T&T and Jamaica must use caution when dealing with the current immigration impasse, since it will have a direct impact on the dream of true Caribbean integration, says Movement for Social Justice leader David Abdulah. Abdulah, who was born in Jamaica, said “strong leadership” was required to handle the current T&T/Jamaica impasse if it is to be resolved for the good of the region. The impasse arose after T&T Immigration officials denied some 13 Jamaicans entry into this country last week.
The Jamaican government, in response, issued an advisory to Jamaicans travelling to T&T. Jamaica’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to a Jamaica Observer article, also said in a release that it was concerned at the development and continues to interface with the relevant authorities in T&T on the matter. A campaign to boycott T&T products was also started in Jamaica and on Facebook.
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Dookeran has accepted an invitation from his Jamaican counterpart AJ Nicholson to meet in Kingston to discuss the immigration matter. Speaking with reporters at the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) headquarters in San Fernando on Wednesday, Abdulah said immigration was a key issue in Caribbean integration and leaders on both sides must bear that in mind.
“If we want to make Caricom a living reality we have to ensure it is the free movement of people, as well as goods and services and capital,” Abdulah said. He warned against taking “this knee-jerk, emotional reaction to this issue.” “We cannot in any way be prejudiced and, worse still, we cannot degenerate into a position which would lead to a break-up of Caricom because we cannot survive as individual small territories in this era of globalised capital.”
He said there is need for serious debate here in T&T, Jamaica, Barbados and throughout Caricom on the future of Caricom. Abdulah described some of the responses in both Jamaica and in T&T on the issue as “absolutely myopic and focused on the surface.” While Abdulah said he does not foresee a break-up of Caricom, responsible leaders needed to make strong statements and offer strong leadership on this issue, whether they were in the business community, labour movement, civil society or at the level of government.
“We have to have a clear vision of the future well-being of all of our citizens, and future well-being of all of the citizens turns on us being an integrated Caribbean,” he said.