Category: CANA News

Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre has congratulated Antigua and Barbuda on its 45th anniversary of independence, reaffirming St Lucia’s commitment to strengthening ties between the two Caribbean nations.

In a message to Prime Minister Gaston Browne and the people of Antigua and Barbuda, Pierre acknowledged the country’s journey since gaining independence on November 1, 1981.

He noted that this year’s celebrations coincide with Antigua and Barbuda’s hosting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), which will focus on strengthening partnerships and investment, climate resilience, trade and sustainable development.

Pierre said he looks forward to participating in the discussions and meeting with Browne and other Commonwealth leaders.

He also highlighted the longstanding cooperation between the two countries through the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

Pierre reaffirmed St Lucia’s commitment to advancing regional cooperation and addressing shared challenges while pursuing opportunities for the people of both countries.

The Prime Minister extended best wishes to Antiguans and Barbudans at home and abroad as they celebrate the milestone.

Prime Minister Gaston Browne says Antigua and Barbuda will continue to engage the United States and European Union in efforts to resolve concerns surrounding its Citizenship by Investment Programme (CBI), warning that mounting international pressures threaten the country’s economic interests and the mobility of its citizens.

In his address to the nation on Sunday, marking Antigua and Barbuda’s 45th anniversary of political independence, Browne acknowledged that the country faces significant external challenges, including the partial suspension of US visa issuance to its nationals and a request from the European Union to phase out the CBI programme by June 2028.

He warned that the EU’s position could jeopardise visa-free access to the Schengen Area, while the US restrictions have implications for citizens seeking educational, commercial and personal opportunities abroad.

‘We have offered our full cooperation and remain prepared to work constructively to address the security concerns they have raised, while safeguarding the legitimate interests, rights and opportunities of our people.’

He said the government would continue negotiations with both international partners, adopting what he described as a respectful but firm approach.

The Prime Minister defended the importance of the CBI programme, noting that it provides critical revenue for public services, infrastructure development and government financing.

‘Our Citizenship by Investment Programme has become an important source of public revenue and development financing. It helps to support public services, finance critical infrastructure and provide fiscal space that reduces the burden on taxpayers,’ he said.

Browne acknowledged, however, that the government must remain innovative in determining the programme’s future.

‘We cannot afford complacency, nor can we allow these challenges to diminish our national ambition,’ he declared.

Turning to the country’s economic performance, the Prime Minister said Antigua and Barbuda had achieved a significant milestone by attaining the World Bank’s high-income classification.

However, he cautioned that the designation did not necessarily reflect the circumstances of every household, acknowledging that some families continued to struggle financially.

He identified the rising cost of living, global supply chain disruptions and increasing energy prices among the challenges confronting the twin-island nation.

The Prime Minister said his administration remained committed to cushioning the impact on vulnerable households while pursuing greater economic diversification, renewable energy development and employment opportunities for young people.

‘Our independence must mean more than political sovereignty. It must also mean the economic capacity to determine our future, withstand external pressures and provide a better quality of life for our citizens.’

Browne also used the anniversary address to renew calls for reparatory justice, saying the consequences of slavery and colonial exploitation continued to affect Caribbean societies.

He disclosed that his government was advancing the issue in bilateral discussions with the United Kingdom and within the Commonwealth, including at a meeting scheduled to begin on Monday.

‘Our pursuit of reparatory justice therefore deserves seriousness, sensitivity and sustained international engagement,’ he said.

The Prime Minister said historical injustices must be acknowledged while maintaining constructive relationships with international partners.

The anniversary celebrations are also being marked by a visit from King Charles III and Queen Camilla.

Browne welcomed the royal couple, noting the historical significance of the visit, 45 years after Princess Margaret represented Queen Elizabeth II at the country’s independence celebrations in 1981.

He also addressed the future of the country’s constitutional arrangements, noting that Antigua and Barbuda had remained a constitutional monarchy since independence.

‘The future of our constitutional arrangements, however, belongs ultimately to the people of Antigua and Barbuda and must be determined by them through our constitutional processes,’ he said.

Reflecting on the country’s development, then Prime Minister highlighted investments in education, healthcare, airport and seaport infrastructure, including the establishment of the University of the West Indies Five Islands Campus.

He also recalled the devastation caused by Hurricane Irma in 2017, particularly in Barbuda, and praised residents for their resilience and rebuilding efforts.

Browne said the country must now focus on strengthening economic self-reliance, creating sustainable opportunities and ensuring that future generations benefit from the sacrifices made since independence.

‘We have won our political independence. Now, let us deepen our economic independence,’ he said.

‘We have demonstrated our capacity to survive. Now, let us build the capacity to thrive.’

About 150 workers at PowerGen, the largest independent power producer in Trinidad and Tobago, are expected to receive outstanding wage payments by December 15, following a TT$66.1 million (US$9.8 million) settlement between the company and the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU), ending nine and a half years of unresolved negotiations.

