CARICOM wants timely conclusion of steps in Herdmanston pact
CARICOM Heads of Government are urgently looking forward to the "timely finalisation" of the reconciliation process which was launched here by the Herdmanston Accord in the aftermath of the December 1997 elections. In a statement yesterday, the CARICOM Secretariat noted that as a reaffirmation of CARICOM's commitment as a party to the Accord and in supporting political normalisation here, the heads had decided that St Lucian Prime Minister, Dr Kenny Anthony, would assume the lead responsibility in this respect on their behalf. The heads at their twentieth meeting in Trinidad and Tobago from July 4-7 reviewed the political situation here in the context of the commitments undertaken by the People's Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/Civic) and the People's National Congress (PNC) in the CARICOM-brokered Herdmanston Accord and the Saint Lucia Statement. The statement said the heads noted the progress that was being made towards fulfilling some of the key objectives of the two pacts "and agreed to redouble their efforts to support the process". Particular note was taken by the heads of the progress of the work of the Constitutional Reform Commission (CRC). The statement noted that since the Trinidad meeting, the CRC had handed in its report by the July 17, deadline stipulated in the Accord and that this had "justified the hopes of the Heads of Government and no doubt the confidence of the Guyanese people". The heads emphasised in the statement that the inter-party dialogue between the PPP/Civic and the PNC was crucial to bolstering the confidence of the Guyanese people in the ongoing process of reconciliation. They noted with appreciation the recent efforts of Commonwealth Secretary-General, Chief Emeka Anyaoku, in resuscitating the inter-party dialogue. It had stalemated over a remark which was made by the head of the PPP/Civic dialogue team, Dr Roger Luncheon, to his PNC counterpart, Lance Carberry. August 6, 1999 is the date that has been set for continuation of the talks between the two parties which to date have not yielded tangible agreements. The dialogue will continue with the participation of the CARICOM facilitator, Barbadian Maurice King. The heads expressed appreciation to King for his efforts and also thanked the donor community here for its support of the process. Reference was also made by the heads to an assurance that had been given in the Saint Lucia Statement by PPP/Civic leader, President Janet Jagan and PNC leader, Desmond Hoyte that "they will themselves meet on a periodic basis to facilitate the achievement of all processes to which they committed their parties by the Herdmanston Accord". Since this assurance was given in the middle of 1998, no such meeting has taken place between the two leaders. They met once earlier this year in a bid to resolve the crisis over the stalled inter-party talks but that meeting failed to produce results. The Herdmanston Accord was brokered on January 17, 1998 by a CARICOM Mission comprising Sir Henry Forde, Sir Shridath Ramphal and Sir Alister McIntyre. The team was dispatched in the aftermath of the unrest which developed following the December 1997 elections. Included in the Herdmanston Menu of Measures agreed to by the PPP/Civic and the PNC were an audit of the election results, a moratorium on public demonstrations, inter-party dialogue and constitutional reform. After further unrest in the middle of 1998, the Saint Lucia Statement was signed by the two parties recommitting them to the tenets of the Accord. Post-reform elections on the conclusion of the Herdmanston steps are to be held by January 2001. 
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