Home  News Regional News Put away the begging bowl
|
Put away the begging bowl |
|
|
|
|
Monday, 06 October 2008 |
NEW YORK - Jamaica's Prime Minister Bruce Golding has issued a strong rebuke to Caribbean Community (CARICOM) leaders, telling them to put away the begging bowl that is symbolic of what he sees as shameful attempts to get international assistance.
Many Caribbean leaders were in New York to attend the annual United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) that began last week.
Golding, who was also attending the meeting, said he was fed up with the practice by some unnamed CARICOM leaders of begging for assistance at every turn and called for this unsavory habit to stop.
He further scolded his colleagues for projecting the Caribbean as a charity case saying it is nothing short of demeaning.
"To go around hat in hand to every capital of the world like panhandlers on the street, telling people how we are the wretched of the earth, we are poor and that we need all sorts of charity, I'm tired of that," said Golding, who was at the time addressing a luncheon meeting of the Jamaica American Association held in Manhattan.
He continued: "Not only am I tired of it, but I believe that we have allowed it to cause us to put off indefinitely the need to confront some of our own weaknesses and deficiencies and to deal with it."
Golding said while he was not opposed to development assistance or the idea of international lobbying, countries in the region must be prepared to stand up on their own two feet and face up to their own challenges.
"Why bother to take the top decisions that you need to take, when you can always go to a president somewhere or a prime minister somewhere and say 'look at me, see how I'm suffering, please help me out a little'," he said.
He warned that "this new paradigm in which we find ourselves is one in which we must be prepared to stand up on our own feet and stand with some pride.
"We may not be rich. We may have all sorts of deficiencies but let's start dealing with them and let us at all times be prepared to say to the world let's find a way to collaborate because there is a mutuality of interest between us," he added
His comments come against the backdrop of recent negotiations with Europe for a new Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), which CARICOM leaders, with the exception of Guyana, have indicated their intention to sign. The agreement will replace the old preferential arrangements between Europe and the region.
|
|
|
|