Public Utilities Minister Barry Padarath announced the agreement in Parliament late Friday, saying it covers the 2016-2017 and 2018-2020 bargaining periods and provides for a cumulative wage increase of nine per cent over five years.

The increases are structured at 0.5 per cent, three per cent, one per cent, 1.5 per cent and three per cent, with the approximately 150 eligible workers scheduled to receive their outstanding payments before Christmas.

Padarath said the agreement followed intensive discussions between PowerGen and the OWTU, bringing an end to negotiations that remained unresolved under the former People’s National Movement (PNM) administration.

He said the Government had committed to addressing outstanding industrial matters during its tenure, rather than promising that all disputes would be settled immediately upon taking office.

‘Mr Speaker, PowerGen and the Oilfield Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) have reached a historic 66.1 million wage settlement, bringing closure to nine and a half years of outstanding wage negotiations,’ he told Parliament.

The minister also pointed to the potential for further progress at the company, saying the agreement could create momentum for resolving outstanding compensation matters involving another 87 employees.

Those matters concern 26 employees represented by the Senior Staff Association and 61 professional staff members.

Padarath welcomed the fact that the dispute had been resolved through direct negotiations rather than a ruling by the Industrial Court.

He described the agreement as a demonstration of the value of dialogue between employers and trade unions, and commended PowerGen management, staff and OWTU representatives for negotiating in good faith.

PowerGen, which was established in 1994 after the partial divestment of the generation assets of the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission, supplies bulk electricity to the national grid, operating major power plants including facilities at Point Lisas and Penal.

Minister Padarath also recalled that more than 136 wage negotiations were settled between 2010 and 2015 under the previous People’s Partnership administration, saying the record demonstrated its commitment to addressing public-sector industrial matters.

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has welcomed British Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s openness to a formal apology for slavery and structured dialogue with affected countries, but insists that reparatory justice must remain central to any discussions.

In a statement issued on Saturday, CARICOM Chair and Saint Lucia’s Prime Minister, Philip J. Pierre, said the Community was ready to engage with the United Kingdom but rejected Burnham’s position that reparations were not ‘the right answer’.

Burnham, who is due to attend the November 1-4 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Antigua and Barbuda, has said he is ‘open’ to listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of Britain for its role in the slave trade, but ruled out considering financial reparations.

‘I do not believe that is the right answer,’ he wrote in the Guardian. ‘I do not think that British people today can be held liable for historical wrongs, however heinous, that happened in a different age under different laws and in which they played no personal part.’

Burnham instead offered a ‘structured dialogue’ with those affected by the slave trade: ‘Having these difficult conversations to safeguard the Commonwealth for the future is the right thing to do. It is also the patriotic thing to do. Not just because it is in our interests, but because the Britain I believe in is confident, decent and brave. We led the world in abolishing slavery – and we can show leadership again today.’

‘I want to express my sorrow and regret for the pain and suffering of so many millions and to recognise the way it still shapes our world today,’ he added.

Pierre said Burnham’s expression of personal sorrow and regret for the suffering caused by slavery and its continuing effects, together with his willingness to consider a formal apology on behalf of the British state, represented a significant development.

‘No British Prime Minister has gone this far before. It would be wrong of us not to say so, and we welcome it in the spirit in which it appears to be offered,’ Pierre said. ‘For more than a decade, this Community has asked for exactly such a dialogue. We are ready to engage.’

However, the CARICOM Chair said the Community did not accept the argument that reparations were inappropriate or that Britain’s responsibility had ended because present-day citizens had not personally participated in slavery.

‘Reparatory justice has never been about individual guilt. It is about the responsibility of states and institutions – and that responsibility does not expire with the passing of generations,’ he said.

Pierre pointed to Britain’s role in legislating for, protecting and profiting from slavery, as well as its decision to compensate enslavers at Emancipation while formerly enslaved people received no land, wealth or compensation.

He noted that the loan raised to compensate enslavers was still being repaid by British taxpayers until February 2015.

The consequences of slavery, he said, continue to be felt across the Caribbean through chronic disease, inequalities in education and opportunity, economies shaped by extraction, national debt and vulnerability to economic and climate shocks.

Pierre said a formal apology would be an important first step, but argued that it must be accompanied by practical measures to address the lasting effects of slavery.

He pointed to CARICOM’s Ten-Point Plan for Reparatory Justice, which includes a formal apology, public health, education and training, cultural heritage restitution and reconnection, psychological rehabilitation, technology and innovation, entrepreneurship, debt cancellation, monetary compensation and decolonisation.

He said the proposed dialogue must allow for discussion of every element of the plan, as well as reparations for the genocide of Indigenous Peoples and the harm caused to people brought from India and China to sustain colonial systems.

‘A dialogue that begins by placing reparations outside the room cannot be a complete dialogue,’ Pierre said.

The CARICOM Chair also acknowledged the United Kingdom’s initiative, to be led by former British prime minister Gordon Brown, to restructure the debt of the poorest Commonwealth countries.

