Chairman of the Ethnic Relations Commission (ERC), Shaikh Moeenul Hack, made an interesting statement at the launching of the ERC’s Public Diversity Library. He said the library embodies the ERC’s unwavering commitment to building a more enlightened and inclusive Guyana.
We welcome the initiative by the ERC, as its role in Guyana’s diversity has been justifiably questioned and criticized in the past. This is a good start to programmes being implemented by the Commission, since, before recent outreaches, most of what has been generated out of its doors were one-off press releases during religious and national holidays.
In March 2023, on International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, President Dr Irfaan Ali, at the swearing-in ceremony of members of the ERC, said: “Racial, religious and cultural divisions, if allowed to become malignant, will eat away at the very fabric of our society, disrupting human and social relations, retarding national development, and corroding national values. In other parts of the world, we have seen the deaths, injuries and carnage resulting from such conflicts. Diversity is an asset we must value and cherish. Greater inclusion and equality are goals to which we must continuously aspire…The work of the Commission is non-partisan. It must rise above sectarian interests and work for the common good of our society.”
The first ERC was formed on March 8, 2002, and was chaired by Juan Edghill (who was the Christian representative, now Public Works Minister). The tenure constitutionally expired in 2006. From then right up to 2015, an inordinate period expired, during which the country saw the running-off of two elections (viz, in 2011 and 2015), no new Commission was established to replace the first Commission, which over time became mired in a host of issues, such as court matters instigated by the main parliamentary Opposition challenging the organisation’s constitutionality; loss of membership through attrition – resignations, deaths, illness, and migration – resulting in the lack of a decision-making quorum, and, to some extent, a loss of public trust and confidence in the organisation’s credibility.
Subsequently, after the results of the 2011 general and regional elections transformed the PPP/C into a minority Government, the framework for a new ERC was agreed to in 2013 between the Government and the parliamentary Opposition parties – APNU and AFC. At that time, it was consensually agreed by the Government and the Opposition parties to add three more constituents – namely, the ethnic representatives of the country’s African, East Indian, and Amerindian peoples – to the original mix of representatives, thus increasing the total number of elected members from 7 to 10. The process to select the nominees for the new Commission concluded in 2014, and the names of those selected were made public. But, for some inexplicable reason, they were never sworn-in as Commissioners.
However, notwithstanding all that has gone before, the current administration, to its credit, ensured the swearing-in of a Commission, and in this regard, ought to be commended.
Strictly speaking, by way of comparison, the ERC is probably the most powerful of all the rights commissions established in this country after independence. Based on the powers ascribed to it by the Constitution, it is more or less a quasi-judicial body that can summon, adjudicate, and penalise.
It is pellucid that the ERC is especially critical to pre-empting and ameliorating the divisive ethnic intolerance that usually overshadows the country, especially at elections’ periods. But its role is year-round to mediate and arbitrate the varied ethnic problems abounding within our polity, and which can threaten the country’s peace.
We reshare the sentiments of the Head of State when he said, at the swearing-in of this Commission last year, that the “Government takes seriously any attempt to instigate racial animosity and racial violence within our country, severely condemns attempts to provoke racial conflicts in our society, and would ensure that those guilty are subject to the sanctions imposed by law.”
The President had also urged all Guyanese to reject all racially-laced rhetoric, and not allow themselves to be misled by those who wish to use race and ethnicity to stoke divisions and hatred in society. We look forward to seeing more proactive ERC educational programmes.
