Multiracial policies cannot flourish in majoritarian political parties

Years ago, a prominent Indianpersonalitydecidedto join the PNCR. It was his hope that he could make a contributiontotheparty

His experience turned out to be far from pleasant. Thoughheenjoyedtheearof the then leader of the party, he ended up in loggerheads withotherpersonsincluding a party commissar The Indian personality was eventuallywasforcedtoquit the party because he could not influence its direction and he felt as if he was in a racialparty

Yearsago,alsoanumber ofAfricanGuyanesecrossed overtothePPPaspartofthe civiccomponentoftheparty They too were sidelined from decision-making and made little or no impact on thepoliciesofthePPP

But the PNCR and the PPP are mass-based parties. They both pretend to be national parties even though both accept that the bulk of each support base is drawn from one or the other of the country’s two main ethnic groups.

Indians who go over to the PNCR find that they are often subsumed by the d o m i n a n t e t h n i c membership of the party ThesameappliestoAfricans in the PPP These parties have majoritarian decision making models in the sense that the majority of the leadership decides but since the majority of the leadership is invariably drawn from the dominant ethnicgroupofthatparty,the majoritarian decisionmaking model translates to ethnicdominance.

The PPP has entered nationalelectionssince1992 asthePPPCivic(PPPC).But isthereanindependentCivic component within the PPPC? Has the Civic grouping ever met for any sustained period of time to developitsownpoliciesand positions and to negotiate these with the PPP leadership?Itisdoubtfulthis has ever happened and it doubtful now that the Civic members of the PPPC even meet to develop their own positions. The members of the CIVIC component within the Cabinet are not widely known to the public. This is how farcical has becometheCivicappendage tothePPP

Given the political polarization in the country and the fact that the respective bases of each of the country’s two main political parties are drawn from either the Indian or African communities, it needs to be asked how minorities within these political parties be able to avoidbeingsubsumedbythe larger ethnic groups. How, for example, would an IndianleaderinthePNCRbe able to demand that Indian demandsbetakenseriously?

And how would an African leader be able to agitate for African concerns within the PPPgiventheoverwhelming majority of Indians in that party? Indeed, how would the Civic component of the PPPC be able to influence policieswithinthePPP?

These are not academic questions They are concerned with multiracial representation within our political parties and, specifically, how minorities can be influential in these parties.

Dem boys seh...

The answer may lie in a recent development within the PNC Within that development may lie the seeds of a model that can lead to promote multiracial representation within the PNCR, and, hopefully, this model can be replicated withinthePPP

A few weeks ago, a person made some obnoxious comments on a political platform that included the PNCR and the WPA. The distasteful and jaundiced comments were roundly condemned by a group of four PNCR members, all of Indian ancestry

In condemning the comments,thegroupsaidthe comments were hurtful to the East Indian community The group expressed disappointment that none of the others speakers at the meetingsoughttoaddressor clarifytheallegeddistasteful remarks.

This was a novel development in local politics. It can hardly be recalled any instance of a group of persons within a political party openly expressing disgust at remarksmadeatameetingin which their party participated. It showed that there were persons within the PNCR were prepared to take independent positions onirksomematters.

It also points to a possible model, within the country’s mass-based p a r t i e s , t h a t c a n accommodate multiracial politics This model can address the constraint posed

De winner appeal de judgment

Legal history is being rewritten in Guyana

Imagine a court case was decided in de government favor and de government decide it gan appeal de judgment.

Ifthatisnotbizarrethen itcanonlybehigh-comedy Howcanyouwinacaseand stillappealit?Don’taskme, askdegovernment.

Court case decided in favourofdecountryandyet de country decide it nah wantwin.Itwanttolosede case. What sort of thing is dat?Datishowthiscountry does run? It remind dem boys of de time a man appeared in de High Court charged for a double murder De judge tuned to the accused and said, “You are charged with beating you wife to death with a shovel.”Avoiceattheback ofthecourtroomyelledout, “Youbastard!”

The judge continued, “You are also charged with beating your daughter to deathwithashovel.”

Again, the voice at the back of the courtroom yelledout,“Youbastard!!!” tomultiracialpoliticswithin each of the country’s two main political parties by virtue of the fact that they each draw the majority of their support from each of themainethnicgroups.

So how can multiracial politics in promoted in parties are perceived as ethnically-dominated parties?Theanswertothatis to reject the majoritarian decision-making model in each party Instead, the PNCR and the PPPC can each promote a plural decision-makingmodel.

In this plural model ethnic caucuses should be established in each party caucus and within the PPPC anAfricancaucus. In this model, minorities in each party need not feel emasculated. They can have a voice and demand greater influence in decisionmakingwithintheirparties.

The judge stopped, looked at the man in the back of the courtroom, and said, “Sir, I can understand yourangerandfrustrationat this crime, but I will not have any more of these outburstsfromyouorIshall charge you with contempt! Nowwhatistheproblem?”

Demanatdebackofde court stood up and responded, “For fifteen years I lived next door to thatbastardandeverytimeI askedtoborrowashovelhe saidhedidn’thaveone!”

Talkhalf.Leffhalf