He said the Community would examine the proposal seriously but cautioned that most CARICOM member states were classified as middle- or high-income economies and were routinely excluded from concessional relief despite their vulnerability to climate and economic shocks.

‘Any initiative that is to be meaningful for our region must measure vulnerability, not income alone,’ he said, adding that debt relief could not be used as a substitute for reparatory justice.

Pierre said the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on Reparations, led by Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley, and the CARICOM Reparations Commission, chaired by Sir Hilary Beckles, were prepared to work with the British Government on the terms, agenda and timetable for structured dialogue.

He said he looked forward to meeting Burnham in Antigua and Barbuda in the coming days, as the country prepares to host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting.

‘Our ancestors did not receive justice in their lifetime. We owe it to them, and to the generations who will come after us, to see this work through – with dignity, with patience, and with resolve,’ Pierre said.

Naavya Sharma snared four wickets, and skipper Thomas Rew blasted an unbeaten half century to lead England Lions to a lopsided eight-wicket win over West Indies ‘A’ in the opening T20 here on Sunday.

None of the home side’s batters managed to negotiate the pace of Sharma and Scott Currie, leading to them being skittled out for a meagre 98 in 19.4 overs after being sent in to bat at Conaree Sports Club.

Faced with a straightforward run chase, Rew slammed an even, unbeaten 50 off 24 balls with eight fours and one six, as England raced to 101 for two in just 10.1 overs to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

The West Indies never gathered any momentum in their innings, with Sharma trapping hard-hitting left hander Zachary Carter lbw in the first over with six runs on the board.

Kamil Pooran made 14 off 11 balls before becoming Sharma’s second victim to leave the Windies 21 for two in the third over.

Jewel Andrew and Alick Athanaze maintained a healthy run rate by adding 21 runs in two overs, before pacer Eddie Jack removed the former for 11.

From thereon, the West Indies struggled to form meaningful partnerships, while losing wickets at regular intervals.

Athanaze was bowled by leg spinner Calvin Harrison for a run-a-ball 20, with Shadrack Descarte, who scored a pedestrian 20 off 33 balls before becoming the first of Currie’s three wickets, the only other batter to score more than 10.

The West Indies’ lacklustre batting effort saw them lose their last four wickets for only five runs to crumble from 93 for six to 98 all out.

Sharma finished with figures of 4-19, Currie took 3-11 and Harrison 2-16.

With a small target to defend, West Indies got off to the perfect start when fast bowler Jahkeem Pollard had Ben McKinney caught for a duck at cover with the second ball of the innings.

But Rew and Rehan Ahmed hammered 53 runs off the next five overs to restore England’s dominance and erase any hopes the Windies had of a come-from-behind win.

Ahmed hit Pollard for two boundaries in his second over that went for 10 runs, with Rew joining in the action by striking Stewart Thompson for three consecutive boundaries in the ensuing over that yielded 16 runs.

Joshua James managed to break the stand by having Ahmed caught at backward square leg for 29 off 24 balls to make the score 53 for two after six overs.

The captain then dominated an unbroken partnership of 48 with James Rew, who ended on nine not out, as England breezed to an easy win.

He brought up his half century off 24 balls by cutting Thompson behind square for two with three runs needed for victory.

The second T20 is scheduled to be played on Tuesday at the same venue.

Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre has congratulated Antigua and Barbuda on its 45th anniversary of independence, reaffirming St Lucia’s commitment to strengthening ties between the two Caribbean nations.

In a message to Prime Minister Gaston Browne and the people of Antigua and Barbuda, Pierre acknowledged the country’s journey since gaining independence on November 1, 1981.

He noted that this year’s celebrations coincide with Antigua and Barbuda’s hosting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), which will focus on strengthening partnerships and investment, climate resilience, trade and sustainable development.

Pierre said he looks forward to participating in the discussions and meeting with Browne and other Commonwealth leaders.

He also highlighted the longstanding cooperation between the two countries through the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS).

Pierre reaffirmed St Lucia’s commitment to advancing regional cooperation and addressing shared challenges while pursuing opportunities for the people of both countries.

The Prime Minister extended best wishes to Antiguans and Barbudans at home and abroad as they celebrate the milestone.

Trinidad and Tobago became the first Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country in decades to ever have voted against a United Nations resolution condemning the United States trade and economic embargo against Cuba, as regional countries remained divided on the issue.

But while the Cuban government may have been pleased with the outcome of the vote, Havana lost significant support from countries in the Western Hemisphere and Europe. The resolution passed 130-17, with 25 abstentions, a sharp drop from last year, when it won 165 votes, with seven against and 12 abstentions.

Of the CARICOM countries that were present at Wednesday’s debate, Jamaica, Haiti and Guyana abstained, while Trinidad and Tobago became the first CARICOM country ever to vote against the UN resolution to end the trade and economic and commercial embargo.

