Dear Editor,
It saddens me when I hear some people boast about being French and Dutch. These are nationalities imposed on us by the colonial powers who to date maintain political and economic control on this divided paradise. I am of the firm belief and still hold the view that contrary to popular belief that we (displaced Africans of the diaspora) had nothing to do with the signing of the Treaty of Concordia because our ancestors were slaves in 1648. If this had been the case then we, the local government on both sides, would have been able to change it. We would have been able to keep the border open.
This treaty was agreed upon and ratified by the Republic of France and the Kingdom of the Netherlands. What is so unfortunate is that some don’t understand the agenda of both colonial powers and the reality is, we are playing right into their hands. We are talking about a country such as France who took part in the Berlin conference held in Germany on November 15, 1884, until February 26, 1885, where they divided up Africa. We are talking about France who forced some 14 African countries who wanted their independence to sign the French colonial tax which ensured their revenues totaling some $500 billion annually was deposited in the French treasury. We are talking about the Kingdom of the Netherlands who participated in this same Berlin conference and to date has a system in South Africa where the minority of whites control the financial sector in that country. So, to those who are asking for them (Dutch Government) to take over St. Maarten, you really do not know their history. Do not think for one moment that they are not involved in this plan of the border closure and control.
Sometimes I wonder if we understand the strategy that is being used to keep us as a people divided. And they also determine whether our African Caribbean family are allowed access to the island with the imposition of visa restrictions. They are using the same divisive system in Africa and we consider this normal? We have to stop applying their legislation which has been put in place to maintain their control on us.
A painful reality is that there is not much the United Nations, the European Union or any so-called humanitarian organization can or will do about it. Case in point, the United Nations was formed in April of 1945 but apartheid was only dismantled 49 years after. They have hundreds of articles on human rights but where were they when these crimes were and are still being committed against our African brothers?
Our only salvation or solution is for us to first see ourselves as one people, one island. Then our next step is to determine what unites us. We have to put policies in place which coincide with our culture. We are not European but we are from the continent of Africa. We have to communicate on a consistent basis. We are the offspring of the most powerful people God ever put on this planet. But it appears we don’t know our strength. Years of Eurocentric, colonialist divisive indoctrination are deeply rooted in our psyche; however, as a people of spiritual strength and awareness we survived, endured and thrive under the atrocities committed against us.
We have to seriously address their educational system, I did not make a mistake, I said their educational system. Because they don’t talk about us. Where in their educational system does it mention the greatness of our ancestry? Where do they mention the genius of us as a people? We have to make a serious effort to invest in our youth, there is too much talk. I am pleading with our youth to educate and inform themselves. Do your own research, investigate and you will find out who we are as a black people.
The books they give us in the classroom say nothing about who we are. One would think our history began with slavery. I have a deep respect for Haiti and Jamaica. Haiti for being the first independent country in the world and Jamaica for showing a resilience equal to none when the British left them with an illiteracy of 85 per cent and today they can boast of a literacy of 88.10 per cent, a prime example of a fighting spirit. The University of the West Indies situated in Jamaica ranks second in the region only behind Puerto Rico.
We don’t need the Republic of France or the Kingdom of the Netherlands, we need to reconnect with the continent from whence we came. It is time we demand of the colonialists that we be allowed to plan our own future. Herein lies our very survival. The island is ours physically but not constitutionally. Let us claim our paradise because after they used and abused us and left us to fend for ourselves, with the help of God we built it to where it is today.
George Pantophlet
Member of Parliament
