Former US President Jimmy Carter has issued a subtle threat to the major political leaders of Guyana stating that if no progress is made soon to bridge the political divide, and an indication of good faith by Guyana's political leaders to resolve the impasse does not become evident, then there would be no need for the Carter Centre in Guyana.
"There is little prospect for either substantial economic or social progress unless there is a truce in the political wars," President Carter said at a press conference he hosted at the Le Meridien Pegasus yesterday. "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 could only be solved with basic constitutional changes in the system of governance."
He stated that he has visited over 120 countries in the world and has found Guyana to have the most unrealized potential.
But President Carter opined that there will be a resumption of consultation and communication between President Jagdeo and Corbin "within the near future".
Among the organisations and individuals who met with President Carter, who is also head of the Atlanta-based Carter Center, were President Bharrat Jagdeo, Opposition Leader Robert Corbin, and other PNCR leaders; the Central Executive Committee of the ruling PPP/C; Members of Parliament of ROAR and GAP/WPA; Ethnic Relations Commission Chairman, Bishop Juan Edghill, and its Commissioners; Speaker of the National Assembly, Ralph Ramkarran; Chancellor of the Judiciary, Desiree Bernard; Chief Justice, Carl Singh; President of the Guyana Bar Association, Khemraj Ramjattan; representatives of the private sector and trade unions; the Rights of Child Youth Group; the international donor community; and others.
Meanwhile, a statement by Information Liaison to the President, Robert Persaud, last evening said President Jagdeo is pleased with the outcome of President Carter's visit and supports the proposals made by the former US President.
Out of his consultations with President Jagdeo and Corbin, President Carter also advised that all the provision of the National Development Strategy (NDS) should be debated in Parliament, with as many as possible implemented into law.
He declared that the Standing Committee on Constitutional Review should be reactivated to implement proposals for substantive governance and election system reforms, drawing heavily on civil participation.
The documents on governance by the PPP/C and the PNCR could be a starting point for this, he said.
President Carter also recommended that an independent civil society forum should be created to lead to a structured national discussion on a vision for governance of the country to promote reconciliation and the NDS.
He expressed the hope that civil society would organize itself in a non-partisan fashion for this purpose.
President Carter pledged the support of the Carter Centre and said other international donor organizations would be eager to assist in the official and unofficial efforts and also to help ensure the integrity of future national elections, as requested by Guyanese leaders and civil society.
He is of the view that any further discussion on constitutional reform would have to be done initially in private exploratory meetings between President Jagdeo and Corbin, then debated in Parliament and passed on to the Constitutional Reform Committee.
The Nobel Peace Laureate said there was agreement by the two leaders on the continuation of the registration process for voters, an exercise which he said will go a long way towards resolving any dispute.
There was also some agreement on the establishment of a freedom of information law, which would give the public access to the activities of the government and the way government funds are being spent.
Political campaign finance reform was also discussed and it was agreed that regulations would be put in place to have the origin of campaign funds revealed.
President Carter said he suggested to the leaders that Parliament should be made up of constituency-based members but this proposal did not go well with the two leaders.
He declared that the constituency system is an age-old one and serves the special needs of the people.
As the current system is constituted, the Members of Parliament are subservient to their parties, he said.
The former US President stated that the two major political party leaders expressed some disagreement to his assessment of the situation in Guyana.
He said it was explained to the leaders that the assessment represented the opinions of a wide cross section of the Guyanese society.
"They then respected my opinion and responded generally in a positive fashion," he said.
President Carter described his most recent visit to Guyana as a sobering one, even though his faith in the Guyanese people remains.
"Except among a few political party leaders, there have been almost universal expressions of concern about the present condition and future hopes of Guyana, based on a failure of political leaders to heal the incompatibility and animosity that characterize their relationship," he said.
He recalled that when he met with the late PPP/C leader Dr Cheddi Jagan, some twelve years ago, Dr. Jagan expressed a desire to heal the political divisions and ethnic polarization of Guyana.
Since the late former President Desmond Hoyte approved the Carter Centre's monitoring of the 1992 elections, the organization has worked with political leaders and private citizens to develop the NDS, he stated.
He noted that the NDS prescribes a future for Guyana based on a shared commitment of private citizens and political leaders working in harmony, regardless of their social status, ethnic origin, or political affiliation.
He pointed out that one of its key provisions was a call for participatory democracy within which opposition parties would share fully in shaping policies of the nation.
Subsequently, there were promises of constitutional reform that would fulfill this commitment:
"Instead of achieving this crucial goal of inclusive and shared governance, the Guyanese government remains divided with a winner-take-all concept that continues to polarize many aspects of the nation's life," he stated. "Most Members of Parliament are directly dependent and responsible to the political party that chooses them, and not to the people whom they profess to represent. There are only spasmodic meetings between political leaders, and publicized agreements reached during those rare and brief sessions have not been fulfilled. The promises of constitutional reform have been frustrated."
He said the Guyanese people would expect the parties they vote for not only to represent their point of view, but to take the issues to the National Assembly and try to pursue their goals within legislation.
He said, however, the present circumstances in Guyana, with a highly divided political system and ethnic divisions, feeds frustration and fears among the ethnic groups in the country.
The disharmony between the two major political party leaders has racial overtones even though President Jagdeo and Corbin are not advocating racism, he said.
President Carter said there is always the possibility of a nation becoming a failed state but he did not see Guyana approaching that point.
He told reporters that it is his belief that the voters list for the 2006 general elections would be "reasonably accurate"; that there would be a large turnout of voters; that the will of the people would be expressed; and that there would be no disruption or violence after the results of the elections are made known.
He warned, however, that if the current situation prevails until after the elections and constitutional reform is not implemented then the same fears and distrust would pervade the society.
He noted, though, that some changes have already been taking place.
There are four Parliamentary Committees, including the Public Accounts Committee chaired by the PNCR, he said.
He revealed that it was agreed by the two major political parties that they would swap the chairmanship for the Parliamentary Committees on a two-year basis.
This promises some hope for the alleviation of the tension, he said.
President Carter said he was briefed on the 'death squad' issue and the work of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry.
He advised that the best approach is to wait and see how the Commission performs.
He said he was told that the Commission's membership was highly respected and declared his confidence in them at this point in time.
President Carter disclosed that both President Jagdeo and Corbin had invited him to Guyana to assess the situation here.
He stated that the two leaders knew of his sincerity about his interest in Guyana and felt that he could help in breaking the political deadlock which existed.
The Carter Centre should bear its own responsibility for the failure of progress in Guyana, President Carter said.
But he pointed out that the Carter Centre is working in 64 nations around the world and cannot concentrate on this country alone, "as much as I love Guyana."
The statement from the Office of the President said President Jagdeo has always been willing to meet with Corbin and this position was restated to President Carter during their two meetings.
"President Jagdeo's hope is that the expected meeting with the Opposition Leader would focus on shifting all matters under consideration for debate in Parliament," Information Liaison to the President said. "This meeting is not to return to the old format of dialogue, but to have these issues debated in the Parliament as the President had earlier indicated in his proposal for the new format of the dialogue," he explained.
He pointed out that President Jagdeo had long advocated that the NDS should be debated in Parliament and government had already tabled the document in the House.
He said that the reactivation of the Standing Committee on Constitutional Reform to look at various reform proposals, and the establishment of an independent civil society forum structured for national discussions, are consistent with President Jagdeo's views.
Persaud said President Jagedo looks forward to the continued engagement of the Carter Centre in Guyana.