The Bahamas, Belize, Barbados, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St.Kitts and Nevis and Suriname, all voted in favour of the resolution, while Antigua and Barbuda, and Dominica and St. Lucia were marked as being absent when the vote was taken.

Jamaica’s Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister, Kamina Johnson-Smith, told a news conference that Kingston had been reflecting on the UN vote for some time, ‘as this is a shift in policy’

She recalled that Prime Minister Andrew Holness at a CARICOM summit in St. Kitts and Nevis earlier this year had ‘expressed concern at the worsening humanitarian suffering, the impact on Cuba’s circumstances on the region.

‘He reaffirmed our solidarity with Cuba, but also called for U.S.-Cuba dialogue aimed at stability and improving the circumstances of the people. He called for reform and he suggested that CARICOM could, if possible, CARICOM member states could play a constructive role in engagement and cooperation.’

She said more recently at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, she delivered Jamaica’s national policy statemen ‘reaffirming the perspectives first stated by the Prime Minister in July.

‘I want to, by way of reminder, restate the relevant excerpt from the national policy statement. I said, Mr. President, the suffering of the Cuban people is of deep concern to Jamaica. We encourage domestic reform and greater integration of Cuba into the international economic system, supported by policies that create pathways for progress and eliminating the dire humanitarian crisis, rather than perpetuating isolation under the blockade.’

Johnson-Smith said that in the Jamaica parliament on Tuesday, the government moved a motion entitled motion on the Economic and Humanitarian Situation in Cuba, ‘again consistent with the perspective that a broader view of the complex situation in Cuba is needed.

‘Rather than simply calling for an end to the embargo, as has been done in previous years, the motion called on the Parliament to do the following. It asks that Parliament one expresses its deep concern regarding the economic and humanitarian challenges confronting the Cuban people and affirms that their welfare and aspirations must remain central to efforts to address these challenges, two, recognises the importance of intensified economic and institutional reforms, as well as respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, as well as other essential elements of sustainable development.’

She said that the Parliament also ‘supports constructive engagement between Cuba and the United States of America, grounded in mutual respect and peaceful dialogue, aimed at reducing economic restrictions and other barriers to international trade, finance, and investment, while facilitating Cuba’s progressive integration into the international economic system, rather than its isolation under the blockade.’

Johnson-Smith said that these broader contexts are not included in the resolution before the United Nations, ‘and there is no scope to adjust the language of the resolution.

‘We therefore abstained. We did not vote against, because we do not support unilateral actions in accordance with the UN Charter, and we did not vote for, because it is clear that continuing to do the same thing each year, to support the resolution simplicita, with not only no improvement in the circumstances, but in fact a deepening of the humanitarian crisis and suffering, this does not serve the benefit of the Cuban people.’

She said that the position taken is also consistent with Jamaica’s broader perspective on multilateralism.

‘As stated in our national policy statement, we cannot simply continue to defend it and do the same things, and believe that in a changing world, it will somehow magically manifest Agenda 2030, and the systems be deemed to be fully effective.

‘We believe that the systems need reform, and this requires us to act differently. So in the totality of these circumstances,’ she said, adding that Jamaica outlined its reasoning to the United Nations on Wednesday for abstaining on the vote.

According to the Johnson-Smith Jamaica and Cuba share longstanding relations founded on our geographical proximity, historical ties, neutral respect and cooperation, consistent with Jamaica’s commitment to sovereignty, territorial integrity, peaceful coexistence, respect for the Charter of the United Nations, and the principles of international law.

‘We are therefore deeply concerned about the deteriorating socioeconomic and humanitarian conditions being experienced by the people of Cuba, which includes shortages of food, medicines, energy, and other essential goods and services.

‘These challenges adversely affect their quality of life and prospects to achieve the sustainable development goals as envisioned in Agenda 2030. Mr. President, the challenges being experienced by the people of Cuba reflect the combined effects of longstanding external economic restrictions, including the United States economic, commercial, and financial embargo, as well as domestic economic policies and structural constraints,which have limited productivity, investment, and economic opportunity.

‘We are of the view that sustainable improvements in the welfare of the Cuban people would be supported by a more enabling international environment alongside economic and institutional reforms that promote productivity, enterprise, investment, and fuller participation in the international economic and financial system.’

She said Jamaica also recognises the importance of respect for fundamental rights and freedoms, as well as other essential elements of sustainable development, and affirms that the welfare and aspirations of the Cuban people must remain central to efforts to address the current challenges.

‘Reiterating our conviction that multilateralism must deliver fairness for all and affirming our strong belief in resolving disputes through dialogue and diplomacy, we therefore continue to encourage constructive engagement between Cuba and the United States of America.

‘Such dialogue must be grounded in mutual respect, with the objective of reducing economic restrictions and other barriers to international trade, finance, and investment, while facilitating Cuba’s progressive integration into the international economic system rather than its isolation under the economic, commercial, and financial blockade,’ Johnson-Smith told reporters.

