INTERNATIONAL Lessons of losing power 's

In October 1983 a US force of 80 000 marines invaded the island of Grenada bringing to an abrupt end the five year revolutionary experiment of the New Jewel Movement (NJM) led by . Although condemned by anti-imperialist and progressive forces world-wide, the American invasion was apparently welcomed by wide sections of the Grenadan population. DIDACUS JULES, Deputy Secretary for Education in the Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) of Grenada, 1979-83, spoke to Barbara Creecy* about the lessons of losing power in Grenada.

_ For 25 years prior to 1979, l/T .Yr|Vl|YriYitV^[V questioning who were the ::::;:::::::;::; ••:::;:::::>;::;::: Grenada was governed by li.. ..•;;; black faces in office and who assumed whether they were serving leadership of the 1951 revol­ the interests of the black •jT\ d£»i_ ution when the masses rose North masses. against the bad working con­ ^ America There were a number of in­ ditions they faced. Although dependent community-based he was initially popularly Grenada militant youth organisations. elected, Gairy degenerated One such was the Movement into a despot using re­ ^t for the Assemblies of the pression and superstition to People which had a black- remain in power. Caribbean &-} power-cum-socialist In the early 1970s, the Ca­ orientation, partly influenced ribbean, influenced by the by Tanzania's Ujamaa social­ upheavals in the United States, ism. There was also an organ­ was swept by a wave of Black South isation called the JEWEL Power. To many young Carib­ America I/" (Joint Movement for Educa­ bean intellectuals. Black tion Welfare and Liberation). Power meant more than just Grenada in the Caribbean These were pressure putting black faces in office. in relation to the USA groups raising critical ques­

r • ------• - —- - •:: •:••"" For them, it had a class con­ r T T iT r T . \ .?*.? t"r ' t"T" i"'""" T"""""0 "~0""""T~""""~ &$?& SvJK'A'SKv tions about the path of :-:•: •:-x-x-:*:->:-"-^:*x->:-: VK-I-K-K-M^M :•:•:•:•: : £x& :*:v X OK* tent which involved ^^^X':•>^^•^^^:-^^:-^^^:•>^^:^':•^^X':•^:•:•:':•^^:•>•:•:^':^'^:•^:•>:•:':-^:•:-:'•^ development in the country.

Barbara Creecy works for the Human Awareness Programme (HAP), in Johannesburg, coordinating a project which trains education officers in trade unions, community and political groups.

June 1991 64 LESSONS OF LOSING POWER: GRENADA and looking for answers based on a nationalist pro- black majority perspective. Disturbed about foreign con­ GRENADA trol of the Caribbean economies, they were also anti- imperialist These organisations finally merged, in 1970, and called themselves the New Jewel Movement (NJM). The NJM took a more overtly political role by begin­ ning to oppose the Gairy Jamaica regime.

