It sounds like all the talk in Anguilla is confined to Independence. There is very little mention coming from the Government with regard to the economic situation. It seems as though they have abandoned hope and thrown up their arms in the air in despair recognizing that they have failed. It is clear that this Government has reached the level of its own incompetence and has found a scapegoat in the Independence issue. It is a “red herring” and, as Anguillians would have said the early days, a “shamblaw”. So you, me, all of us “gotta watch out fur um” because if the gossip is true they seem like they want to do a back door thing and they want to do it “tireckly”.
As children the first principle we have all been taught is: “Always stand up for your rights and do not let anybody take them away from you”. But that is exactly what is happening in this rush to Independence by the few. There is no groundswell of support for it. And there are no people shouting from the rooftops: “We want independence!” It is only Mr. Hughes and some of his supporters. So what the AUF (supported by a large part of the population) want out in the open is, how are they going to make it happen? HMG, on several occasions; by several different spokespersons; and by various position papers; has set out the conditions requisite for Independence. These are not roadblocks. They are minimum requirements that have been established and used by mature nations for hundreds of years. Otherwise it would be tantamount to walking out on your spouse, picking up your baggage and leaving giving the impression that after all you done together, “I don’t care! I gone! I only wanted you for what I can get! ”
There is a correct way to do it! Therefore HMG has said to all its Overseas Territories, “you can have Independence whenever it is made clear that it is wish of the people.” But how do you find out the wishes of the people? The fairest way is by putting the question directly to them. The accepted way that the question is put is traditionally called a “referendum”. It is the most democratic process in a democratic society because “the masses” get to decide for themselves without being dictated to by representatives. This is perhaps the best chance to give some measure of credence to the idea that all men are created equal and that no coterie of friends or cabal can stand in the way of their wishes.
Therefore for Anguilla to become Independent the question must be put to Anguillians. And it must be crystal clear and unambiguous. It must not be accepted that only those that put forward the question be the only ones that are allowed to answer. If we went that route that would be tantamount to a “coup d’etat” and we would not then be a properly legitimized Independent country. But not only that. It would also water down the process thereby starting us off on the wrong foot and possibly creating tension among us that could be disastrous. People in Anguilla know the story of Maurice Bishop and his colleagues in Grenada. Bishop took over ruling power without asking the people of Grenada for their mandate. He wanted to impose his political agenda on the people on his own terms. And although he ruled for years, their apparent deep-rooted resentment towards his actions in the end caused a nasty situation. The Grenadian people reversed themselves with the help of US Armed Forces leaving a nasty stain on Grenada’s political landscape. We in Anguilla seek no more than transparency, and an increased public awareness of where the Government intends to take us and by what means.
The leadership of the AUF continues to make its position clear and public. It has clearly and repeatedly stated that it will not join in advanced preparations for Independence without a mandate from the people. The party’s view is that pursuing Independence now is premature. However, it is convinced that there is need for improvements to our Constitution that do not require the severance of all links with HMG. The AUF, with the assistance of the very distinguished Dame Bernice Lake, Lawyer Lolita Davis, former Attorney General Wilhelm Bourne, and other Members of Government, had worked on a constitution with that proviso in mind. It is the duty of the Chief Minister to clear the air of gossip and rumor. He has to be politically correct and stand up in his place in the House and tell us that. We should NOT have to hear anything through the grapevine or from people on the street. Besides that, it is not an issue with which you play “cat and mouse” games. The change sought will affect the entire population very dramatically. The people of Anguilla must be given an explanation! Of course it is easy to get caught in the emotionalism surrounding Independence. But it gets hard when you come face to face with the reality of the costs involved. “Uh mean boy dis ting cost money! How we gon pay for it? And besides dat we do not need it dat bad!”
Maybe we should hear what the AUF has in mind. But there are a couple of questions many Anguillians have been asking right “off the bat”. For example, if we follow Hughes will we still get the European PASSPORT? What benefits do theAnguillapeople get from Mr. Hughes’ proposed constitution? Perhaps as far as the Chief Minister is concerned he would have won his personal vendetta with HMG but you, the man in the street, would lose any benefits associated with being a citizen of a formerOverseasTerritory. It could well be that this type of approach could be interpreted as “cutting off one’s nose to spite one’s face”! All of us know that the state of the economy and conditions in general around us do not constitute the most favourable time to jump. If HMG is not pushing us then it could be folly if we decide to jump now without fully understanding what we are jumping into.
Anguillians cannot afford to act like we following “three blind mice” at this stage of the game. Shakespeare used Brutus to say: “There is a tide in the affairs of men which taken at the flood leads on to fortune. Omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries. On such a full sea are we now afloat and we must take the current when it serves, or lose our ventures”. So where are we in the scheme of things? Are we going to let Mr. Hughes drag us in the sea, and then have to face heavy waves while swimming against the tide? Fellow Anguillians, this is not an issue on which you can be ruled from the heart! We got to use our heads! Do not let “Hughes and them” encourage you to do stupidness — and afterwards regret it when you can’t do anything about it! Improvement is required – abandonment will not help.
There are so many areas of social development which need to be vigorously tackled that are now going unattended. Instead, they are spending time on things that are only self-serving and have no broad impact. They use that good time on lost causes like Independence. Anguillians will recall the spate of violence; the shootings; the tension among the youngsters and the other issues confronting our community. This is where we should be spending our energy – helping to grow and shape young minds bearing in mind that this is where the future lies. This, to a large measure, exposes the immediate need for some form of action rather than spouting off about Independence. Could the peddlers of full autonomy lend the benefits of their life experiences to help us make a change for the better? Is it not more profitable to do this, rather than to confuse, us with the idea that to rely on other people, by begging and borrowing, is the ideal position for us to be in? Should this be our raison d’etre for Independence? There is no joy or pride in reliance.
Our job is to develop a society that would in the near and longer term throw up persons who could think clearly and promote intelligent responses toAnguilla’s dilemma. Mr. Hughes cannot do that. That is made clear by his “head in the sand — ostrich approach” to running things in this country. A good economic assessment of the level of Anguilla’s preparedness for Independence would say that it would require at least another four hundred entrepreneurs of the calibre of Albert Lake, Rayme, Frankie and Lowell Hughes, Ashley, Proctors, David Carty, Quincy Gumbs, Walton Fleming, Daddy Harrigan and so forth, long before we can follow “Hughes and them” with their foolishness. It is the capability and the ability of the people to build a nation that matters and not just a paper called a Constitution.
There were six thousand people on Anguilla and Albert Lake was one of them. The same opportunities that were open to him were open to them, but he saw things that the others did not see and as result he is today the most successful businessman on the island. That is what we should be pushing. In other words, if you try hard and use your head you too might make it to the top. And you would not then have to cry that the British is not giving us anything — so we want Independence so that we can beg everybody. Such thinking is degrading and the names of the purveyors of this nonsense make it even more sickening. They must be appropriately dismissed and their views rejected. Independence with such limited rationalization should not even be contemplated.
I sincerely hope that the grapevine and the gossip are incorrect, and that in ample time Mr. Hughes and those who are promoting and advancing this political catastrophe will come to their minds and seek the best thing for us. Notwithstanding this, I would suggest that we join the leadership of the AUF in advancing the firm position that “independence is not the best thing for us now — and that a referendum process is the best way to ascertain the views of Anguillians on this issue. There must be no shortcuts! REFERENDUM IS A MUST!”
