INTERNATIONAL DAY FOR THE ELIMINATION OF RACIAL DISCRIMINATION
March 21 is set aside annually to observe International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination by the United Nations in recognition of the day when 69 people were killed by the police in Sharpeville, South Africa, as they peacefully demonstrated against the apartheid system in 1960. The struggles against racism and discrimination is a worldwide commitment to eliminate the affliction of racism that permeates every society, regardless of political or economic circumstances.
Although, the apartheid system has been dismantled, racist laws and practices have been abolished in many countries, and an international framework for fighting racism was implemented built on the United Nations International Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination 1979, there continues resistance to racial unification.
The Convention is an international commitment to forge togetherness, and to remove intolerance that is imbedded in the structure of communities and societies; however, individuals worldwide continue to suffer the wrath, injustice and stigma of racial discrimination despite the significant breakthroughs with national laws and international treaties; despite the global outcries from affected communities and individuals, and with the recent ‘cleansings’ under the disguise of immigration policies.
The theme for this year’s observance is the ‘poison of racism’. This speaks of the toxicity of discrimination, enslavement and the horrific nature of colonialism where the freedoms to live life in dignity, equality and justice were sacrificed on the altar of nation building.
As Guyanese, we live in a country with diverse ethnic compositions and cultural proliferations we should redouble our efforts and set an example to eliminate the scourge of racial discrimination and segregation, and should work assiduously to achieve unity of purpose and commitment to a common bond, where everyone coexist without the tentacles of racial discrimination hanging over us; to dismantle the ‘divide and conquer’ tendencies of mischievous elements within our society since a multiplicity of factors are utilized to discriminate in a de facto fashion or explicitly in law, be it through policies of racial segregation, disparate enforcement of laws, or disproportionate allocation of resources.
The Guyana Public Service Union has been consistent in its belief and actions that there is no room to itemize a human feature/characteristic, something that one has no control over, the uniqueness of our heritage and to use that to cause strife, mischief and mayhem. Racism is an ‘age old antic’ of people who possesses low moral character to institute hatred solely on a person’s inherent ethnicity.
Yet, as a union, we would be burying our heads in the sand to say that racial discrimination does not exist in Guyana and more particular in the Public Service. Moreover, the Union having recognized the veracity of this scourge within our midst constitutionalised a Race Relations Committee in 1997 to build awareness, to combat the doctrine of racism, to educate, to promote peace and understanding, all in an effort to eradicate racism and racist tendencies in all its forms and to build a world that is free and fair for everyone.
The GPSU will continue the fight to have dignity and equality for all. And this must be the reality of every citizen of the world to not rest, until all are free to live their lives respectfully and with dignity.
Therefore, first and foremost, let us examine our actions and the negative impact of racism and strive to dissemination a message on a daily basis that racial discrimination must be eliminated. The just cause of our fore parents in standing up to racial injustices must be upheld and the current and future generations be prepared to continue to demand equality for all.
