Caribbean & Central America - August 2014 (ISSN 1741-4458)

***GRENADIAN VOTE ON CONSTITUTIONAL CHANGES. On 15 July, Deputy Prime Minister Elvin Nimrod announced that the country will vote in a referendum on twelve proposed changes to the constitution on 10 February 2015. The announcement came after weeks of consultation and the submission of a report to the cabinet by the Constitution Reform Advisory Committee headed by former attorney general, Francis Alexis. One of the points for consideration is the proposed use of the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) as Grenada’s final court of appeal. Nimrod cited Grenada’s status as an “independent” and “sovereign” nation as reason to use its “own court instead of going to Privy Council in England”. Other proposals include changing the country’s official name from the “State of Grenada” to “Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique”, and changing the oath taken by government officials when taking office from “allegiance to the Queen of England” to “allegiance to Grenada”. A two-thirds majority of votes in the referendum and a two-thirds majority of the 16-member House of Representatives are required to change the constitution.

***US OFFENDS BAHAMIAN GOVERNMENT IN OFFICIAL REPORT. On 26 June, the US Department of State released its most recent (2014) Investment Climate Statement on The Bahamas. It highlighted the Bahamian government’s failure to fulfil many of its “ambitious campaign promises of economic and fiscal reform” as set out by the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) when it came to power in May 2012. Prime Minister Perry Christie claimed the report was “simply inappropriate” and based on an unfair “snapshot” of the current situation. The report highlighted the unfulfilled creation of 10,000 new “immediate jobs”, failure to employ a national mortgage bailout plan, and the failure to return the majority of shares in the national telecom company to state control.

In response, Christie claimed that the report reflected the opposition’s opinion and did not provide an objective assessment of his government. He also reiterated his government’s intention to fulfil its original plans. Since the row blew up, US Charge d’Affaires Lisa Johnson has sought to restore calm by saying that the ‘negative’ points of the report are in no way reflective of the relationship between The US and The Bahamas. Instead, she said, the media had “grabbed” onto many of the unflattering comments within the report. She added that the relationship between the two countries remains strong.

***CARIBBEAN DROUGHT INTENSIFIES. On 20 July, Jamaica’s Minister of Water, Land, Environment and Climate Change, Robert Pickersgill, issued a statement warning that the Jamaican drought was worsening. The weather pattern El Niño has caused reduced rainfall throughout May and June, and inflow to several of the islands larger reservoirs has been reported well below normal. The summer is globally predicted to be the hottest on record since 1880, and conditions are set to continue through the rainy season from October to November. High temperatures and windy conditions increase the risk of bushfires, which are progressively more difficult to manage given the water shortage, Pickersgill said (see sidebar).