The Trinidad and Tobago government Wednesday defended its decision to vote against a United Nations resolution condemning the United States decades’ old trade and economic embargo against Cuba, as regional countries remained divided on the issue.

‘People we do not support a military dictatorship. The Cuban people deserve democracy,’ Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar said in a post on X.

‘Trinidad and Tobago’s decision to vote against the United Nations resolution on Cuba reflects the Government’s firm and unwavering commitment to democracy, freedom and the fundamental rights of all people,’ she added.

Trinidad and Tobago became the first Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country in decades to ever have voted against the resolution, but while the Cuban government may have been pleased with the outcome of the vote, Havana lost significant support from countries in the Western Hemisphere and Europe.

The resolution passed 130-17, with 25 abstentions, a sharp drop from last year, when it won 165 votes, with seven against and 12 abstentions.

Of the CARICOM countries that were present at Wednesday’s debate, Jamaica, Haiti and Guyana abstained, while Trinidad and Tobago voted against. The Bahamas, Belize, Barbados, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St.Kitts and Nevis and Suriname, all voted in favour of the resolution, while Antigua and Barbuda, and Dominica and St. Lucia were marked as being absent when the vote was taken.

Jamaica’s Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister, Kamina Johnson-Smith, told a news conference that Kingston had been reflecting on the UN vote for some time, ‘as this is a shift in policy’

Johnson-Smith said that in the Jamaica parliament on Tuesday, the government moved a motion entitled motion on the Economic and Humanitarian Situation in Cuba, ‘again consistent with the perspective that a broader view of the complex situation in Cuba is needed.

‘Rather than simply calling for an end to the embargo, as has been done in previous years, the motion called on the Parliament to do the following. It asks that Parliament one expresses its deep concern regarding the economic and humanitarian challenges confronting the Cuban people and affirms that their welfare and aspirations must remain central to efforts to address these challenges, two, recognises the importance of intensified economic and institutional reforms, as well as respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, as well as other essential elements of sustainable development.’

She said that the position taken is also consistent with Jamaica’s broader perspective on multilateralism.

In her statement, Persad-Bissessar said that she has ‘made it clear publicly that Trinidad and Tobago will not support military dictatorship in Cuba,’ adding that the United States government has been spearheading a campaign for democracy in Cuba.

She said US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, ‘of Cuban heritage is right, for Cuba to prosper, there must be political reforms and the democratic rights and freedoms of the Cuban people must be restored.

‘We cannot demand democracy, free and fair elections, freedom of expression and political rights for ourselves while remaining silent when those same freedoms are denied to the Cuban people.

‘Why should citizens of CARICOM nations enjoy the right to freely elect and change their governments while the Cuban people are denied that same democratic choice?’ she asked.

Persad-Bissessar said that Trinidad and Tobago’s position ‘is against military dictatorship and supportive of the Cuban peoples rights to democratically elect a government of their choice.

‘The Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago empathise with their suffering and hardship. However for years the argument of compassion for the Cuban people has been manipulated to support a military totalitarian political system that denies them fundamental democratic freedoms.

‘While the Cuban people suffer, the leaders of the Cuban regime and their families live in luxury. The exploitation of ordinary Cubans to support the lavish lives of those associated with the ruling regime has to end.’

She said Trinidad and Tobago respects the ‘sovereign right of other nations to determine their foreign policy, and we expect that same respect in return.

‘Those persons in Trinidad and Tobago who support dictatorship in Cuba would never support it in our own country. There is nothing romantic or idealistic about dictatorship masked as a revolutionary struggle for freedom.

‘The Government of Trinidad and Tobago stands for democracy, freedom, human dignity and the right of every citizen, including the people of Cuba, to freely determine their political future,’ she said, adding ‘the United National Congress commends all nations who stand in solidarity with the wonderful people of Cuba’.

Meantime, former prime minister Dr. Keith Rowley has criticised the position adopted by the Persad-Bissessar government, describing it as ‘shameful’.

In a statement posted on his Facebook page, Rowley reminded the country that ‘this is a government that President ANR Robinson pronounced upon in 2001, a group of people who wield power without moral or spiritual values.

‘That being their record we should never be surprised when they disregard these virtues and principles as they sell our dignity in the hope to curry favor instead of preserving our long established governance through decency and sovereignty.

‘This is so shameful! This is a government that is decisively disconnected from the people they are supposed to represent and prefer instead to express their vile behavior in lockstep with what is being roundly rejected by the wider world,’ Rowley said.

Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Guyana, and Jamaica officially established diplomatic relations with Cuba on December 8, 1972. Led by the founding fathers of the regional integration movement, in Dr. Eric Williams of Trinidad and Tobago, Erool Barrow of Barbbados, Forbes Burnham of Guyana and Michael Manley of Jamaica, the four newly independent English-speaking Caribbean nations broke the Western Hemisphere’s diplomatic isolation of Cuba.

