Structuring an arrangement without forcing the country to subscribe to all aspects of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) can be negotiated, according to Prime Minister of Barbados Owen Arthur, who held a press conference at the Nassau International Airport Sunday.
Prime Minister Arthur, who has the lead responsibility in the Caribbean for the creation of the CSME, pointed out that Article 27 (4) of the Treaty of Chagauramas takes into account that there are some countries that may not be able to subscribe to all of the disciplines of the treaty and that in the final analysis, an arrangement has to be devised in such circumstances.
“This will be a matter I think of negotiations,” he said.
Prime Minister Perry Christie invited Mr. Arthur here to engage in national discussion on the trading arrangement.
The prime ministers were recently in Montego Bay, Jamaica for the CARICOM Heads of Government meeting where CSME talks dominated the agenda.
His visit comes at a time when the free movement of labour remains the most contentious element of the CSME, as far as Bahamian officials are concerned.
Prime Minister Arthur lauded The Bahamas for already being “exemplary” in absorbing the Caribbean people, long before the free movement of labour begins.
“It’s a consideration that is powerful and cannot be ignored,” Mr. Arthur said.
“Our treaty acknowledges that we have to provide arrangements for specially disadvantaged countries, regions and sectors and it is a matter for us – if we’re going to go the way of having The Bahamas in the CSME – structuring an arrangement that captures The Bahamas circumstances and allowing [it] to participate with us, without forcing [it] to accept monolith that does not bare any relationship whatsoever to [its] particular situation.”
Acknowledging that assuming the lead for the CSME is an awesome responsibility, Mr. Arthur noted that the Caribbean is at an important juncture in its development where fundamental decisions about its future have to be made.
He views decisions in relation to the creation of the Caribbean Single Market and Economy as an important guide to how the Caribbean will fit into the new hemispheric economy and into the new global economy.
“There are no easy choices in this matter for Barbados, for the rest of the Caribbean, for The Bahamas,” he said. “But one thing is clear, we can not opt out. We can not ask the world to stop, to let us get off to recreate the world in our image or recreate the world as we would wish.”
Responding to this, Prime Minister Christie said the fact that The Bahamas has made application to the World Trade Organization (WTO) means that there would have to be an examination and necessary adjustment of the country’s tax system.
“The conclusion that one has to draw is we might as well prepare now for an eventuality that is certain to come,” he said.
“Just looking at WTO and what is going to happen leaves us to know that whatever differences we have with CSME will be narrowed significantly just on that application alone. So the question for us is being able to ensure that we have a sustained public education programme so that as many Bahamians as possible would come to understand as intimately in detail as possible, the implications of these new regional arrangements.”
Mr. Arthur agreed that there are many issues regarding the CSME on which there must be constructive public engagement.
“The people of the Caribbean have a right to know what it is all about, what we’re seeking to do, when we are seeking to do it and what will be the benefit for the society at large and the likely effects of the actions we are contemplating. I’ve come to The Bahamas to be part of a process of constructive engagement.”
The economies of The Bahamas and Barbados are alike in some respects.
Like The Bahamas, Barbados depends heavily on tourism and financial services. The two are also the strongest economies in the region. Barbados officials, meanwhile, are more ready to join the CSME.
“I am excited by having my country become part of a Caribbean Single Market and Economy,” Mr. Arthur said.
Prime Minister Christie has delayed a decision on the agreement, reportedly after being advised by his trade commission to do so shortly before heading to Jamaica for the CARICOM summit.
He said there would benefits for The Bahamas if it engages in producing and selling services in a Caribbean Single Market and Economy.
“My country, like The Bahamas, has chosen a destiny,” Mr. Arthur said. “We want to be an exporter of services and as a result, therefore, the previous attempts at economic integration to the Caribbean were of no great benefit to us.”
He added that, “Whether you’re participating in the CSME or the FTAA or in a global economy, I think now is the time for the service economies of the Caribbean to seek to deepen their relationship to the integration processes and have at the core the removal of past restrictions that have stopped them from exploiting opportunities for the export of that which they can do best – produce and sell services.”
He said that Barbados is eager to participate in any integration process that offers a wider horizon for the sale of what it does best – producing high quality services.
Prime Minister Arthur was scheduled to meet with parliamentarians at the British Colonial Hotel today then address Chamber of Commerce and Civil Society interests.
Tomorrow, he is scheduled to duplicate comments in Grand Bahama to Christian Council and trade union members.
His departure is set for Wednesday.
By Hadassah Hall, The Bahama Journal
