The Joshua Factor

The announcement of a State of Emergency on Monday appeared to undermine my plan to spend time here stretching the Joshua Regrello metaphor to a place from where we could better understand the true state of T&T civilisation.

But maybe this does not have to be so, after all.

I had noted the fact that some people could simply not find in their souls the time and space to even acknowledge such an accomplishment. I believe there was difficulty in doing so partly because of emotions associated with low appreciation for the steelpan and what it means for all of us, together with a not disassociated assertion of ethnic under-achievement.

Today is not the day, and Happy New Year by the way, to restate all I have previously said on the latter, contentious point. But examine your heart while preparing to rebut and explain to a friend or family member exactly what you mean in plain language.

Let’s also be clear, 31 continuous hours on the pan was not “the greatest thing to happen to our country.” Would it be August 31, 1962? Or the football match on November 19, 1989, right? Or maybe not. Maybe elections on December 15, 1986? No?

Yes, we’ve heard the declaration before, but to be sure, that moment is yet to arrive.

However, what young Regrello did was to redirect achievement in, for some, the disquieting socio-cultural spaces occupied by the young, black men of T&T, employing the assets of a musical instrument born out of open defiance and victorious cultural revolution now claimed by all.

Even if you do not enjoy music as played on the pan (a shortcoming to which anyone is fully entitled … I don’t like the accordion), the display of human endurance and employment of an insanely vast musical repertoire alone is sufficient for accolades beyond those on offer from Guinness or Skiffle or PanTrinbago or T&T. 

Yet, there are so many who skipped effortlessly to arguments over SOE 25. Go back to the top to have a clue why this is so. There are disquieting connections on their part.

For those of us who champion human rights, even the mention of suspending civil liberties under legal authority is troubling. We’ve long opposed measures that curb free speech, reproductive rights, gender equality, and children's rights, together with the vast spectrum of civil, economic, social, and cultural rights.

Yet, disturbingly, some who were silent about the 2011 State of Emergency are now vocal about the current version, while others who disapproved of SOE11 are now doggedly supportive of SOE25. All without reference to the potential impacts of both on wider civil liberties.

Despite differences in context, the arguments for and against these States of Emergency are strikingly similar. In the end, what matters to many is the desire for an end to the violence, extortion, and corruption that plague us all.

In other parts of the world, extreme measures have been tested with mixed results. For example, in countries like Honduras, El Salvador, and Jamaica, the verdicts are not entirely impressive. El Salvador has seen some success at the daily street level, which absolutely boosts citizen and visitor confidence, but organised criminal activity remains largely undisturbed.

Honduras, on the other hand, faced an increase in extortion even in the early phases, and Jamaica’s years of SOEs have yielded results ranging from the limited to the ineffective. However, there remains widespread recognition of the daily violence that still characterises life there.

From these examples, it’s clear that no easy answers exist. This is a long, hard path to peace. Police performance here, for instance, does not inspire much confidence. State interventions need major upgrades, and there’s a pressing need for better cross-sectoral collaboration across the board.

People also do not believe they have anything to do with either the underlying causes or the actions required to frame the outcomes. After all, we elect governments to do that, don’t we?

Everywhere this challenge exists, they are all finding, as we must, that this is not an easy road paved with quick fixes. A Joshua Regrello level of endurance, skill, versatility, harnessing of collective assets, and self-belief are among the indispensable qualities. The young man and his supporting acts showed us how some of these qualities are not beyond our reach.