The United States imposed its initial partial trade embargo on Cuba in October 1960, and expanded it into a full economic embargo on February 3, 1962, when President John F. Kennedy signed the executive order in a bid to destroy the Fidel Castro led a revolution that overthrew U.S.-backed dictator Fulgencio Batista in January 1959.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines is celebrating its 47th anniversary of political independence from Britain on Tuesday with the island’s two main political leaders issuing contrasting messages to the citizens.

Prime Minister Dr. Godwin Friday in his first Independence Day since leading the New Democratic Party (NDC) to victory in last November’s general election, said while the country ‘celebrates our achievements, we must also recognise the challenges that remain before us.

‘We must continue to create opportunities for our young people, strengthen our communities, enhance public safety, protect our environment, and expand economic growth that benefits all citizens. Nation-building is an ongoing responsibility that demands commitment, discipline, innovation, and unity.

‘This moment in our history calls upon us to do things differently and better. We must manage our scarce resources better; provide greater support to vulnerable citizens and more opportunities to our young people. To grow the economy, the government must invest in cleaner and cheaper energy to preserve our environment and secure a brighter future,’ Friday said.

But Opposition Leader Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, who up until last November was the country’s longest serving prime minister, warned that St. Vincent and the Grenadines is facing six interconnected crises under the NDP administration, including economic hardship, rising crime, and poor governance.

Gonsalves is calling on all members of the public to unite and work together to rescue the nation from further decline.

‘More than ever, these dire circumstances, a veritable nightmare which currently enveloped our country, demand of all of us to unite in peace, love, and solidarity for uplifting purposes. Each of these words is pregnant with real meaning,’ Gonsalves said, noting that while the government has a special role to lead, its actions, inactions, and utterances thus far, whether by design, inadvertence, hubris, or sheer incompetence, singly or in conjoined battalions, has contributed immensely to the terrible conditions that have befallen the nation.

Friday said that as the new prime minister he accept the responsibility entrusted to him with humility and resolve.

‘I recognise the aspirations of our people for greater economic opportunity, improved living standards, quality healthcare and education, and a society in which hard work is rewarded, and every citizen has a fair chance to succeed.

‘As a government, we approach this task with a clear sense of purpose. We are committed to building a stronger, more inclusive Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, one where opportunity is accessible, communities are secure, businesses can flourish, and every citizen can contribute meaningfully to national development.

‘Our development must reach every Vincentian. We must ensure that our young people can build meaningful futures at home, that our farmers and fisherfolk receive the support they need, that our workers are treated with dignity, and that our most vulnerable citizens are afforded care and opportunity,’ Friday added.

He said that this year’s Independence theme, ‘Hand in Hand, Uplifting Our Nation,’ echoes the enduring message of the 1979 patriotic song ‘We’re Out to Build a New St. Vincent’, and captures a fundamental truth that the future of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines is a shared responsibility.

‘Governments can lead, but lasting progress requires the collective effort of citizens, communities, institutions, and the Vincentian diaspora. Together, we can create a nation that is prosperous, compassionate, resilient, and prepared for the opportunities of the future.

‘Let us, therefore, recommit ourselves to the values that define us as a people: hard work, integrity, unity, and love of country. Let us support one another, inspire our youth, care for our vulnerable, and work together in the common interest of our beloved nation,’ Friday said.

Gonsalves in a recorded message from The Bahamas, urged Vincentians to unite in peace, love solidarity for uplifting purposes.

‘Rather than engendering unity, the government is promoting disunity through its thirst for political revenge and its hunger for political victimisation to satisfy its illusion of power and the urgings and posturing of its assorted sycophants.

‘Rather than promoting peace and harmony, the government has fuelled confrontation and disharmony as though drunk on an illusory power, tilting authoritarianism, secrecy, and a lack of transparency.

‘Rather than extolling the values, the virtues of love for the people, the government has resorted to bombast, divisiveness, and exuberant talk of ban yur belly as though joyful at punishing people in a masquerade of a jaundiced supposed truth-telling.’

Gonsalves said that rather than articulating a compelling developmental narrative with uplifting purposes, the government has combined partisan domestic politics with an imported ill-suited neoliberal ideology from the bowels of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to devise an austerity by attrition, ‘conjoining wasteful spending on follies and slashing spending on vital current and worthy capital items of expenditure.

‘The result of all this, as our nation commemorates its 47th anniversary of its reclamation of independence, is a confluence of six interlocking crises.

‘The fiscal crisis in the government finances, the economic crisis as manifested in hard times of little or no economic growth, the social crisis in the frame or dissolving of well-established social safety nets for the poor and the vulnerable, the crisis of violent crime as evidenced by the seemingly unstoppable level of homicides which has already gone past the 40th of last year, with two months of 2026 still to go….’

Gonsalves said unmistakably, the country is far worse off today than 11 months ago at the time of the 2025 general elections.

