the Highway Re-Route Movement as an alternative to the construction of the Debe to Mon Desir Highway; 3. That while the government engages in points 1 and 2 above, all further work is halted on the Debe to Mon Desir Highway only; which also means that work can proceed apace on the San Fernando to Point Fortin Highway This meeting is a bilateral one that opens a dialogue. However, in no way does it replace the process of mediation. We will inform you of the outcome of Wednesdays meeting. After all, one year and eight months after the Armstrong Committee submitted its Report, we have heard not one word from the government as to exactly what, if anything, was done to implement the recommendations. Let us therefore continue to be vigilant. This is about the Debe to Mon Desir highway, yes. But its also about what kind of Trinidad and Tobago we wish to have: a country where the competing and oft times conflicting interests that exist can be resolved peacefully through dialogue and mediation; where governments are accountable; and where we all take responsibility for the development of the nation, because there are avenues for all citizens to contribute and feel that they are equal owners of T&T!
Posted on: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 02:00:27 +0000