Originally published in NOW Grenada, The New Today and The Grenadian Voice on 13. November, 2024.
On the 12th November edition of the To The Point programme on the Grenada Broadcasting Network Mr. Peter David, the Member of Parliament for the Town of Saint George and candidate to be the next Political Leader of the New National Party, repeated a verifiable lie far too many persons of prominence in our society seem insistent on spreading. This lie is that the Grenada Independence Constitution of 1974 was “imposed” upon us by Great Britain.
Mr. David stated on the programme that the Constitution “was imposed upon us” by Britain. The League already discussed this issue in last week’s edition of this newspaper regarding similar comments made by prominent Attorney Anselm Clouden, but it evidently must be addressed again. The Grenada Constitution, which is the fundamental document governing the structure and function of the Grenadian state, was not in any way or sense an imposition upon our nation.
The Constitution was the result of the Marlborough House conferences of 1973. During these conferences, delegations headed by Grenada’s first Prime Minister, Eric Gairy, representing the Grenada government and an opposition delegation headed by later Prime Minister Herbert Blaize negotiated, compromised and agreed upon the terms of the Constitution. Every provision within the Constitution, from fundamental rights and freedoms to the parliamentary system, the (as of yet unimplemented) autonomy for Carriacou and Petite Martinique, the Monarchy and the Privy Council were all negotiated between and agreed upon by Grenadian leaders. British authorities, who took only an observatory and mediating role, did not impose a single comma in our Constitution.
Mr. David goes on to refer to the constitutional requirements for referenda on matters like the Monarchy or Privy Council as “a trick that the British played on us”. This is implying that the referendum clauses was an imposition by the British in our Constitution. It was not. The referendum clauses, which legally require changes to issues such as the Monarchy, the Privy Council, the parliamentary system or fundamental rights of citizens to be approved by the Grenadian people, were enshrined in the Constitution at the explicit request of the Grenadian opposition and with the agreement of the Grenadian government.
The purpose of these clauses were and remain to ensure that no government can unilaterally change the fundamental framework of our governance. They exist as a check on the power of governments to change the constitution in their favour by requiring the Grenadian people to directly consent to such fundamental change. Mr. David questioning these provisions smacks of disregard for the Grenadian people and an attitude that politicians should be given unilateral power to impose their republic and other changes on the nation. Such an attitude is wholly unbecoming of an elected representative.
The fact that Mr. David, a sitting member of Parliament and leadership hopeful for the New National Party is openly, on national radio, lying about the origins of our Constitution and implicitly questioning the legitimacy of our governance structure and constitutional protections is outrageous. The Constitution is a genuinely and authentically Grenadian document with every provision negotiated, compromised and agreed upon by Grenadian leaders of both government and opposition in 1973.
The notion it was in any way imposed upon us is verifiably false as can be seen both via the records of the Marlborough House conferences and by simply looking to our neighbours. Dominica, for instance, gained independence in 1978 as a republic because the government and opposition at the Dominican constitutional conferences agreed for Dominica to be a republic upon independence. We are a constitutional monarchy because Eric Gairy, Herbert Blaize and the other representatives of the Grenadian people agreed for us to be.
Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados and Belize all gained independence in 1962, 1966 and 1981 respectively, without any constitutional requirements for referenda on the Monarchy or Privy Council. The fact our constitution has these requirements was a purposeful design by Gairy, Blaize and the other government and opposition negotiators in 1973 in order to protect these institutions and the Grenadian people from government overreach and tyranny. The British never imposed these requirements on us, no more than they imposed upon us our national flag or anthem.
Having elected members of Parliament spread such falsehoods and questioning the legitimacy of our constitution, sowing distrust in our institutions is unacceptable. Those who are entrusted with the sacred duty of representing the Grenadian people in our Parliament should not be undermining the very foundational document of our sovereign state.
Grenada Monarchist League 