‘There are far fewer jobs and even fewer opportunities for decent work. There is less money in circulation as the economy goes dead.The cost of living has gone through the roof with no signs of any abatement soon. People cannot pay their bills and there is great suffering in the land. And worse, there is no hope that things are going to get better soon,’ Gonsalves said in his message.

Meanwhile, St. Lucia’s Prime Minister Phillip J Pierre has in a congratulatory message notes that the story of St. Vincent and the Grenadines ‘has been shaped by the hard work, determination and aspirations of its people.

‘As Vincentians mark this important anniversary, Stt Lucia joins them in recognising what they have built as a nation and the contributions they continue to make to our shared Caribbean community,’ said Pierre, who is also the chairman of the 15-member regional integration grouping, CARICOM..

‘Independence is an occasion to honour the generations who have contributed to the nation’s journey and to look ahead with hope for those who will carry it forward. It also reminds us of the bonds that unite Caribbean people and the progress we can achieve together.’

Pierre noted that both St. Lucia and St. Vincent and the Grenadines share a special place in each other’s history.

‘In 1979, our two countries gained independence just eight months apart. Forty-seven years later, we continue to stand side by side as neighbours and partners in the Caribbean,’ Prime Minister Pierre said, adding that he is looking forward to continued cooperation between the two countries on matters that affect their people and the wider region.

The Trinidad and Tobago government is being urged to vote in support of a resolution being tabled by Cuba on Thursday at the United Nations calling for an end to the trade and economic embargo imposed by the United States.

In a five-page open letter to Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, 23 Trinidad and Tobago based organisations said that the US actions against Cuba ‘are unilateral, illegitimate and illegal.

‘They amount to collective punishment which is an international crime. In fact what the US is doing in tantamount to genocide. There can be absolutely no good reason for your Government to abstain from supporting Cuba’s Resolution or from being absent when the vote is taken at the UNGA.

‘Indeed, in recognition of the UN Charter, and having a moral responsibility to humanity, Trinidad and Tobago MUST VOTE in support of the Resolution tabled by Cuba,’ said the groups that included the National Trade Union Centre (NATUC), the Network of NGOs for the Advancement of Women, the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) Postal Workers’ Union of Trinidad and Tobago, the Steel Workers’ Union of Trinidad and Tobago, the Banking Insurance and General Workers’ Union as well as Trinidad and Tobago Friends of Cuba and the Movement for Social Justice.

In their October 20, 2026, letter, the groups say they ‘Demand That Trinidad and Tobago Stands with Cuba,’ noting that the resolution to be tabled on Thursday at the United Nations General Assembly has been done by Cuba ‘every year beginning in 1992.

‘For the last thirty-three (33) years, Trinidad and Tobago has voted in support of Cuba’s Resolution. Indeed, CARICOM (Caribbean Community) has consistently issued Communiques following Heads of Government Meetings calling on the United States to end the Embargo against Cuba and to also remove Cuba from the so-called list of countries that are engaged in state sponsorship of terrorism as there is absolutely no evidence to support such a designation.’

The groups said that in furtherance of CARICOM’s ‘principled position’ several regional leaders have used the opportunity of addressing the UN General Assembly to speak directly on the embargo.

‘We noted that you, as the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago made no such call. Honourable Prime Minister, regrettably it has become imperative for this Open Letter to be sent to you because the established policy of Trinidad and Tobago to support, unconditionally, the call for the end of the Blockade has been disregarded, repudiated even, by your Government.’

The group recalls that it was Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago that first established diplomatic relations with Cuba in December 1972, adding ‘it was a bold and brave decision by these four, small and newly independent nations given not only the isolation that Cuba was facing, but also that this was at the height of the ‘Cold War’ and moreover the fact that the US was our major trading partner.

‘However, the Heads of Government of these four Caribbean states took the principled position that Cuba is a Caribbean nation with which we share a common history and that our foreign policy should be not shaped and determined by the national interests of others, including that of large states/powers.’

They said as a result of establishing relations with Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago has benefitted immensely with Havana providing university scholarships ‘for our young people and thus contributed to the development of our human capacity and enabled young people who would not have had the financial means to access tertiary education.

‘Cuba has provided health care professionals under its Medical Brigade agreements and these professionals have been crucial to the sustaining of quality health care to our citizens. Cuba has given us sports coaches to assist our high performing athletes. And there have been invaluable exchanges in culture and in academia. At no time has Cuba sought to extract anything in return.’

But the groups noted that ‘something changed with your Government in 2025,’ adding ‘it seems as if you began to calculate this country’s foreign policy, not on long established principles, but on what the US defines as its ‘national security interests’.

‘Let us be clear. The US national security interest is explicitly stated in the 2025 National Security Strategy. It is to ‘restore American pre-eminence in the Western Hemisphere… We will deny non-Hemispheric competitors the ability to position forces or other threatening capabilities, or to own or control strategically vital assets, in our Hemisphere’.

The groups said that ‘this strategy is to achieve the objective of ensuring US-dominance and the continuation of economic and political power predicated on the colonial and imperial model of extraction, which enabled what some call ‘western civilisation’.