Rise of the New Jewel Movement The Caribbean The movement articulated the need for a broader democracy, the widespread demand for so­ cial services, and an economy Country profile that was in the hands of the masses. ITie NJM rapidly gained a great following in the Grenada is a small country, 200 sq miles in area, with a popula­ country. It also had a fearless tion of about 110 000 people. A further 300 000 live outside Gre­ leadership which was prepared nada, seeking employment in other Caribbean Islands [see map], to oppose the repressive forces the United States, Canada and Britain. The economy of the country is based on agricultural produc­ of the regime. tion, with three main crops for export - bananas, nutmeg and In 1973 the New Jewel cocoa. It is thus vulnerable to changes in international com­ Movement won a number of modity prices at any given point in time. It is also very seats in parliament and vulnerable to natural disasters, such as hurricanes. Maurice Bishop became the Grenada has the largest peasantry in the English-speaking Ca­ leader of the official par­ ribbean. There is almost no industrialisation (except a few liamentary opposition. The assembly-type factories) and the largest plantations are foreign- Gairy regime reacted by fur­ owned. Nonetheless, foreign penetration of Grenada has not been ther eroding parliament as a as deep as in other parts of the Caribbean. • forum for democratic ex­ pression. When parliament was arbitrarily suspended, m unities, arrest agents of the revolutionary government the NJM prepared to carry on regime and ensure the surren­ that immediately put into ef­ the struggle on all fronts, in­ der of police and military fect certain decrees. It cluding an armed seizure of posts in their communities. promised the speedy return power, if necessary. The people responded, and of the country to democratic In the early hours of 13 that led to the consolidation elections and guaranteed the March 1973, the NJM at­ of the revolution. protection of human rights. tacked the army headquarters Particular attention was paid and the radio station. It is­ Achievements to the rights of women sued a call for the masses to of the revolution workers and to women's come out into the streets, to The New Jewel Movement democratic participation in take control of their com- established a broad-based the affairs of the country. 65 SALBVQI15NO8 INTERNATIONAL The Provisional Revolution­ Democratic consultation this level thus had the same ary Government also on economic planning opportunity to hear about the immediately repealed the most Following the inherited Brit­ condition of the national repressive laws that had been ish tradition, the budget was economy and what the gov­ passed by the Gairy regime. a national secret until ernment was considering for The effect of the post-rev­ presented in parliament. One the coming year. The people olutionary decrees was to of the big changes made by had the opportunity for feed­ create a certain amount of the Grenada revolution was back on these options, and to democratic space. People felt to completely change that make further recommenda­ free to organise and to ex­ procedure. tions and suggestions. press themselves. These Firstly, the Ministry of There was then a National initiatives were encouraged. Planning prepared a review Conference of Delegates on A number of spontaneous in­ of the national economy the Economy where every itiatives were taken by the based on information they sector was represented - people. For example, people had collected. That review , women, youth, and other got together in a collective together with certain gui­ mass organisations - as well way to clean up their com­ delines, was sent to the as community representation. munities, and to repair public cabinet for its consideration In the third year of the revol­ facilities and roads. so that it could follow up ution, there was even Democracy was an import­ some of the different options. representation by age with ant promise of the The review was then dis­ specific representation of sen­ government. The policy of cussed in a number of ior citizens. NJM was that the British par­ workshops, using the village At the National Con­ liamentary system should be and zonal councils. People at ference of Delegates on the transformed into a more par­ ticipatory system of government. They believed that the people should have a Economic strategy of the more active say in the formu­ lation of policy. New Jewel Movement The New Jewel Move­ ment began setting up 'zonal* councils in the re­ I he economic policy of the NJM was constrained by the reality it inherited. The Provisional Revolutionary government declared gions where the people could the economy to be a mixed economy with the state sector domi­ discuss problems of their nant. It was felt that this was the only realistic way die country communities as well as na­ could go because it needed foreign expertise and investment. tional problems, and hold Three hundred years of colonial capitalism had not produced an dialogue with the leadership. answer to underdevelopment. There were three aspects to the NJM policy. The first was the In the councils, the people creation of a strong state sector, reserving for the stale national expressed many needs which transportation, utilities, and the banking sector. later became concrete pro­ The second aspect was the promotion of the private sector grammes of the revolution. within certain limits and within a published investment code. There was a strong call for This gave priority to local investors over foreign investors and transformation in education