"If, within Caricom, Trinidad and Tobago now "stands alone" in its defiance against the Bush regime's demands that we agree to exempt its nationals from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, it is not because the leaders of the acquiescing Caricom countries do not wish that they could stand solid on this clear issue of principle, but because their pragmatic consideration is their belief that they stand to lose too much from not only the already declared but other sanctions imposed by their world powerful neighbour. The issue, therefore, is not a question of pusillanimity but of powerlessness both on the part of the individual island nations and of the Caricom collective.
Of all the affected countries, Trinidad and Tobago is the only one rich enough to feel that it can ride over the present cut in American so-called military aid and its Government must also have concluded that both the nature and the substance of its relationship with the great power arms it against any future act of American vexatiousness. This is not to say that this country does not also have a proprietary sentiment towards the ICC. The overwhelming need for such an institution was first recognised at the United Nations over 50 years ago when, on December 9, 1948, the General Assembly adopted the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide. Article One of the convention declared genocide "a crime under international law". In the same resolution, the General Assembly invited the International Law Commission (ILC) to study the desirability and possibility of establishing an international judicial organ for the trial of persons charged with genocide. For more than 40 years the idea was occasionally revisited but never operationalised. However, in December 1989, because of a request from Trinidad and Tobago, the General Assembly asked the ILC to resume work on an international criminal court with jurisdiction to include drug trafficking. Strong advocacy spearheaded by the then Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago, Arthur NR Robinson, had broken years of fierce opposition by the United States. On July 17, 1998, the General Assembly convened a meeting in Rome and 120 sovereign states agreed to the Rome Statute, thus initiating the process for establishing the ICC. Trinidad and Tobago, therefore, has a vested interest in the ICC and can hardly now backtrack from its almost personalised position of support for this deep-rooted dream of international justice, fairness and equity in spite of the attack from the United States. We have to cling to our resolve despite the lack of support from Caricom. The people of the Caribbean, divided by geography and history, are now even more deeply divided. The chain of islands is a broken chain, its strongest link of mutual support shattered by the might of the United States. In this context, we have to compliment our Government, especially Minister Chin Lee and the Prime Minister, for proceeding on principle rather than falling prey to economic pragmatism and pressure. Principles are truly non-negotiable. We have been deserted by our Caricom allies before, notoriously when the United States invaded Grenada. Then, as now, Trinidad and Tobago was the one Caricom country that did not support the invasion on the basis of principle and the rule of law. If Trinidad and Tobago has to be the one to stand up once again to the combination of the rest of Caricom and the United States, so be it. But the Government should not stand alone. All of us must stand up and be counted. Every citizen of this country, all good men and women, must unite in solidarity. We should not give up or surrender. This is the true meaning of independence. Tough times never last, but tough people and nations do" *sigh* I guess we are in for trouble. For all you know we could be labelled the next terrorist nation hiding Saddam. -Gel ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/index.cfm?forumid=5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/index.cfm?method=subscribe&forumid=5 Signup for the Fusion Authority news alert and keep up with the latest news in ColdFusion and related topics. http://www.fusionauthority.com/signup.cfm Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=89.70.5
