The present agreement being worked out between the government and the financial sector regarding the restructuring of the government’s debt is the clearest test yet whether important sectors of the economy recognise that the country is really in a crisis and are ready to play their part in moving the country forward. So far the signals seem to be positive. Within a short time we should expect to see significant holders of government bonds signing on to this new arrangement. It should become increasingly clear to all sectors of the Jamaican society that given the present crisis the government does not have a great deal of wiggle room and that harsh medicine has to be applied in the context of diminishing options.

It is only regrettable that it had to take the IMF to force this kind of compromise between the government and the financial institutions. No one who has examined our rising debt to GDP ratios over the past 15 years could ever believe that this was the right path to grow a prosperous economy. Yet, that is the trajectory on which we have been for almost two decades. It had become palpably clear that Jamaica could not sustain this high debt burden and not remain in perpetual poverty. Something had to give and it took an international crisis to force us to our knees with the acknowledgment that change has to take place.

One doubts seriously whether the financial institutions would have been willing to come to the table had the IMF not made it clear to the government that an agreement with the Fund was not possible without a willingness for debt compromise. It is true that we have not had this level of negotiation between the government and its local debtors before. Our financial institutions and the clients they represent had become so addicted to government paper that it is not far-fetched to suggest an unwillingness on their part to yield if the pressure hadnot been applied by the IMF.

I am not suggesting that financial institutions should not invest in government-secured instruments. The government opened the door to them because of its own insatiable appetite for loans driven by a quick-fix mentality. Frankly, these institutions would have been imprudent not to have walked through that door. Money is like water, it flows to where there is an opening. But it is also imprudent to insist on the levels of returns they have been accustomed to when the country is in the worst economic crisis we have seen since the depression of the 1920s. At some point, their own best interests would have been placed in jeopardy as the country would only become poorer by this policy. The financial sector must be congratulated for showing the kind of flexibility and the eminent common sense that the moment demands. The government must also be congratulated for this great start in consultation, negotiation and compromise. These are essential hallmarks of our democratic process.

The emerging relationship with the financial institutions must provide a platform on which other stakeholders in the country can build in working with the government to address the needs of their constituents. Whether it is the retrenchment of workers in the public and private sector or a wage freeze, somewhere down the road there has to be a collaborative effort between the unions and government to ensure that there is peace on the labour front. We cannot afford any social upheavals at this time. As the prime minister rightly acknowledged in his broadcast to the nation, there are difficult days ahead. There seems to be emerging a consensus that we need to work together for the best interests of Jamaica. If this is true then we may be looking at a new beginning that will lead our embattled country on a true road to prosperity.

Haiti

Our hearts continue to bleed for the Haitian people as they literally pick up the pieces after the devastating earthquake. There is perhaps no other nation in the Western Hemisphere that has suffered more hardship and privation at the hands of human beings and nature itself than Haiti has suffered. Yet, the people have shown tremendous resilience in the face of these hardships and have soldiered on, proudly trying to eke out an existence in situations that would conspire to test every mettle of human endurance.

It is perhaps fortuitous that it had to take a tragedy of this proportion to truly and genuinely focus the attention of the world on the plight of the Haitian people. Help is pouring in from everywhere as people show genuine empathy for the devastated Haitians. And help we must, not because they deserve our pity but because the decency in each human being evokes this need to be our brother’s and sister’s keepers. My hope is that the international help that the country is getting will be a sustained effort for a great deal of rebuilding will be required over the coming months and years.

In the meantime, we in Jamaica must brace ourselves for an influx of refugees. This could start very early as the situation becomes grimmer each passing day. How prepared are we for this? How proactive are we in dealing with a situation that could soon show up on our shores? And it could be massive. Could we cope? Furthermore, criminal elements in the infamous guns-for-drugs trade between Haiti and Jamaica will seek to exploit the crisis for their nefarious ends. There will be the need to increase patrols of our coastal waters and this could be done in collaboration with the United States authorities.

This column mourns the loss of all lives in this crisis and urges everyone to lend a helping hand as best they can.

stead6655@aol.com.