provided concessions for labour-intensive projects which made (especially the upgrading of extensive use of local investment. teacher training and the or­ The third was the encouragement of a co-operative sector es­ ganisation of a national pecially in agriculture. To make this a reality, the government literacy campaign) and the created the National Agency for Co-operative Development which provided finance and training for young people wanting to creation of a national trans­ go into agriculture or into the formation of co-operatives. • port service. June 1991 66 LESSONS OF LOSING POWER: GRENADA Economy, a draft budget was presented based on the zonal Land and discussions. The national conference delegates dis­ aaricultural oolic cussed and make further recommendations, so that by the time the national budget During the 60s and 70s, the Gairy regime had seized large es­ tates claiming lhat it was going to give land to the landless. was finalised, a very large This did not happen. The land was kept by the regime or given cross-section of the country to its supporters. After the revolution, all the land that had been had had a chance to make an seized by the Gairy regime was taken over. There was no need input into that debate. All the to appropriate further land because the slate had enough land. recommendations were then The revolutionary government established a land reform compiled by the ministry and commission whose task was to go around all the communities submitted to the cabinet for in the country, looking into the availability of land and its final consideration. identifying idle land. The PRG then passed a land reform law which called for all idle land to be put into production. Failure Because the budget is lo do so would result in the government leasing the land from such an important instrument the owners and sub-leasing it lo producers. In certain cases the of political and economic pol­ law allowed for land expropriation. This was a cautious ap­ icy, people had an proach to the land, but one which allowed for idle land lo come opportunity to make an im­ into production. The slogan for this campaign was "idle land pact in a real way. As a plus idle hands equals production." result, many things lhat There was a discussion on land nationalisation. It was felt became part of economic pol­ that this docs not necessarily lead to the results hoped for, be­ icy were recommendations cause you need people with experience in running farms. Greater yields from the land are wanted and this requires exper­ from the people. One tise not just from the managers, but from the workers them­ example was taxes on luxury selves. This was one of Ihe tremendous weaknesses that we had. goods, an increase in the wel­ The basis of the Grenadan economy was agriculture and we fare allowance and tax relief needed to export agricultural products lo earn foreign ex­ and exemption for old and re­ change. So we could not afford lo alienate the most productive tired people. farmers. One of the programmes which the PRG had was to provide encouragement to local farmers lo produce more. At the same time, there was a need for land for the landless Sectoral mass and justice for farmworkers. To do this, the government tried to consultations progressively ameliorate the conditions of workers by estab­ In addition to these regional lishing a minimum wage for agricultural workers, ensuring ihe consultations, the New Jewel right lo unionisation, and combating the exploitation of women Movement also had sector- on farms by establishing equal pay for equal work. The govern­ specific forums: women, ment also set up a commission of enquiry where conditions on youth, workers and farmers farms were considered intolerable. councils where these people About three years into the revolution the Centre for Popular could express their needs ac­ Education planned to give all workers on ihese farms accel­ erated agricultural training and improve their technical cording to their sectors. capacity. One of the things lhat the government did on the state Before the revolution of owned farms was to encourage a system of profit sharing. Once 13 March, trade unions were a farm was able to break even, a third of the profits went to the the main form of mass or­ workers, a ihird went to the national treasury and a third was re­ ganisation in Grenada. But invested in the farm. these had become ineffectual The demand for nationalisation was based on the need for under the Gairy regime. The employmenl and a better quality of life. Once people saw that Grenada Manual and Menial these were being met, ihcy no longer saw that nationalisation Workers Union, for example, was thai necessary. <* was Gairy's creation. It did 67 SALBVol15No8 INTERNATIONAL express the wishes of agricul­ workers. start youth and women's or­ tural workers and other They made a significant ganisations before the workers in the 1950s, but by breakthrough in organising revolution but, because of the 1970s that union had workers into the Bank and the repression, this was very become a shell of its former General Workers Union. difficult to get off the self and was simply a lackey However, official recogni­ ground. of the regime. There was a tion of the union was never It was limited to only the need for autonomous unions granted until after 13 March. most militant sectors of those that could defend workers Youth and women's or­ social groups. So mass or­ from a rapacious black bour­ ganisations were non­ ganisations only blossomed geoisie. In that context, the existent before the revol­ after the revolution. • NJM moved to organise ution. The NJM had tried to

