By Robert Andre Emmanuel
Cabinet has reportedly agreed in principle to the formation of a joint consultative committee to deal with issues on Barbuda, according to members of the Barbuda Council following high-level dialogue with government ministers yesterday.
Barbuda MP Trevor Walker, speaking to Observer media after the meeting, explained the key takeaways.
“The first issue was the implementation of a recommendation that was made by the Commonwealth Secretariat in 2000.
“The Commonwealth Secretariat recommended that the government and the Council form a joint consultative committee to look at issues on Barbuda and to ensure that there is the necessary dialogue and information that is required for certain things to happen,” he said.
Walker stated that the Council has not been satisfied with how certain decisions have been taken and events have unfolded on Barbuda without their knowledge and approval.
“After some discussions, the Prime Minister agreed in principle that this committee should be reestablished based on our input today and based on what we said to the Cabinet concerning our concerns with Barbuda, so we’re waiting to see what mechanism is used to allow the formation of this joint consultative committee,” he argued.
The Barbuda Council and the current central government have been at odds over a multitude of issues relating to the sister isle, including land rights and development.
“We will see in terms of how that will work; the last time that this was in place was when the Baldwin Spencer government was in power. They said they will do it so the action, I guess, will prove what the situation will really end up as,” Walker cautioned.
The Barbuda Council representatives emphasised that they would continue to work in what they deem to be the best interests of the Barbudan people, particularly in protecting traditional land ownership.
The meeting also covered other significant issues including back pay owed to the Barbuda Council, road improvements and crime prevention.
According to Walker, the government agreed to pay the first period of back pay from 2002 to 2004 and further discussions will develop over additional back pay owed.
The Council proposed getting concessions on inputs for road construction. Instead, the government offered EC$4 million for the road leading from the village to the airport.
Additionally, the Cabinet agreed to share information about people travelling to and from Barbuda to help address crime concerns.
“We do have an issue with the inflow of drugs and illegal weapons, and we also have an issue with petty theft and stuff like that.
“The problem is that Barbuda is an open island and we don’t know who really are coming and going from the island, so we are hoping that we can deal with the situation early so that we don’t get to a point where you have like the situation in Antigua of people getting robbed on a daily basis and the situation gets out of control,” Walker said.
