Part 1 was published in the Sunday Observer of April 23, 2023

THE last census of 2011 made it clear that the largest segment responding to the question of religious identification is constituted by individuals who indicated that they had no affiliation to any church or religious institution, but like the rest of us they are legitimate citizens of this country, whatever be their frame of reference. It is of the nature of democracy to recognise such pluralism of perspectives.

There is a spirit of alienation pervading the society by which citizens of various social classes and backgrounds are not identifying with the life of mainstream society as something in which they have a stake and a sense of ownership.

One disturbing trend in this regard is the decreasing level of participation of citizens in the electoral process in a way that threatens our democratic system of governance. We need to be alert to the way in which political leaders and party loyalists are aborting the democratic system of governance across the world through authoritarianism, the silencing of dissenting voices, and rule by a minority. Given the threat to democracy which is in evidence globally, and the growing disengagement of a significant part of the population from participation in the electoral process, there needs to be a review of those constitutional elements which need to be strengthened in order to energise our democracy and its processes.

Clearly, however, our experience as a nation since the adoption of the constitution in 1962 has highlighted many issues that need to be more forthrightly addressed in a revision. There is, first of all, the fundamental issue of our sense of identity and affirmation of our dignity as a people which necessitates separation from the monarchy as our head of State, and to be replaced by one of our own selected or elected in a manner that is representative of the whole people, and not just partisan interests.

Then there has to be the affirmation of the Caribbean Court of Justice as the final appellate court for our nation as a major affirmation of our trust in ourselves to handle matters of justice, while making access to the highest court available to the public in general.

Given the high level of corruption which prevails in the society, there has to be governance that is transparent and accountable and which requires the enshrining of an independent and unfettered Integrity Commission in the constitution.

As a nation, we seem to be losing a sense of the value and respect due to each human being and which is reflected in the ease with which human life is disposed of by violence and murder, but also in the widening social and economic inequalities, and the distinction in the value and treatment accorded different social classes and members of the society. The revised constitution must state in unequivocal ways the value of each citizen and entitlement to share in the process of nation-building and the gains derived from such efforts.

Among other things, the revised constitution must guarantee equality in terms of rights and in treatment as it relates to the application of the law. Given our history of slavery and its sine quo non of enforced labour and, given recent developments in employment and labour relations in the workplace, the revised Constitution must enshrine the protection of workers and their rights.

There is surfacing, from time to time, uneasiness and a growing sense of restricted access of ordinary Jamaicans to the natural and communal assets of the nation as they are sold to private interests and thereafter cater to those who can afford access to them. Alongside this is a growing sense among citizens who are immediately impacted by the operations of large multinational and foreign corporations that their concerns and complaints are not being heard or are being dismissed in a cavalier manner. The protection of citizens’ rights to health, education, shelter, and other concerns of personal well-being, need to be enshrined in ways that are clear and transparent.

Human rights groups and advocates are being treated as pariahs who are somehow not in sync with those things that make for our development and national interests. Human rights advocacy is not a vehicle for expounding the views of the status quo or government policy. Advocacy is the voice that raises up in a nation the concerns of minority interests, and trumps the cause of the marginalised and the vulnerable, and in so doing disturbs the conscience of the society at times and raises up an alternative vision to the prevailing situation or policies. To that extent, it is usually visionary in nature, calling the society to a conversation which is usually disturbing and uncomfortable. If the revised constitution is to be an instrument for a dynamic and changing nation in a dynamic and changing world, then there has to be enshrined a place for legitimising dissent and protest of a peaceful nature as a right of citizens.

What is clear is that there are many issues which have surfaced in our experience as a nation since Independence in 1962 which must inform the shape and content of our revised constitution. That religious voices are being expressed as participants in the review process is commendable. There is, however, a troubling sense that the voices have been too restricted, and therefore expressive of what has so far been a limited range of concerns, which misses the bigger picture of national concerns which the Christian tradition has to offer. Consequently, they have raised in the minds of many questions concerning whether what we have before us is a ploy for a theocracy or the defence of democracy.

Howard Gregory is Anglican bishop of Jamaica and the Cayman Islands as well as archbishop of the Church in the Province of the West Indies, primate and metropolitan.