Transparency International Guyana Inc (TIGI) says that it and other civil society groups are withholding support for the inquiry into the MV Barima tragedy until there is wider consultation and agreement on the terms of reference (TOR).
President Irfaan Ali’s decision to unilaterally decide the members of the Commission of Inquiry and the terms of reference has been met with condemnation from the political directorate and TIGI also added its voice yesterday.
In a statement TIGI said that on Saturday it convened a virtual national consultation with two dozen participants and which pointed out that neither the parliamentary opposition, nor the National Toshaos Council, nor the affected communities of Region One, nor civil society were consulted on the composition of this body.
“Article 13 of the Constitution establishes inclusionary democracy as a principal objective of our political system, and provides for the increasing involvement of citizens in the decisions that affect their well-being. The Caribbean Court of Justice has held that the obligation to consult is to be understood broadly. The President’s discretion to appoint under the Commissions of Inquiry Act is not in dispute. What is in dispute is whether that discretion may be exercised without the consultation our Constitution contemplates, on a matter of this gravity, affecting a State-operated service in which seventy-three citizens died”, TIGI said in the statement.
TIGI said that the MV Barima was a state vessel regulated by a state agency, operated by a state department, and falls under a Ministry whose leadership remains in place.
“This is not a government matter. It is a State matter, and the resources involved belong to the people of Guyana. A body examining the conduct of the State cannot be constituted by the State alone if it is to command public confidence”, TIGI asserted.
It added that the TOR have not been publishing and no undertaking has been given that the Commission’s report will be released in full. It contended that Guyana has held Commissions of Inquiry before whose reports the Guyanese people have never seen.
“TIGI therefore does not at this time have confidence in the Commission as constituted. We say this without prejudice to the individual commissioners, whose professional standing is not the subject of this statement. Our objection is to a process that excluded the people most affected from any part in constituting the body that will judge what happened to them”, the civil society body said.
TIGI said it and the organisations it consulted with will evaluate the proposed Commission of Inquiry against five standards.
First, it said that the instrument of appointment and the Terms of Reference should be published now and laid before the National Assembly at its sitting today, before the Commission begins work.
Second, it said that each commissioner should be required to publish a declaration of interests. This is ordinary practice in serious inquiries and no reputable commissioner would object to it. Each member should publish, before taking evidence, a signed declaration of any commercial, professional, institutional, familial or financial connection to the Government of Guyana, to any State agency or official, to the maritime sector in Guyana, or to any party with an interest in the outcome — together with the terms and value of their engagement, TIGI stated.
Third, the transparency body said that there should be a guarantee of publication of the report, in full, in advance. The undertaking should be given now, in writing, with a date.
“A report delivered privately to the authority that commissioned it is not an inquiry; it is a consultation”, TIGI said.
Fourth, it called for the separation of the safety investigation from the criminal process.
“The purpose of a marine safety investigation is to prevent recurrence, not to allocate blame, and every mature maritime jurisdiction keeps the two apart. Crew, dock staff and ticketing personnel must be able to give evidence about what actually happens on that route without that evidence being used to prosecute them. Without testimonial protection, the Commission will not be told the truth. And a prosecution must not be permitted to stand in for an explanation: if this ends with a conviction and no reform, we will have held someone accountable and changed nothing”, TIGI asserted.
Fifth, it said that the Commission should state who owns the recommendations, and by when.
“This is the test Guyana has failed before. Ask who now recalls what the Mahdia inquiry recommended, or which of its recommendations were implemented. Every recommendation this Commission makes should carry a named responsible office, a published deadline, and progress reports laid before the National Assembly at six and twelve months. An inquiry whose findings have no owner is an inquiry designed to be forgotten”, TIGI argued.
It called on President Ali to suspend the start of the Commission’s work and to convene, within seven days, a consultation with the Leader of the Opposition, the National Toshaos Council, representatives of the affected communities and civil society, for the purpose of agreeing the composition of the Commission and its Terms of Reference.
It proposed that technical members be drawn from established marine casualty investigation bodies of long standing such as the United Kingdom’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, or the Australian Transport Safety Bureau.
Ignoring calls from the opposition for consultations on the Commission of Inquiry President Ali yesterday named a five-member commission to be chaired by a Belizean jurist.
The commission comprises Belizean Senior Counsel Godfrey P. Smith; Trinidad and Tobago attorney Nyree Dawn Alfonso; retired Rear Admiral Hayden Pritchard; Jamaican maritime expert Captain Hamada Fouda and Polish naval architect Dr Andrzej Jasionowski.
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