This coming week Guyana observes its 55th Independence anniversary. The Independence project here and in the rest of the Anglophone Caribbean is of great importance since its success would determine the extent to which these post-plantation societies are able to break with their pre-independence bondage. Our independence therefore must be constantly evaluated and re-evaluated against the backdrop of the expectations of our people at the time of the transition from colonial rule. To what extent have we built a society that can be properly described as genuinely post-colonial?
Any evaluation of our Independence project must take into consideration the global and domestic challenges. When one takes into consideration the fact that Guyana became independent in a world that did not cater for countries like ours, then the constant attacks on our country’s sovereignty will be understood. The genuine objectives of Independence run counter to the demands of the Global Order which prefer satellites rather than real autonomously independent societies.
The blatant interference in our most recent general election to determine an outcome favorable to powerful global forces is a grim reminder of the fragility of our independence. As Guyana becomes more entrenched in the world of Oil and Gas, the more its sovereignty would be diluted and the more the country would be recolonized. The real IIL course is not the Dutch Disease but the convergence of Recolonization and Ethnic Dominance.
We are already seeing the signs of recolonization. That we are arguing over the role of the IRI in electoral reform is a chilling manifestation of where we are headed as a nation. Some are pointing to the role of the IRI seven years ago as justification for its proposed role today. I am submitting that the IRI’s role today is a direct result of external tampering with the 2020 election. For all its bravado, the IRI’s proposed role in electoral reform is less the wish of the PPP and more the desire of external forces. Yes, if the IRI scheme is allowed to go forward, it would help to buttress the PPP in power, but as a puppet of powerful global forces.
What the IRI’s involvement tells us is that going forward our elections would not reflect the ultimate will of the Guyanese electorate, but a consensus between one party and its global benefactors. We therefore can say goodbye to genuinely free and fear elections free from tampering by global forces. The PPP is prepared to use its parliamentary majority to ram through electoral legislation to formally entrench itself in power. In this regard, the not so hidden hand of external forces would put their “expertise” to work.
The PPP would not pass electoral legislation to benefit its competitor or to give them an equal chance of winning. The IRI’s involvement is not to advance the interest of the opposition, but to further the USA foreign policy towards an oil-rich Guyana. The APNU’s participation in a process that does not arise from consensus is a ready-made trap. It, therefore, participates at its peril. Western interference in the electoral process in the 1960s left Guyana with an unaccountable government that ran amok for almost three decades. Either nothing was learned from that episode or the lessons were ignored.
So ,in 2020 the same Western powers were at it again—this time in collusion of the victim of the 1960s intervention. This time the outcome would be more far-reaching because the stakes are higher So, on this independence anniversary there is not much to celebrate. Recolonization is more than just a slogan—it is a reality. From the mangroves to the IRI to the use of the State to harass, intimidate and persecute, the evidence is overwhelming.
More of Dr. Hinds’ commentaries can be found on his website guyanacaribbeanpolitics.news and on his Facebook page Hinds’Sight. Catch him on Facebook on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6:30 pm for Politics 101 with Dr. David Hinds.
