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How serious is the Caribbean about reparations?

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By Sir Ronald Sanders 

(The writer is Antigua and Barbuda’s Ambassador to the US and the OAS.  He is also Senior Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London and Massey College in the University of Toronto.   The views expressed are his own) 

On March 25, the Secretary-General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, publicly pointed out that “only six of our 34 active member states have ratified the Inter-American Convention against Racism, Racial Discrimination and Related Forms of Intolerance”.

Almagro was speaking at an OAS meeting to commemorate the victim of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.  Poignantly, he asked why 28 states have not ratified the Convention.  He emphasized the relevance of his question by inquiring further:  “Do we not agree that every human being is equal under the law? Do we not agree that every human being has a right to equal protection against racism, racial discrimination, and related forms of intolerance”?

The Secretary-General’s questions have great significance for the 14 CARICOM member states of the OAS, because only one Caribbean state – Antigua and Barbuda – is among the six hemispheric nations that have ratified the treaty.   Yet, the Convention has been open for signature and ratification for nine years since 2013.

The Convention is the only international treaty that specifically identifies “people of African descent” as “victims of racism, racial discrimination, and other related forms of intolerance in the Americas”.    For that reason alone, Caribbean states should have signed and ratified the Convention, especially as, in arguing for reparations for slavery, Heads of Government of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) have declared that the region “continues to suffer from the effects of slavery today”.

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The Convention was not easily achieved.  Its adoption took years of hard negotiations during which many member countries of the OAS, including the United States (US) and Canada withdrew from the process.  Today, apart from Antigua and Barbuda, the other five countries that have ratified the Convention are: Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico and Uruguay.

The fact that CARICOM states, other than Antigua and Barbuda, have not ratified the Convention is rightfully a bewilderment for other OAS nations.  This oddity has gained greater importance over the last 9 years when blatant and fatal discrimination have been meted out to people of African descent, giving rise to the movement which asserts that “black lives matter”.

While it is true that acts of racial discrimination within a state are matters for the jurisdiction concerned – even when they are fatal, as in the well-known case of George Floyd in the US,  Conventions such as the one being discussed here, provide the opportunity for intervention without accusations of interference in the internal affairs of a state.  CARICOM states can raise their voices when specific acts of discrimination occur.  One of the overarching principles of the Convention is the commitment by participating states that: “the individual and collective experience of discrimination must be taken into account to combat segregation and marginalization based on race, ethnicity, or nationality, and to protect the life plan of those individuals and communities at risk of such segregation and marginalization”.

The fact that Caribbean countries have not signed and ratified the treaty provides an excuse for other states to do likewise.   Caribbean countries can hardly call for the Convention to be ratified and upheld when they have not done so themselves.

Many regard the absence of the majority of CARICOM countries from the nations that have ratified the Convention as weakening the quest for reparatory justice from the racial discrimination that is a part of slavery’s legacy.   And that is perhaps the greatest danger for the Caribbean.

In its statement to the OAS meeting at which Secretary-General Almagro asked his pertinent questions, the Antigua and Barbuda delegation said the following:

“CARICOM countries – where Afro-descendants are the majority, and occupy all levels of business, government, and society – have a moral obligation to insist on the same rights for Afro-descendants everywhere, particularly those in jurisdictions where their rights are routinely and structurally denied”.

Antigua and Barbuda praised an earlier public call by Almagro for “reparations to begin now” and supported his position at the March 25 meeting that “to overcome the consequences of slavery, which, even today continue to haunt many of our societies; we must open the dialogue for reparations”.

The OAS is the second inter-governmental organization in which the matter of reparations for slavery has been raised, although not formally placed on the table for discussion.   The first was the United Nations where several Caribbean leaders have called for reparations at meetings of the General Assembly.   The difference between the UN and the OAS is that the latter’s Secretary-General – its Chief Executive Officer – has associated himself with the advancement of the matter.

