[dropcap]I[/dropcap]was somewhat amused when someone asked whether I was among last Sunday’s marchers. Later it occurred to me that it might be useful to re-publish an article written some 20 years ago, in which I offered 18 reasons for a similar demonstration under the banner of the Organization for National Empowerment (ONE) against what appeared to be uncontrollable crime. (At the time I was among ONE’s frontliners.)
The march is one way of demonstrating you care about your own safety and the safety of your neighbours. It’s a safe and democratic way of expressing your feelings against crime. The march also demonstrates your resolve as a peaceful citizen committed to upholding the law. The march will bring together many who may disagree on other issues but are united against crime. The march will give out-of-towners an opportunity to revisit our beloved capital city, especially those who have not done so in a long time. The march will help us to blow off excess steam and help release stress.
The march will signal to government how we feel on the issue of crime. The march will signal to our youth that not all adults are lazy and uncaring. The march is an opportunity for the youth to show they care and that they are aware that crime knows no age limit and does not respect party political colours.
The march will hopefully bring together a fractured and divided country. The march will renew the power of the people and prepare them for a more active participation in the up-coming debate on the Value Added Tax (VAT). The march will show the world Saint Lucians are not asleep and that we can rise to our national duties when time and circumstances demand. The march will demonstrate the maturity and sophistication of our political posture by reminding us that we can agree on the broad policy outline of our government but disagree on the means by which these are to be achieved.
The march can facilitate greater involvement in politicians who are professional fence-sitters waiting for an opportunity to decide which side is safe to jump in.
Cowards and opportunists! The march is the best signal to send the criminals at this time, and to give warning that the citizens will act if the politicians are afraid to do their job. The march is also a means by which to show our support for the many good and decent policemen and policewomen who do their job diligently
every day and do not accept bribes. The Organization for National Empowerment has invited everybody to march regardless of political persuasion. We believe that we should close ranks to fight crime together, as a united force.
We have called this march because we love Saint Lucia and we want to see it developed in a peaceful and orderly fashion. Our people are our only resource and we must work to make this land safe for them, even including the criminals, once they are prepared to reform.
In conclusion, I must add that it was not difficult to pen these preceding lines. I can think of no better reason for another march than the mounting crime. Few Saint Lucians have marched for worthy causes than I. When Walter Rodney, a UWI lecturer of History at Mona, was denied his job and banned from re-entering Jamaica in the mid-60s, I marched in Port-of-Spain. When Nelson Mandela was imprisoned for demanding democracy for his African brothers and sisters, I marched in Saint Lucia. When the government of Saint Lucia refused to properly consult the people on the question of Independence and the type of constitution we wished to have as a free and independent people, I marched. I marched in Castries and in Vieux Fort.
I also marched in recognition of May Day. It was George Odlum and I who re-energized the trade union movement when it appeared on its death bed in the early 1970s—and taught it how to march again. I even marched at church rallies on Corpus Christi as a St. Mary’s College cadet. I marched during the Queen’s Birthday parade as an SMC cadet. I marched with purpose and determination, and not only when my safety was guaranteed. That’s why I marched even when the authorities wrongfully denied us. And yes, I breathed more than my fair share of tear gas.
It seems I’ve been marching all my life. It’s only right that I should hand the baton to a new generation of marchers— with one proviso. Be clear in your own mind why you march. Do not march because you have been pressured to do so by friends or family or by hungry opportunistic politicians and their hacks. Be careful! Avoid weak political leaders who are only interested in themselves. Be wary of those who shout the loudest. They are often the worst cowards. March, no, run away from those whose only purpose is to benefit personally from retarding progress by frustrating the laudable efforts of a well intentioned government!
