Holness' stance on US-Venezuela conflict is appropriate, says former PM

 

 

 

Former Prime Minister Bruce Golding is in support of the position taken by Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness on the Trump administration's invasion of Venezuela, which led to the capture of its leader Nicolás Maduro.

 

Dr. Holness on Wednesday indicated that his administration is not prepared to get into a dispute with the Trump administration over the matter.

 

Dr. Holness said his job was to keep Jamaica safe and "not to invite problems on ourselves". 

 

Mr. Golding believes Dr. Holness' comment is the appropriate position of the Jamaican government. 

 

"And it is especially so because the world - including powerful countries in Europe - the world has been intimidated by Trump. And if countries like Germany and Italy and France are frightened by what Trump has threatened, what can you expect of countries like Jamaica and Trinidad and Barbados and those of us in the region? We are in treacherous waters," he warned.

 

Mr. Golding asserted that no head of government in CARICOM is safe from the onslaught of the Trump administration. 

 

"Trump operates with no boundaries. There's nothing that he feels is beyond the pale, and he will do whatever he thinks is necessary to further US interests. So when Prime Minister Holness spoke yesterday, he was very careful. He was very measured. He understood that his primary responsibility is to ensure the protection of the Jamaican people. I don't have the burden that he has. I am a former Prime Minister. I am a private citizen. I am in a position where I can say what Prime Minister Holness cannot say, what no other CARICOM leader can say because the retribution can be instantaneous. There is not much retribution that can be imposed on me apart from cancelling my US visa," suggested the former statesman, who was speaking Thursday on Radio Jamaica's Beyond the Headlines. 

 

Mr. Golding said CARICOM is unable to speak with one voice because of the position taken by the Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago. 

 

"CARICOM is a in a difficult position, but it would have been better if they were able to take a united position, muted though that might have to be. In recognising that they are confronted with terrible, terrible forces, the fact that Trinidad has separated itself is not a good thing, and I hope that is an issue that will be resolved in due course." 

 

The former prime minister said there is need for dialogue between CARICOM member states to engage Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissesar in order for a unified response to issues within the region.  

 

"Apart from Jamaica, Trinidad is the largest and first most important member of CARICOM, and therefore its position cannot be disregarded. And I think it is important for us to try to see if we can harmonise our response to the challenges that we face, and these are challenges that are greater, greater than even what we faced with the Grenada situation in 1983. We are faced with serious, serious challenges and we need a concerted response. And therefore we need to have a conversation within CARICOM, and that conversation needs to engage Kamla Persad-Bissessar," Mr. Golding proposed.

 

Former Prime Minister P.J. Patterson noted that any discussion within CARICOM on issues affecting the region should highlight the fact that Trinidad and Tobago is better off within the grouping.  

 

"They have elected a new government with a rather different perspective on what are the real interests of Trinidad and Tobago and where they truly lie. I think any rational discussion and any thorough examination including Trinidad itself, will come to the realisation that they are better off in the Caribbean community than they are standing aloof, alone and separate from the Caribbean community. And difficult as it may be, there has to be found some way of bridging the gap of having meaningful dialogue," said Mr. Patterson. 

 

He was also a guest on Beyond the Headlines.