PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) – Heavy rains as a result of isolated thunderstorms failed to put a damper on the excitement as Caribbean Community (Caricom) leaders Tuesday planted six poui trees as part of celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the regional integration movement.
In addition, the leaders from the 15-member regional grouping affixed their signatures to a letter placed in a time capsule that will be unsealed 50 years from now. The leaders also joined in a ceremonial flag-raising event that was held at the Convention Centre in Chaguaramas, west of there, the venue where the then leaders of Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago signed the Treaty of Chaguaramas, on July 4, 1973, heralding the birth of Caricom.
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Dominica’s Prime Minister and Caricom chairman Roosevelt Skerrit said while he wanted to remind the region’s population that “we are living in a more difficult world than in the last 50 years”, it is still important for Caribbean countries to remain united in their stance to issues affecting the community.
“I suggested to the prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago that we should come here to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Caricom. And one of the reasons I wanted this to happen was for us to have some introspection and some reflection, and quite possibly to invoke the spirits of the founding fathers, to ask whether we are on the right track, or we are on the wrong track.
“I believe in large measure we are on the right track. But there are some things which we need to do… I will say to us in the Caribbean, I believe we’re living in a more difficult world now than 50 years ago, or even 20 years ago, and this requires us to be even more united in purpose,” Skerrit said.
He added that there were too many injustices that have been meted to the region over the years, such as the issue of climate change, and kicking down the bucket of firm decisions to address concerns in the Caribbean community.