The revolution commits suicide

These radical experiments in new forms of popular consultative democracy, economic change and educational reform, were watched with interest by progressive groups elsewhere in the Caribbean. They also caused concern in the ruling elites that had developed in the Caribbean islands after independence. Above all, imperialist interests were soon accusing the NJM of turning Grenada into 'another ' in the Caribbean. The United States was looking for a pretext to overturn the Grenadan revolution. Unfortunately that opening was provided by developments within the New Jewel Movement itself. Didacus Jules explains.

There are many views on some time later in 1983, to a as being the main ideologue. what went wrong and even proposal within the Central was proposed as joint leader. those of us who were in­ Committee for the estab­ Agreements were reached volved in the process are re­ lishment of a joint leadership and then broken over the ally not sure exactly which structure. question of the joint leader­ analysis is correct. The feeling was that ship. Some people see the Generally speaking, what Maurice Bishop, excellent a whole thing as a conspiracy happened during 1983 was Prime Minister as he was. by the Coard faction to as­ that disagreements existed for had certain weaknesses sume control over the some time within the Central which should be counter-bal­ revolutionary government In Committee of the NJM. How­ anced by the appointment of some quarters it has been ever, even members of the a co-leader within the party. compared to the so-called Es- party were unaware of the ex­ , his Deputy calante Affair in Cuba.* istence of these problems. Prime-Minister, who was What is clear is that These disagreements led. widely seen within the party Maurice Bishop accused

On the other hand, another perspective was that there was no real conspiracy but that what happened was the escalation of an internal leadership conflict which assumed crisis proportions.

