Two years later, the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC) is still not functioning, but Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton has given his assurance that this could change soon, as a list of nominees to be appointed to serve on the new
Social Cohesion Minister, Dr George Norton
ERC Board will be submitted soon for approval.
Dr Norton, who also serves as Chairman of the Committee of Appointments in the National Assembly, told Guyana Times on Monday that he was hoping that before the closing of the current session of Parliament that the list of nominees would go beyond the level of the Committee of Appointments.
“We’ve reached a stage where we not only have the entities, but the nominees. As a matter of fact, we are about to present to Parliament the final report and hope that we would get the support so that it could be presented to the President (David Granger) to swear in the new ERC,” he stated.
The Minister said while the ERC was supposed to be a commission to function irrespective of the fact that there were 10 clusters of entities coming together to work as one, experience has shown that some individuals eventually showed specific preferences and allegiance to their respective groups.
In order to avoid this, Dr Norton said, “We have to be very careful of the process and how we go about doing it. And if we want to be above board and be able to present an ERC to the public whose integrity is unquestionable, then it would take time. It makes no sense rushing into it and we end up with something that is flawed.”
The Committee of Appointments, according to him, meet at least twice monthly on average and the records will show that reports have been presented to Parliament. However, he said that the process of getting a suitable nominee from each of the clusters for the ERC was painstaking and lengthy.
“Just imagine we are dealing with a religious cluster. We are supposed to meet every single church in the community for them to arrive at one nominee and that is to avoid them saying that they weren’t consulted or that they weren’t allowed to participate,” he told Guyana Times.
He continued, “Sometimes, we have to search for an individual in the community and practically hand deliver correspondence so that they can be a part of the entire selection process. Sometimes, we hear about organisations which are not really functioning and existing and all of this takes time.”
The Social Cohesion Minister reminded that it was not a straightforward process as society may want to believe and it was not one that could be rushed.
Asked whether the functions of the ERC would, in some ways, come into conflict with those of the Social Cohesion Ministry, Dr Norton was quick to state that the ERC had separate functions from those of the Ministry.
“The Ministry of Social Cohesion in no way overrides or would usurp the function of the ERC. They would function separately from the Ministry. I don’t see any way where one would interfere with the other,” he added.
Nominees for the new ERC Board include: Dr John O Smith for the Christian community; Sister Rajkumarie Singh representing the Hindu bodies; Roshan Khan, the Muslim community, and Norris Witter for the labour movement.
The Private Sector organisations would be represented by Major General (Ret’d) Norman McLean; youth by Deodat Persaud; women, Ruth Howard; for cultural and ethnic bodies – Afro-Guyanese would be represented by Barrington Braithwaite; Indo-Guyanese, Neaz Subhan and Indigenous or Amerindian bodies, Ashton Simon.
The aforementioned nominees have been nominated in accordance with Resolution No 17 of 2003 and Article 212 B (1a) of the Constitution to be appointed members of the ERC.
Under Article 212 of the Constitution, the ERC advocates equality of opportunity among persons of different ethnic groups; promotes the elimination of all forms of ethnic-based discrimination; and discourages persons, institutions, political parties and associations from indulging in discriminatory practices.
Additionally, the Constitution mandates that the ERC promote educational and training programmes and research projects which provide for and encourage ethnic peace and harmony; encourage and create respect for religious, cultural and other forms of diversity in a plural society; and promote arbitration, conciliation, mediation and like forms of dispute resolution in order to secure ethnic harmony and peace.
The ERC is also required to recommend to the National Assembly criteria to be considered for the purposes of deciding whether any person has committed acts of discrimination on the ground of ethnicity; investigate complaints of racial discrimination and make recommendations on the measures to be taken if such complaints are valid and where there is justification, refer matters to the Human Rights Commission, or other relevant authorities. The Commission also has to monitor and review all legislation and administrative acts or omissions relating to or having implications for ethnic relations and equal opportunities among other areas.
The ERC was derived from recommendations of the Herdmanston Accord, signed on January 17, 1998, between then President Janet Jagan and Opposition Leader Desmond Hoyte. Brokered by a Caricom mission, the Accord sought to provide a peaceful solution to the political impasse that had gripped the country after the contentious December 1997 Regional and General Elections.