They quoted US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, at the Munich Security Conference indicating that ‘For the United States and Europe, we belong together…. We are part of one civilization – Western civilization.

‘We are bound to one another by the deepest bonds that nations could share, forged by centuries of shared history, Christian faith, culture, heritage, language, ancestry, and the sacrifices our forefathers made together for the common civilization to which we have fallen…which gave the world the rule of law, the universities, and the scientific revolution.’

The groups said that this analysis denies the genocide of indigenous people; it does not recognise that the development of Europe and the US was built on the backs of enslaved Africans; and that Britain exploited those who laboured under indentureship.

They said it also fails to consider the wealth extracted by colonial and imperial conquest; and it seeks to start world history with European enlightenment when there were advanced civilisations in Asia, Africa and the Americas centuries before.

‘Rubio’s statement is fundamentally racist and Eurocentric and it rejects any other faith but Christianity, when we in Trinidad and Tobago explicitly recognise our multi-cultural and multi-religious composition.

‘However, this ahistorical treatise cannot be dismissed as it was the basis for the US State Department’s document ‘Capital of 21 st Century Communism Report’. Among other Nanci stories that Report falsely claimed that Cuba is a national security threat to the US. This is then used to continue the crime of collective punishment of the Cuban people by the six decades long blockade and other actions including the blockade of fuel.’

The groups told Persad-Bissessar that ‘it must be restated that the blockade was always intended to punish the Cuban people in order to achieve a political outcome of regime change that the US desired.

‘As the April, 1960 Official Memorandum of then Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs of the United States Department of State, Lester Mallory stated: The only foreseeable means of alienating internal support is through disenchantment and disaffection

based on economic dissatisfaction and hardship… every possible means should be undertaken promptly to weaken the economic life of Cuba… a line of action which, while as adroit and inconspicuous as possible, makes the greatest inroads in denying money and supplies to Cuba, to decrease monetary and real wages, to bring about hunger, desperation and overthrow of government.’

They said that it is ‘therefore unconscionable for your Government to give support or succour to the US strategy of creating hunger and a humanitarian crisis.

‘Successive Governments of Trinidad and Tobago, including your own between 2010-2015, have always recognised and respected that every nation has the right to decide its own economic and political system and that people have the right to self-determination.

‘It was therefore inappropriate for you to denounce the Cuban system at a major regional forum. That occurred at the February Heads of Government Summit when none other than Rubio was present,’ they said, adding that ‘this has been followed up by other decisions that demonstrate that Trinidad and Tobago is turning its back on Cuba.

‘The decision not to agree with the Statement on Cuba issued by the CARICOM Council on Foreign and Community Relations (COFCOR) at its May meeting, which statement called for the ending of the Blockade by the US and the removal of Cuba from the list of countries that engage in the state sponsorship of terrorism;

‘The decision by Trinidad and Tobago to abstain on the vote at the UNGA at its meeting of July 7 th , 2026 on the Resolution tabled by Cuba calling on the US to end the Embargo;

‘Prime Minister, in the event that you are unaware, we refer you to the findings of the Report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights’ Special Rapporteur on Cuba which Report is accessible on the website of the UNHRC’.

The group quoted one report on that website, dated September 9 th , 2026 which states ”UN human rights experts today condemned recent measures by the United States against Cuba, denouncing them as an attempt to alter the constitutional order of a sovereign State through threats and coercion. They urged the international community and civil society to act swiftly to prevent a ‘silent Gaza’ from unfolding on the island…’

It said the humanitarian consequences are already unfolding into a full-blown crisis, threatening the rights to health, to life, to food and to development.

‘Food must never be used as an instrument of political pressure. Measures that knowingly deprive a population of the means to survive strike at the most basic guarantees of the rights to life and diminish the core of human dignity,

‘The US’s unlawful unilateral coercive measures against Cuba contravene Article 2 of the UN Charter, and form part of a broader regime-change strategy encompassing the decades-long embargo on Cuba. The US Government must cease all threats and hostile acts against Cuba and ‘s sovereignty and revoke all measures it has imposed on the country that stand contrary to international law…The Security Council and General Assembly should urgently address these threats as a matter of international peace and security’

The groups said that ‘these are the undisputable facts’ adding ‘it is also significant that the US voted against the re-appointment of the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights at the July meeting of the UNGA.

‘It is also seeking to destroy the International Criminal Court (ICC) and has condemned the award of the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize to ICC Judge Navanethem ‘Navi’ Pillay, who is South African of Asian descent and who defended Nelson Mandela. She was the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and, until recently, she chaired the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

‘Any international institution critical of US foreign policy is not tolerated by Washington. We must always remember that the ICC was brought into existence through the tireless and courageous advocacy by the person whom you have publicly acknowledged as your political mentor – Trinidad and Tobago’s former Prime Minister and President, ANR Robinson,’ the groups wrote in the letter.