Don Robotham, Contributor
The old Spanish Town Courthouse ablaze after the death of Andrew 'Bun Man' Hope, last Wednesday. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer
THERE IS a prevailing feeling in Jamaica of a nation adrift. People go about their business fatalistically as if in a trance. Most operate only in a narrow circle of trusted family and personal contacts from home, to school, to work and back home to our wrought iron prisons with our guard dogs and alarms. At the same time, major political and economic events unfold without the slightest attempt of the official leadership of the country to give us some sense of direction. Mr. Patterson is preoccupied, nervously choreographing the People's National Party (PNP) presidential elections. As for Mr. Golding: Does he still exist?
Serious social unrest springs up with increasing regularity. First came the riots over the killing of 'Bulbie'. Then came the Brown's Town riots. These were followed by the Super Plus demonstrations the most serious one of all which is far from over.
This past week we have had the events in Spanish Town following the killing of Andrew 'Bun Man' Hope. The security forces seem to have acted swiftly to contain this latest act of unrest. We may not be so lucky next time. In all of this what is striking is the silence of our national leadership including the campaigners for the leadership of the PNP.
A DEEP SENSE OF INJUSTICE
No one wants to be alarmist but one would be blind not to recognise the realities surrounding us. A deep sense of injustice is spreading in the society as we drift into chaos.
The Brown's Town and Super Plus demonstrations in particular are of vital importance. What these two major events demonstrate is that the tendency to social unrest is by no means confined to garrison community protests of one sort or another. Nor are they only directed at the state-as the Super Plus case proves. In fact, the Super Plus case may yet turn out to be the most explosive for it evokes powerful feelings against the intolerable arrogance of money, privilege and race. One only has to read the reports of how the (black female) Resident Magistrate reacted to the request for bail from the accused to grasp the deep indignation which this case has rightly aroused and will continue to arouse at every level of society. Super Plus is not going to fade away.
At the same time, one is struck by the deafening silence of our human rights organisations on this absolutely critical episode. If this had been a case involving the state or the police one can be certain that they would have been trumpeting from the rooftops in their now familiar fashion. By now Jamaicans for Justice and Amnesty Internat-ional would have issued several condemnatory statements to the world press and posted them on their websites. Is it not strange how all such advocates of legal rights lose their tongue when the case involves issues of race and class? What excuse will they offer up for this silence?
This is the kind of thing which feeds the feeling in Jamaica that no institution consistently stands up for principle. I have to say that I was not in the least impressed by the rather vague and weak statements belatedly issued by the Super Plus management either. If no part of our leadership will stand up for principle and against injustice on very basic issues then it simply encourages people to feel that they must take the issues into their own hands.
The people who demonstrated in Brown's Town or those who came out in force in Mandeville again this week to protest Super Plus cannot be characterised as members of garrisons. In fact, they were mainstream citizens publicly expressing their anger at what they see as major injustices perpetrated by public or private authorities.
What this, therefore, means is that the deep distrust of our institutions and our leadership has spread from the garrisons into the mainstream of society.
HIGHER CALIBRE
LEADERSHIP REQUIRED
The present government and the Prime Minister in particular bear a heavy responsibility for this drift into unrest which is in danger of overtaking us. He has shied away from giving leadership and from taking the firm action needed. The puerile Opposition has not helped either. Admittedly, the situation which they face is an extremely difficult one for which there are no easy solutions. For one thing, the economic alternatives are practically non-existent. But it is precisely in such a difficult situation that leadership of a high calibre is required. Sadly, Mr. Patterson has proven unequal to the task. Truth be told, I do not see a
single figure on the political horizon, in either Government or Opposition, in which one can place any great hope.
Where we should look for hope is not so much directly in the political process. We should look more broadly, outside the political box, to ourselves. We should look to the activities of organisations and individuals in civil society who have played such a critical role in our development in the past. I am referring to individuals in the church, the trade union movement, professional, business and other organisations as well as academics, students, journalists and just plain concerned citizens of goodwill. Many such persons are very deeply concerned at the crisis in the society and are very active, especially in attempts to reduce violence. But usually this is at a local level in particular projects on particular issues.
This is laudable, but insufficient as these efforts are too fragmented and localised. The critical issues facing Jamaica are not local or community derived. Nor are they even single issues such as violence, vitally important as that is. They are general national, indeed, international issues. They, therefore, require a broader national approach, analysis, effort and organisation. If we are to overcome the dangerous sense of drift which is now enveloping us then this civil society leadership must come together in a cross-cutting alliance and begin to develop a common approach to our national crisis as a whole. Of course this will not be easy. But with persistence and flexibility, it can be done.
