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Destroying crime by developing people -Mia Mottley on food crisis, press freedom and Caribbean unity
published: Monday | April 14, 2008
Mottley: I recognise the media's important role, but in the decades to come, many of the challenges are going to rely on citizen action and participation. - photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer
This is the final of a two-part interview with Barbadian Opposition Leader Mia Mottley by Lifestyle Editor Barbara Ellington.
Regionally and internationally, over the last six months, food prices have steadily gone through the roof. The factors causing this include a fallout from the US/Iraq war, steep rises in oil and grain prices and the recession in the United States. How is Barbados handling this crisis?
I cannot speak for the government, but from my own perception of these issues, I can say it's not only a regional phenomenon as some would think, it's global and over the next two decades, the question of scarcity of food and water resources will become more of an issue. This is because of the tremendous demand occasioned by the tremendous growth of the Indian and Chinese economies, the negative impacts of climate change and the increase in energy prices.
So, as a region, how should we be preparing ourselves as this escalates?
There are issues we need to resolve, I note the steps taken to reduce elements of the Common External Tariff (CET). But that alone will not resolve things, there has to be an expansion of food production in the region.
The heads of government have been working towards the Jagdeo initiative, which was to be one of the first areas of the economy, we would see developed. I hope that it will be accelerated because we have to bring back several thousands acres in the food and livestock sectors within the region. There will be challenges with transportation and access to capital, but the only way we are going to sufficiently cushion the region from a global phenomenon is by us taking responsibility for our own food production.
We have the acreage available, particularly in the larger countries like Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Belize. The timelines for the production of a lot of the food we need are not long. Many crops take 12 weeks to nine months to reaping time. We should not allow the shortage to continue into the long term without an aggressive approach to serious production in the region.
You talked about security, but Jamaica has had a challenging security problem for years. Crime is escalating and in the last few years, Trinidad and other neighbours have been seeing increases in their crime figures too. The more united we become as a region, the more pervasive the problem will become. What should we do collectively to stem this monstrous tide? Second, what are some of the strategies that Barbados has used over the years to keep crime down?
There is no simple or immediate answer to the problem. It will require a combination of policies and a steadfastness of purpose over the long term. There must be an aggressive law enforcement posture domestically and regionally. As the heads did leading up to World Cup Cricket, there must be regional mechanisms that allow us to minimise our expenditure. There are limitations by sharing intelligence, supplementing each other's forces, national emergencies; cooperating on border security issues.
But there also has to be a recognition that the resolution of crime issues has to be about the development of our people. These relate to the eradication of poverty, buttressing of education community development; the development, of sports and cultural activities, these are key to resolving the issue in the medium to long term.
There has to be emphasis on these issues. The ability to prescribe from a top-down approach will not suffice; we must have national conversations among community and other groups. We have to understand the few things that unite us and build a common programme on that. We have to start from the values that mean something to us and then replicate these in our programming and policy framework.
Questions of compassion, empathy, respect, love, trust and tolerance must be reflected in our policy and programming framework. We have to have a national covenant so that people will buy into it and be prepared to do what is necessary through a voluntary commitment versus a legislative prescription.
Fear and panic
Sometimes, we are hard on ourselves because Jamaica has a population of 2.6 million but not even 10 per cent of that number is in the criminal courts. But the power of fear and panic is so great, it causes us to be intimidated at the thought of how to resolve the problem. If we start being dispassionate, we will realise that the majority of Jamaicans do not end up in the criminal court. It means that the potential pool of persons to fight the battle is in the majority.
It is difficult though, but speaking generally, in our region, the issue of poverty has to be confronted squarely. For example, access to a house and a piece of land are what constitutes a man/woman's relationship with and commitment to his society. Their ability then, to have access to education and a job or capital, increases. So the parallel track includes: the fight against poverty; the utilisation of formal and non-formal education are all critical to be able to reinforce the values I spoke about and create economic opportunity.
That multifaceted approach will take time and require government, all community, church, sports and other groups embracing what matters to us and what we will be prepared to defend to the death. These have to accompany an aggressive law enforcement posture.
We also have to see a significant boosting of confidence in the region's justice systems in terms of speed of access to it and transparency of prosecution and of those who are held accountable for breaches of the law. We already have a culture where the majority of our people have been exploited since modern settlements in the Caribbean. There may be a natural disposition for people to feel they are out to be exploited. The only way to counter that is with a culture of fairness, transparency and accountability.
We have talked at length and made some progress in this regard, but do you see the region really coming together eventually?
The media are responsible for making that happen. Almost all the same issues that affect one regional country become an issue in another within a matter of months. We are all constrained by limited resources and capacities. What we need to do is create platforms for one-on-one connections through regional information mechanisms like television and radio stations that are not limited.
The daily news package on CMC is not enough. Information is one means to sensitise people and provide them with information about what is important and a recognition of the economic activities and the social solutions to be found.
