First time — two Caricom women PMs

By Rickey Singh in Barbados

When Portia Simpson-Miller takes the ceremonial oath this afternoon (Thursday) from Governor General Sir Patrick Allen as Jamaica’s new Prime Minister, it will also be a history-making event for the rest of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM). For, along with her Trinidad and Tobago counterpart, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, it would mean that for the first time in CARICOM’s 38-year history two women Prime Ministers will now be among the Heads of Government in the 15-member Community.

Of quite different educational, cultural and political background, what the 66-year-old Simpson-Miller, leader of the People’s National Party (PNP) and Persad-Bissessar, leader of the United National Congress and dominant partner in her People’s Partnership Government, would have in common is an evident commitment to expedite the process of ending all forms of discrimination, and most certainly elevate the rights of women.

They have separately triumphed over male colleagues of recognised political expertise and long history in multi-party parliamentary democracy to reach the zenith in leadership of party and government. Now it would be most instructive to follow how, separately and together, whenever possible, they make their impact on regional policies and programmes of immediate and long term interests to CARICOM.

The popular ‘Sister P’ in Jamaiaca politics had her baptism as Prime Minister for just about one year (2006-2007), after she succeeded the retired P.J. Patterson by defeating all male challengers for the PNP’s leadership.

By September 2007, her PNP was defeated by the Jamaica Labour Party, then under the leadership of Bruce Golding, who chose to walk away from the challenge to lead it into a new general election before this year end. And with Golding’s successor, 39-year-old Andrew Holness as new JLP leader and Prime Minister for some two months, Simpson-Miller was to triumphantly take the PNP to the mountain top by capturing 42 of the now 63-member House of Representatives.

Following her official appointment as Prime Minister, it would be reasonable to expect initial shape of her cabinet and certainly the complete composition before weekend.

In rewinding to Trinidad and Tobago’s politics of the UNC’s last internal elections, prior to the national poll that took place within months of each other in 2010, the result was the historic emergence of a woman, for the first time in the history of electoral politics, in that twin-island state.

The woman of such fame was Persad-Bissessar, first female Attorney General under a government led by Panday, her former political guru, whom she had convincingly defeated in February last year for the party leadership and went on to secure, some three months later, a stunning national victory when her coalition of parties swept to state power with 29 of the 41 parliamentary seats.

Before the rise and fall (at different election periods) of Simpson-Miller and Persad-Bissessar, party politics and governance within CARICOM had the opportunity to assess and benefit from the separate leadership provided by the indomitable Janet Jagan of Guyana and Dame Eugenia Charles of Dominica—both now deceased.

CCJ among challenges

Among current political challenges facing both Prime Ministers Simpson-Miller and Persad-Bissessar would be how they deal with an issue of region-wide interest that cannot be expediently brushed under the carpet—accessing the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as the institution of last resort in their respective jurisdictions.

When the UNC was in power and Persad-Bissessar was in Panday’s cabinet, the government of Trinidad and Tobago was quite supportive of arrangements to operationalise the CCJ with headquarters in Port-of-Spain. During last year, the Persad-Bissessar PPG administration did nothing to encourage hope for accessing the CCJ as the country’s final court. Instead, it had raised more uneasiness about an improved relationship with the CCJ, beyond a current original jurisdiction on settlement of disputes.

In Jamaica, on the other hand, the then opposition JLP kept frustrating efforts by the PNP to cut the constitutional apron string with the London-based Privy Council and access instead the CCJ, both as the court of original jurisdiction and as a final appellate institution.

Now, within days of the PNP’s landslide victory, former Attorney General A.J Nicholson chose to signal the determination of the Simpson-Miller-led administration to push ahead with plans to access the CCJ as Jamaica’s final Court of Appeal.

Nicholson has since also dismissed a call for a national referendum on the issue, pointing out that there were no precedents of a former British colony having to first secure a referendum mandate to sever ties with the Privy Council. He has stressed that as Jamaica proceeds with arrangements to celebrate its 50th anniversary this year as an independent nation, the government would be advancing plans to have legislation in place to end the relationship with the Privy Council.

As citizens of our Community await to assess the commonality and differences in leadership styles of Prime Ministers Simson-Miller and Persad-Bissessar, and, of more relevance, their policies and programmes on regional developments, there are reasons to think that both of these women leaders can be assured of much political goodwill across the region, even as they face up to domestic challenges

They would meet for their first encounter in regional politics when they participate in CARICOM’s forthcoming scheduled Inter-Sessional Meeting in Suriname, which will be hosted by new chairman of the Community, President Desi Bouterse.