THE government yesterday announced it was moving to follow through on proposals former United States President Jimmy Carter has tabled to break the political deadlock with the main Opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR).
Head of the Presidential Secretariat, Dr Roger Luncheon, said he has been selected to lead the government’s engagements with the PNCR.
At his weekly press briefing, he noted that most of the outstanding issues from the structured dialogue between President Bharrat Jagdeo and Opposition and PNCR Leader, Mr Robert Corbin, require parliamentary consideration.
Corbin in April this year broke off the dialogue with the President, citing differences with the government, and his party has been boycotting parliament.
Mr Carter spent three days here last week talking with Mr Jagdeo, Corbin and other representatives from the two main political parties and other groups.
He wrapped up the visit Friday appealing for an end to the “political wars” here and said his Atlanta-based Carter Center could stop its longstanding involvement if the deadlock is not broken.
He said he had urged Mr Jagdeo and Corbin to consult each other regularly and called on the PNCR to end its boycott of Parliament.
Carter said he believes the President and Corbin could shortly resume communication.
Luncheon yesterday reported that the President has updated Cabinet on the undertakings he made when he met Carter, including his commitment to re-engage with Corbin “with the explicit intention to steer the engagement to the appropriate parliamentary forum.”
He said issues which need parliamentary consideration include the appointment of members to the Women and Gender Equality, Indigenous People, Human Rights and Procurement commissions.
Luncheon stressed that these matters are all the “exclusive attention” of the Parliamentary Appointive Committee, adding that the issues have been “languishing” at this level.
He recalled that the National Development Strategy (NDS), in which there was substantial input from the Carter Center, has been laid in Parliament but there has been no debate on it.
He noted too that the reactivation of the Constitutional Reform Committee - one of the suggestions from Carter - would require some parliamentary involvement.
He also said Cabinet noted the long association between the government and the Carter Center since the restoration of democracy through free and fair elections in October 1992.
The PNCR has said that its position of selective attendance at parliamentary sittings stays put until positive changes are made to the manner in which Parliament is run.
PNCR General Secretary, Mr Oscar Clarke said his party has to be convinced that parliament is run more democratically before it reconsiders its stance.
In this regard, he said the “ball is in the court” of the governing People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) to initiate the necessary changes and come up with a programme to ensure parliament functions more democratically.
A key aide said Carter was frustrated over the continuing political deadlock after some 13 years of involvement in Guyana and the continued engagement of the Carter Center here was “still open”.
“We want to help but it is frustrating that nothing much has happened to improve the political situation over the years”, the advisor told the Chronicle. “It all depends on movement forward by all sides”, he said.
Carter said a “lack of communication” is hampering progress in Guyana and signalled that if there was no progress by the major political players in resolving the deadlock, there would be no need for the Atlanta-based Carter Center to continue its work here.
The Nobel Peace prize winner played a central role in Guyana's return to free and fair elections at the October 5, 1992 polls, and the restoration of democracy here.
Carter managed to broker key electoral reforms between the late President Desmond Hoyte and Opposition parties, which led to the October 5, 1992 elections, the first free and fair polls here in almost 30 years.
He declared Friday that there is “little prospect for either substantial economic or social progress unless there is a truce in the political wars.”
“No one party should bear the blame. The traditions and culture of both major political parties are deeply entrenched and have their roots in fifty years of fierce rivalry that denies the legitimacy of the other party’s concerns.
“This problem can be solved only with basic constitutional changes in the system of governance”, he stressed.
He suggested that an independent civil society forum should be created to lead a structured national discussion on a vision for governance of the country to promote reconciliation and the NDS.
President Jagdeo supports the Carter proposals, noting that he has always been willing to meet Corbin.