Retired CARICOM Official Warns Dispute Could Weaken Regional Work  

Money and muscle are now on the table inside CARICOM. Trinidad and Tobago is openly warning it may pull funding unless leaders reopen the decision to reappoint Secretary General Dr. Carla Barnett, cracking the façade of regional unity. Belize is standing firmly in Barnett’s corner, with both the prime minister and foreign affairs minister backing her leadership. Trinidad, however, argues CARICOM has stalled under her watch and insists it never had a seat at the table when the second term was approved. And as the disagreement spills into public view, former Assistant Secretary General Ambassador Byron Blake is sounding the alarm, warning that this kind of open rift is unprecedented, and could weaken the entire regional bloc.

 

Byron Blake, Retired Assistant Secretary General

“One, I don’t think the fundamental disagreement is over the secretary general. I think that is pretty much a smoke screen. But a public disagreement like this risks, really, the effectiveness of the organization. A public disagreement with the secretary general is almost suicidal because it means that the secretary general, who has to move among countries and among heads of government, will not get cooperation in terms of the programs and the activities. And that then would really be very destructive for the movement. The fact is that the nature of the dispute, and the public nature of the dispute, raises questions as to how the organization functions. As I said earlier, the organization tends to resolve these matters in caucus or in quiet communication or diplomacy. The going at it and putting it in the press and therefore having it as a public situation is unusual. Very unusual. It has never happened in respect of an appointment.”

 

Blake adds that resolving the issue quickly will be important to avoid further damage to the regional body.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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