The Virgin Islands and other United Kingdom overseas territories in the Caribbean should take the lead from Scotland and remain a part of the United Kingdom. Last week, 84.59 percent of Scotland’s 4,283,392 people eligible to vote chose to reject independence with 55.3 percent voting no and 44.7 percent voting yes. Well, why would the small territories in the Caribbean with populations less than 80,000 — or even less than 30,000 like the VI — want to sever ties from the UK?
Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago took the bold and dangerous step in August 1962, just months after the West Indies Federation collapsed, and in 1966 Guyana and Barbados followed. A few years later, there was mass exodus from the UK when several islands — including Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Dominica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines — became independent states at great expense, having set up embassies or high commissions abroad. This step was more or less to create top jobs and prestige for their well-to-do supporters by allowing them to be diplomats. Moreover, independence gave the governments the authority to manage their own affairs without any say whatever from London.
‘Risky ventures’
Shortly after, however, the governments started to move into risky ventures.
The Guyana government under Forbes Burnham, with support from Cheddi Jagan, nationalised the sugar and bauxite industries owned by British and American tycoons. But the government struggled to properly run and administer these big businesses, and later foreigners were allowed to exploit the gold, diamond and lumber industries. Soon, there was massive corruption, nepotism, favouritism and other wrongdoings. This trend continues after a change of government, and is maybe even worse now. This type of situation is not confined to Guyana, but is present in the other independent states like Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, St. Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, and others.
It is for such reasons I strongly recommend dependent states in the Caribbean retain ties with Britain. Let Her Majesty the Queen continue to govern. I have been accused of being colonial, but I will continue to take this stand to prevent wrongdoing.
There have been periodical rumblings by politicians in the Caribbean OTs, including the VI, for steps to be taken to secede from the UK, but no positive steps have been taken in this regard, and this should remain. What the governments of these countries should try to do, however, is to seek a little more autonomy. The VI has so far succeeded in this regard: Under the 2007 Constitution, for example, the chief minister was elevated to premier and Executive Council was renamed Cabinet. However, the British governor still chairs Cabinet meetings.
The territory has an excellent economy, with the top earner being the financial services, followed by tourism. These industries attract thousands of foreigners, and maybe I should point out that expatriates comprise more than 50 percent of the labour force. Unlike other countries and territories in the region, unemployment is minimal.
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