LAST week’s fleeting three-nation visit to The Bahamas, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago by US Assistant Secretary of State Arturo Valenzuela should serve as a good reminder that when it comes to vital issues such as security, crime and violence, the initiatives and ‘determination’ continue to originate with the administration in Washington, but with expectations of compliance by Caricom.

Dr Valenzuela was the last of three high-profile officials of President Barack Obama’s administration to have visited the Caribbean within weeks of each other.

Preceding him were the empowered and influential Defence Secretary Robert Gates and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Though quite brief, their meetings have sparked interest among Caribbean-based diplomats representing foreign governments about the particular factor, or factors, that account for these visits to a comparatively small sub-region of the Greater Caribbean that constitutes a bridge between the two Americas.

There may be more in the proverbial mortar than the pestle, but the official word is that these visits have to do with “partnership building” with America for “prosperity and security”.

The underlying assumption is that the “prosperity” dimension would be focused on helping our small and vulnerable economies that are now in more dire economic straits, largely due to the global financial and economic crisis that had its genesis in the heartland of capitalism — USA.

The ‘security’ aspect of the “partnership” would surely reveal what Uncle Sam has in mind more than the initiatives Caricom governments may have to offer.

It is of significance that Valenzuela’s visit included three Caricom states with very high rates of crime and violence and whose tourism and industrial sectors are strongly linked with the USA.

Questions

Of more significance is the fact that he chose to have his last meeting with the new prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, who shoulders lead responsibility for “crime and security” among Caricom Heads of Government.

Even allowing for the fact that, by its very nature, much cannot be publicly discussed about “security” plans, the reality is that cynicism is on the rise among the Community’s people over official talk about making this region “more secured”, with a better security infrastructure.

What new, if any, proposals Prime Minister Persad-Bissessar has offered for Caricom’s “crime and security” work agenda did not publicly surface at the 31st Heads of Government Conference of the Community in Montego Bay last month.

The official communiqué (16 pages) had two paragraphs on “crime and security”. It states that:

The Heads “also agreed that the implementation of the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI) with the USA should receive focused attention with the establishment of Technical Working Groups to advance the Action Plan agreed by both sides”.

Perhaps now that Gates, Clinton and Valenzuela have come and gone, we may be able to witness the unfolding of the benefits of the CBSI in terms of combating crime and violence and a generally improved security environment to meet our specific needs.

Outstanding issues

A not-so-pleasant reminder but, nevertheless, one of substance is that while Caricom governments and successive Washington administrations talk incessantly and boldly about “commitment” to combat narco-trafficking, gun-running, trafficking in persons and being more alert against terrorism, the reality is that too often we seem to learn more about what the US authorities WANT this region to DELIVER than how THEY are responding to OUR priority needs.

Sensitive issues like, for instance, controversial regular deportations of Caricom nationals for crimes allegedly committed in America; failure to have an effective witness protection programme in place; one-sided and often grossly distorted human rights reports on the Caribbean – compiled and circulated by the US State Department — continue to be the norm.

Now that the notorious ‘don’ of Tivoli Gardens, Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke, has been successfully extradited to the USA, there is a seemingly improved appetite in Washington for increasing the extradition flow of Caricom nationals wanted by Uncle Sam.

The USA is reputed to be the world’s single biggest consumer of illegal drugs as well as the front-runner source for an expanded illicit arms trade in the Latin America-Caribbean region.

Question: Has Washington shared with Caricom, who is its “partner” in the battle against crime and violence, how it is coping with domestic challenges and offered practical guidelines for adaptation by this region?

Further, is there a common policy among Caricom governments in relation to compliance with extradition of Caribbean nationals wanted for alleged crimes by a foreign nation? Or is it that regional governments are too timid to show more confidence in their own justice administration systems to avoid the routine extradition of their nationals as demanded by foreign authorities?

Are we really pursuing “partnership” arrangements, or are we being coaxed into responding to “crime and security” arrangements that largely conform to America’s priorities and under the tight control of an administration in Washington?

CAP… US high-profile officials (from left) Arturo Valenzuela, Robert Gates and Hillary Clinton have all visited the Caribbean since the start of the year.

PERSAD-BISSESSAR… shoulders lead responsibility for “crime and security” among Caricom Heads of Government