Government subsidy
There has to be a major investment in relation to having that kind of unifying information mechanism. Governments should foster the environment in which it can happen. There should be some level of government subsidy but the private sectors of the region should lead it. Regional media have to contend with the fact that their structures prohibit them from playing as great a role as they ought to in development. You can't have a management structure that rewards excellent journalism by promoting them into management.
Pay them for being excellent. Restructure in order to reward them for being good at what they do so you don't get your best journalists being promoted into management rather than staying on the front lines and advancing the ethics of the profession.
There are challenges, but the media have to be an active partner. We cannot fight chronic diseases if the average citizen does not realise that he/she has a disease or the consequences for public health and safety. The media must educate them in small repetitive doses, much in the same way that musicians do. On the other hand, the very thing that people find attractive in the daily doses of negative input from electronic international media can also be dangerous.
Very often some media practitioners are constrained by having to keep in line with the agenda of the bosses and the need to first respect the bottom line.
Recently in Barbados, there was a call for a journalistic body that is representative of journalistic issues. There needs to be a balance because you cannot conduct yourself so that you have no revenue. There needs to be more creativity in how revenue is raised and not be reckless in expenditure.
I recognise the media's important role but, in the decades to come, many of the challenges are going to rely on citizen action and participation. In that scenario, the mechanism by which we mobilise that citizen action is through media. Another way is through our artistes. There is a lot going on. David Rudder and Tanya Stephens deliver empowering lyrics and they have an influence without necessarily setting out to do so. Etana has done fabulous work too.
Unity in the region has to be achieved through both a hard- and soft-sell way, it's the manner in which you interpret the message for the average citizen. It has to be done ... so that eventually the message resonates with the listener in a way that is more difficult for a politician to do. That's why I call it non-formal education.
This is why education and culture are two important areas for you?
That's right; people are important to me. Why do you develop and govern if it's not to improve the lives of people? I have a passion for people. I am also cognisant of the fact that the very thing that causes you to attract people's attention can be dangerous. Because you speak well, it is assumed that you talk the talk, but not walk the walk. I have been sensitive throughout my entire career that I am not prepared to speak about anything that I am not prepared to make happen.
So, you are on track with providing houses for all your constituents?
Yes, and there is reason for it at the micro and macro levels because I came into the political arena at a time in our development when there was rampant cynicism and apathy as it relates to public service and politics. I, therefore, feel that you can only reverse people's negative perception about access to justice through a culture of transparency and fairness you can only restore people's faith in the political class by politicians being sincere and earning trust by speaking to issues and implementing them.
[email protected]
published: Monday | April 14, 2008
Mottley: I recognise the media's important role, but in the decades to come, many of the challenges are going to rely on citizen action and participation. - photos by Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer
This is the final of a two-part interview with Barbadian Opposition Leader Mia Mottley by Lifestyle Editor Barbara Ellington.
Regionally and internationally, over the last six months, food prices have steadily gone through the roof. The factors causing this include a fallout from the US/Iraq war, steep rises in oil and grain prices and the recession in the United States. How is Barbados handling this crisis?
I cannot speak for the government, but from my own perception of these issues, I can say it's not only a regional phenomenon as some would think, it's global and over the next two decades, the question of scarcity of food and water resources will become more of an issue. This is because of the tremendous demand occasioned by the tremendous growth of the Indian and Chinese economies, the negative impacts of climate change and the increase in energy prices.
So, as a region, how should we be preparing ourselves as this escalates?
There are issues we need to resolve, I note the steps taken to reduce elements of the Common External Tariff (CET). But that alone will not resolve things, there has to be an expansion of food production in the region.
The heads of government have been working towards the Jagdeo initiative, which was to be one of the first areas of the economy, we would see developed. I hope that it will be accelerated because we have to bring back several thousands acres in the food and livestock sectors within the region. There will be challenges with transportation and access to capital, but the only way we are going to sufficiently cushion the region from a global phenomenon is by us taking responsibility for our own food production.
We have the acreage available, particularly in the larger countries like Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Belize. The timelines for the production of a lot of the food we need are not long. Many crops take 12 weeks to nine months to reaping time. We should not allow the shortage to continue into the long term without an aggressive approach to serious production in the region.
You talked about security, but Jamaica has had a challenging security problem for years. Crime is escalating and in the last few years, Trinidad and other neighbours have been seeing increases in their crime figures too. The more united we become as a region, the more pervasive the problem will become. What should we do collectively to stem this monstrous tide? Second, what are some of the strategies that Barbados has used over the years to keep crime down?
There is no simple or immediate answer to the problem. It will require a combination of policies and a steadfastness of purpose over the long term. There must be an aggressive law enforcement posture domestically and regionally. As the heads did leading up to World Cup Cricket, there must be regional mechanisms that allow us to minimise our expenditure. There are limitations by sharing intelligence, supplementing each other's forces, national emergencies; cooperating on border security issues.
