Dear Editor
There are media reports that the PPP and the government have different views on the roles of the Ethnic Relations Commission and the Ministry of Social Cohesion and which one should take precedence in ensuring social cohesion.
In 2005, a group of citizens wrote to the then ERC about the issue of homophobic music being played in Guyana. The citizens believed that since Article 212D paragraph (f) of the Constitution of Guyana states that one of the functions of the Ethnic Relations Commission is to “encourage and create respect for religious, cultural and other forms of diversity in a plural society,” it was possible for the ERC to encourage respect for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender Guyanese. The ERC replied a year later in 2006, to say that their definition of diversity was limited by the “explanatory memorandum of Bill No.9 of 2000 which said among other things, that the ERC should be a ‘modest’ effort to heal the problems of racial conflict, to promote ethnic harmony and good relations among people of different ethnic groups.”
In July 2010, Mr Edghill used the resources of the Ethnic Relations Commission to make false allegations against the SASOD Film Festival. The PPP has embraced Mr Edghill since then.
The Minister of Social Cohesion in her opening remarks (reported in SN, Sept 4) at the recently held Social Cohesion Roundtable recognised the issue of multiple identities that form Guyana’s diversity. She said this diversity, “has to be built out of multiple identities based on age, gender, sexual orientation, class, language, geographic location and religion” and noted that the government has “to create a society where there is quality education and healthcare, decent housing, decent jobs, where all feel safe and secure and where there is an improved quality of life for all, regardless of their race, colour, gender, sexual-orientation or creed.” The Ministry of Social Cohesion has described social cohesion as more than just the absence of ethnic/racial divisions.
There will be expectations that the ministry will be more responsive to the diverse populations in Guyana and with any luck, they will not be lumbered by any official encouraging discrimination against any section of the population, especially when using the resources of the state.
The constitution guarantees several rights commissions, including the ERC. It is up to the new National Assembly to ensure that the commissioners are trained in human rights principles, and that there is a mechanism to ensure accountability from commissioners so that they promote human rights, justice and equality. But this of course will depend on how many members of the National Assembly are willing to put into practice the sentiments of Minister Ally.
Yours faithfully,
Vidyaratha Kissoon
