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Leadership brings buckets of conundrums, and no matter how well-intentioned, few are equipped to face its challenges.
Over the past few weeks, listening to international discourse, particularly at the UN General Assembly, it struck me again that our region has two formidable champions in Mia Mottley and Irfaan Ali.
I refer to them without title simply because my respect and admiration is based on the indomitable and intrepid spirit which inhabits their intellectual core as humans.
I’ve not heard any contemporary world leader with the philosophical aplomb of Ms Mottley, except for Barack Obama. Wherever she opens her mouth, her concern is for the state of the planet—not simply Barbados or Caricom—and she speaks with moral authority that gives pause to those who have traditionally believed that morality has only a perfunctory place in global affairs.
She outlines issues, she offers solutions, she calls out perfidy and hypocrisy and she demands equity and justice where others are content to kowtow to the agendas of dominant forces in their spheres.
As Prime Minister of the Republic of Barbados, she cannot be said to lead a nation with the kind of resources that could invoke that level of confidence. That is precisely why she is so outstanding.
Her intelligence and vision are refreshing, and were it not for the alarmingly precarious state of the planet, I would say it is reassuring.
Already she is being touted as the next Secretary General of the UN, although it is always disappointing when such speculation is accompanied by suggestions that it is a position due for the region and a woman.
She could do it brilliantly under any circumstance. But it is the nature of the grimy world of politics for grudging appraisals.
With escalating oil resources for the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, its profile has risen remarkably, and with it has come increasing awareness of its President, Dr Irfaan Ali. Formerly a place from which its citizens migrated in masses and its economy floundered, it is now the place to invest.
Yet even as capitalists greedily descend, and economic forecasts glow, the condescension is visible. The Harvard International Review featured an article (27 Sept) examining its prospects. I read it twice, marvelling at its suggestiveness.
The author dished out a range of dangers on its horizon, yet each time couldn’t quite say how close to those perils the republic stood. Noting that the country is set to “become the fourth largest offshore oil producer in the world,” William Mao was doubtful that it can manage this influx of wealth.
“First, can Guyana’s democracy and economy survive the oil boom? Second, can Guyana survive the effect of oil money on its ethnically divided population? Third, given the coastal country’s vulnerability to climate change, is it responsible to drill for more oil?”
He compares other countries, using general examples of the resource curse, corruption, climate change, weak democracies, ethnic divisions and inadequate legal frameworks. While he proffers plausible pitfalls, I did not see any substantial reportage of the positions taken by Guyana to manage its new assets.
At the end, he acknowledges “small but positive signs,” and “encouraging indications,” but overall, the tone was condescending.
President Ali has been dealing with a heap of that recently. He had been interviewed on Good Morning Britain before attending the UN General Assembly that day.
It is a most extraordinary exchange—you have to watch it—the interviewers were arrogant, insulting and so incensed by the demands for reparations for slavery that the male one was practically apoplectic.
(via Daily Mail)
By contrast the President was stately, articulate and completely unflustered by Richard Madeley’s boorish behaviour.
He asked the President why today’s generation should carry the burden for what their ancestors did.
Without missing a beat, Ali responded: “Oh, it’s not a burden at all. You are one of the beneficiaries of that slave trade, so this is not a burden. You should be concerned and you should pay because you today still benefit from the greatest indignity to the human being, and that is the slave trade.
“And not only did you benefit during the slave trade, and your country develop, but look at what it cost the developing world. During slavery, resources were used to build your country, build up your capacity. You were able to then become competitive, able to invest in mechanisation, and developing countries like ours were left behind.
“So you should be very concerned, because you are prime beneficiaries of the exploits of slavery.”
Things got even more heated. How much money you want? The cost can be determined using the time value of money, came the dry response.
You want a palace?
“Well no, we don’t want the British to hand over a palace that we built.”
President Irfaan Ali was magnificent, intelligent and clearly prepared for the offensive attack. He did not only do this region proud, but like Mia, he stood up against the bullying of all oppressed people.
Later, as he met with members of the Guyanese community in New York, he spoke about the vision for the country. Never losing his common touch, he spoke repeatedly about the need to build systems that people would be able to trust, about developing agriculture and about welcoming citizens to return home.
Photo: Caricom
I will come back to that—but for now, I want to say that we have two for the road.
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Vaneisa Baksh is a columnist with the Trinidad Express, an editor and a cricket historian. She is the author of a biography of Sir Frank Worrell.
