Photo credit: Jamaica gleaner
Former Jamaican Prime Minister PJ Patterson has ex[ressed his “indescribable” personal torment over the deepening political and humanitarian crisis in Cuba. He says the crisis was made worse by the absence of the bold political courage once shown in the era of Michael Manley.
The Gleaner reports that Patterson was among 10 former Caribbean prime ministers who issued a joint statement as the situation in Cuba worsens, with the island reportedly starved of fuel.
On December 8, 1972, the leaders of four independent Caribbean states met in Chaguaramas, Trinidad, and agreed to establish diplomatic relations with Cuba, defying the United States’ economic embargo.
Patterson said, “I’m often quoted for saying silence cannot be misquoted, but I’m also aware of that passage in Ecclesiastes, which says there’s a time to be silent and a time to refrain from silence. And in my mind, in my torment, in my agony, the time had come to refrain from silence.
“And so, I reached out to a number of former colleagues who have served at various times as heads of state and government in the Caribbean. We are not a formal organization, and as we have all retired from active service, we are not in the kind of regular contact which previously obtained.”
Patterson said that the group no longer holds political power and is mindful of the responsibilities borne by current leaders.
He wants the Caribbean Community to call on the United States to “revoke this cruel executive order”, while avoiding any slide into open conflict with Washington.
