Guyana asks for more time on EPA
Guyana Asks For More Time On EPA
CaribWorldNews, NEW YORK, N.Y., Thurs. July 17, 2008: The Guyana government wants more time to consider troubling aspects of the Economic Partnership Agreement with the E.U.
Guyana’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Carolyn Rodrigues, said on Wednesday her government is already receiving complaints from certain groups about aspects of the agreement and wants more time to consult with stakeholders locally.
‘No Government can be deaf to the outcry of important groups in its society. We are democracies, not command economies. In democracies, governments have to listen and to dialogue, particularly when the decisions to be made have long term consequences,’ Rodrigues told the 6th United Kingdom/Caribbean forum in London. ‘For, make no mistake about it, if our populations do not believe the agreement is in their interest, if they believe it has been imposed upon them, it will not work.`
She said Guyana would like time to conduct ‘national consultations’ on the issue over the next few weeks.
Guyana President Bharrat Jagdeo has been voicing concern about the agreement, including the fear that it will undermine the Caribbean Single Market and Economy and has said they will not sign the agreement as it is.