Caribbean countries have an opportunity to advance the reparations cause in the OAS.   It might be an uncomfortable discussion for some non-Caribbean countries, but it is one that should not be avoided.   The task of advancing this cause falls to CARICOM countries.   It requires unity of purpose and a clear and realistic understanding of what is meant by “reparations” and the form it should take.

One of the first meaningful steps in showing that they are serious about moving forward the discussion on reparations is for Caribbean countries to ratify the only Inter-American Convention that specifically identifies “people of African descent” as “victims of racism, racial discrimination and inequality of treatment”.   If not, the question will be asked: how serious are Caribbean states about reparations?

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In Other News

REQUEST FOR EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST

(CONSULTING SERVICES – INDIVIDUAL SELECTION)

 

OECS MSME Guarantee Facility Project

Loan No.: IDA-62670, IDA-62660, IDA-62640, IBRD-88830, IDA-62650

Assignment Title: Senior Operating Officer (SOO)

Reference No. KN-ECPCGC-207852-CS-INDV

 

The Governments of Antigua and Barbuda, Commonwealth of Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines have received financing in the amount of US$10 million equivalent from the World Bank towards the cost of establishing a partial credit guarantee scheme, and they intend to apply part of the proceeds to payments for goods, and consulting services to be procured under this project. 

The consultant will serve as the “Senior Operating Officer (SOO)” for the ECPCGC and should possess extensive knowledge of MSME lending with some direct experience lending to Micro, small and medium-sized businesses, knowledge of the internal control processes necessary for a lending operation and the ability to design and implement risk mitigation procedures. The ideal candidate should possess an Undergraduate Degree from a reputable college or university, preferably in Business, Accounting, Banking or related field, with a minimum of 5 years’ experience in lending, inclusive of MSME lending. The initial employment period will be for two years on a contractual basis. Renewal of the contract will be subject to a performance evaluation at the end of the contractual period. The assignment is expected to begin on September 30th, 2021.  The consultant will report directly to the Chief Executive Officer of the ECPCGC.

The detailed Terms of Reference (TOR) for the assignment can be viewed by following the attached link below. 

 

https://bit.ly/3iVannm

 

The Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation (ECPCGC) now invites eligible “Consultants” to indicate their interest in providing the Services. Interested Consultants should provide information demonstrating that they have:

  • An Undergraduate Degree from a reputable college or university, preferably in Business, Finance, Banking or related field; and
  • Minimum of 5 years’ experience in MSME lending. Applicants should also have:
  • The ability to design and implement risk management procedures 
  • Extensive knowledge of MSME lending with some direct experience lending to small and medium-sized businesses
  • Extensive knowledge of MSME banking operations
  • Knowledge of the internal controls necessary for a lending operation and the ability to design and implement risk management procedures
  • Experience developing and presenting information in public, including responding to questions in real-time
  • Experience lending to MSMEs located in the ECCU
  • Knowledge of marketing and communicating with the MSME sector
  • Ability to draft procedures to be used in a lending operation
  • Familiarity with the mechanics of a loan guarantee program
  • Exceptional written, oral, interpersonal, and presentation skills, and
  • Proficiency in the use of Microsoft Office suite.

The attention of interested Individual Consultants is drawn to Section III, Paragraphs 3.14, 3.16, and 3.17 of the World Bank’s Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers July 2016, [revised November 2017] (“Procurement Regulations”), setting forth the World Bank’s policy on conflict of interest. A Consultant will be selected in accordance with the Approved Selection Method for Individual Consultants set out in the clause 7.34 of the World Bank Procurement Regulations for IPF Borrowers. 

 

Further information can be obtained at the address below during office hours 0800 to 1700 hours:

Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation

Brid Rock, Basseterre,

St. Kitts.

Expressions of interest must be delivered in a written form by e-mail by August 11th, 2021, to [email protected]. 

 

For further information, please contact:

Carmen Gomez-Trigg                                                            Bernard Thomas

Chief Executive Officer                                                          Chief Financial Officer

Tel: 868-620-8144                                                                  Tel: 869-765-2385

Email: [email protected]                                          [email protected]