But there also has to be a recognition that the resolution of crime issues has to be about the development of our people. These relate to the eradication of poverty, buttressing of education community development; the development, of sports and cultural activities, these are key to resolving the issue in the medium to long term.
There has to be emphasis on these issues. The ability to prescribe from a top-down approach will not suffice; we must have national conversations among community and other groups. We have to understand the few things that unite us and build a common programme on that. We have to start from the values that mean something to us and then replicate these in our programming and policy framework.
Questions of compassion, empathy, respect, love, trust and tolerance must be reflected in our policy and programming framework. We have to have a national covenant so that people will buy into it and be prepared to do what is necessary through a voluntary commitment versus a legislative prescription.
Fear and panic
Sometimes, we are hard on ourselves because Jamaica has a population of 2.6 million but not even 10 per cent of that number is in the criminal courts. But the power of fear and panic is so great, it causes us to be intimidated at the thought of how to resolve the problem. If we start being dispassionate, we will realise that the majority of Jamaicans do not end up in the criminal court. It means that the potential pool of persons to fight the battle is in the majority.
It is difficult though, but speaking generally, in our region, the issue of poverty has to be confronted squarely. For example, access to a house and a piece of land are what constitutes a man/woman's relationship with and commitment to his society. Their ability then, to have access to education and a job or capital, increases. So the parallel track includes: the fight against poverty; the utilisation of formal and non-formal education are all critical to be able to reinforce the values I spoke about and create economic opportunity.
That multifaceted approach will take time and require government, all community, church, sports and other groups embracing what matters to us and what we will be prepared to defend to the death. These have to accompany an aggressive law enforcement posture.
We also have to see a significant boosting of confidence in the region's justice systems in terms of speed of access to it and transparency of prosecution and of those who are held accountable for breaches of the law. We already have a culture where the majority of our people have been exploited since modern settlements in the Caribbean. There may be a natural disposition for people to feel they are out to be exploited. The only way to counter that is with a culture of fairness, transparency and accountability.
We have talked at length and made some progress in this regard, but do you see the region really coming together eventually?
The media are responsible for making that happen. Almost all the same issues that affect one regional country become an issue in another within a matter of months. We are all constrained by limited resources and capacities. What we need to do is create platforms for one-on-one connections through regional information mechanisms like television and radio stations that are not limited.
The daily news package on CMC is not enough. Information is one means to sensitise people and provide them with information about what is important and a recognition of the economic activities and the social solutions to be found.
Government subsidy
There has to be a major investment in relation to having that kind of unifying information mechanism. Governments should foster the environment in which it can happen. There should be some level of government subsidy but the private sectors of the region should lead it. Regional media have to contend with the fact that their structures prohibit them from playing as great a role as they ought to in development. You can't have a management structure that rewards excellent journalism by promoting them into management.
Pay them for being excellent. Restructure in order to reward them for being good at what they do so you don't get your best journalists being promoted into management rather than staying on the front lines and advancing the ethics of the profession.
There are challenges, but the media have to be an active partner. We cannot fight chronic diseases if the average citizen does not realise that he/she has a disease or the consequences for public health and safety. The media must educate them in small repetitive doses, much in the same way that musicians do. On the other hand, the very thing that people find attractive in the daily doses of negative input from electronic international media can also be dangerous.
Very often some media practitioners are constrained by having to keep in line with the agenda of the bosses and the need to first respect the bottom line.
Recently in Barbados, there was a call for a journalistic body that is representative of journalistic issues. There needs to be a balance because you cannot conduct yourself so that you have no revenue. There needs to be more creativity in how revenue is raised and not be reckless in expenditure.
I recognise the media's important role but, in the decades to come, many of the challenges are going to rely on citizen action and participation. In that scenario, the mechanism by which we mobilise that citizen action is through media. Another way is through our artistes. There is a lot going on. David Rudder and Tanya Stephens deliver empowering lyrics and they have an influence without necessarily setting out to do so. Etana has done fabulous work too.
Unity in the region has to be achieved through both a hard- and soft-sell way, it's the manner in which you interpret the message for the average citizen. It has to be done ... so that eventually the message resonates with the listener in a way that is more difficult for a politician to do. That's why I call it non-formal education.
This is why education and culture are two important areas for you?
That's right; people are important to me. Why do you develop and govern if it's not to improve the lives of people? I have a passion for people. I am also cognisant of the fact that the very thing that causes you to attract people's attention can be dangerous. Because you speak well, it is assumed that you talk the talk, but not walk the walk. I have been sensitive throughout my entire career that I am not prepared to speak about anything that I am not prepared to make happen.
So, you are on track with providing houses for all your constituents?
Yes, and there is reason for it at the micro and macro levels because I came into the political arena at a time in our development when there was rampant cynicism and apathy as it relates to public service and politics. I, therefore, feel that you can only reverse people's negative perception about access to justice through a culture of transparency and fairness you can only restore people's faith in the political class by politicians being sincere and earning trust by speaking to issues and implementing them.
[email protected]
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