June 1991 68 LESSONS OF LOSING POWER: GRENADA Maurice Bishop and several followers had been killed in Tribute to the resistance the cross fire. They also instituted a 72- of Grenadan soldiers hour shoot-to-kill curfew. At that moment the Grenada rev­ olution had effectively I here was very stiff resistance to the American invasion by committed suicide because soldiers of the Grenadan revolutionary army. It took a long lime for the US to occupy Grenada. Over 80 000 American they had totally lost sight of marines were involved in trying to conquer a small country of who the enemy was. 110 000 people, with a fighting force which was reduced, by These events gave Wash­ then, to 2 500 soldiers using obsolete weapons against an ad­ ington the pretext it was vanced super power. looking for. Within days, Despite what happened on the 4 October, history should rec­ the United States had ord the fact that Grenadan soldiers defended the sovereignty of staged its invasion of the their country. We must pay tribute to the bravery of these young Grenadan soldiers who did not necessarily believe in country. Ironically, many what the Central Committee had done, or what had happened Grenadans welcomed the on the 4 October, but who thought it simply wrong that an ex­ American invasion. Many ternal power should land its forces on their shores. Many died people wonder how that for their bravery. ••• could have been. How could there be a popular rev­ olutionary process in place members of the Central Com­ proceeded with some suppor­ for almost five years, and mittee of wanting to have ters to occupy the main the masses of the people him killed. Because of his military installations in the welcome an invading enormous popularity capital. A battalion from the counter-revolutionary amongst the masses, the reac­ army came to regain control force? tion of the people was and in the process many The truth of the matter is to immediate. This led to people were killed. understand, I think, the trauma Bishop being placed under Again there are many ver­ that the Grenadan people had house arrest by the Central sions of this tragic event. experienced in October. They Committee. One version is that the army had gone through a fundamen­ That agitated the masses fired first on the people. An­ tal experience of betrayal by further. So a stalemate de­ other version is that the leaders whom they had veloped between the Central people fired first and the trusted, believed in and fol­ Committee on the one hand, army responded. Whatever lowed. So that even those who who had by then assumed the truth of the matter, a had been labelled enemies of control over the armed forcc- massacre took place on the the people by those leaders s; and Maurice Bishop, some 4 October and Maurice could then be seen as the sa­ followers and the masses on Bishop and several key sup­ viours of the people. the other hand. porters were taken alive, They saw no future in the Neither side would com­ lined up against a wall and Revolutionary Military Coun­ promise on their respective shot. cil. They knew that the positions. On 4 October 1983 That evening a broadcast revolution had been destroyed. the people moved in a decisive was made by what was They saw the brutality that way to free Bishop from house known as the Revolutionary took place on the 4 October arrest, declaring that the will Military Council, consisting and they really feared for their of the people should supersede of several members of the future. In that context one can die will of the party. He was former Central Committee of understand their welcoming freed from house arrest and the NJM. They claimed that the Americans. 69 SALBVQI15NQ8 INTERNATIONAL This was a result of the tion. But there was never that The main struggle of the Caribbean opportunity. working people for the right errors of to representation. "Dictates of the So, while there are many party became the NJM criticisms that can be made the law of the land" of the Westminster par­ What happened was that the Didacus Jules argues liamentary model, the fact of dictates of the party became that there are a number the matter is that the right to the law of the land in prac­ of reasons for the vote and to choose their own tice. Although the party ultimate failure of the government was something created democratic space and New Jewel Movement. that was won as a result of there was a lot of democratic The rejection of very intense struggles by the expression amongst the parliamentary Caribbean people in the masses, the fact is thai all of democracy and the 1950*s. these expressions did not failure to establish an One could not sweep that become fixed or channelled alternative democratic experience under the carpet as the supreme law of the constitution meant that and get rid of the whole par­ land. In effect it was a one the rule of the party liamentary democracy party state. became the law of the system, without putting in its The one other party which land. The people were place a superior form of did exist was the Grenada Na­ consulted but they did democracy which maintained tional Party(GNP) which had not hold power. some of the better features of not actively campaigned parliamentary democracy. Al­ against the Gairy regime be­ Rejecting parliamentary though the people of fore the revolution. The democracy Grenada were very happy to result was that, after the rev­ The first thing was that the be part of the zonal councils olution, the people did not NJM made a serious miscal­ and die new forms of demo­ support them and chased culation in imposing an cratic expression, the fact of them off the platform. They ideological model which did the matter is that people still said that - now dial the revol­ not take account of some of wanted to maintain the right ution had come - the GNP the traditions of the people to elect a government of their were taking advantage of themselves. By that I mean choice. space [h;it they had not that there had always been a The Provisional Revol­ helped to win. This was also very strong critique in Carib­ utionary Government was one of die errors of the NJM bean left circles of the criticised by many people in in not deploring that kind of inadequacy of the British the region, including the Ca­ behaviour. They should have 'Westminster' type of democ­ ribbean council of churches, allowed for a political plu­ racy. for its failure to hold elecuon- ralism that would permit the But, in criticising the Brit­ s, and that contributed to the expression of alternative ish model of parliamentary problem. There is no ques­ views. democracy, the NJM failed tion from anyone, even to recognise sufficiently that opponents of the revolution, Failure to institutionalise parliamentary democracy that if the PRG had held free participatory democracy was not just something that and open elections, the NJM In retrospect one of the great had been imposed by the co­ would have won hands mistakes of die revolution lonial power. The down. There was a plan to was that the party did not do parliamentary system was have an election for a consti­ more to draw up a constitu­ based on universal adult suf­ tuent assembly after the tion that would frage (one person one vote). completion of the consutu- institutionalise the role and June 1991 70 LESSONS OF LOSING POWER: GRENADA powers of the new demo­ had begun but it was over­ of the revolution had been cratic bodies. The zonal taken by the crisis itself. broken, namely that the army structures did give sugges­ One of the lessons of the would never be used against tions for laws which were Grenada experience is that rev­ the masses and that the wea­ passed by decree. For olutions need to move to pons would never be turned example, equal pay for equal institutionalise participatory against the people. The will work, and maternity leave democracy in the shortest of the masses, which had law were things which came possible time. Even though we been spoken about so much from the demands of women. recognise that the quick institu­ during the whole of the revol­ However, the structures in tional isation of a system will utionary process, and which themselves were not law not necessarily yield the best in many other instances had making structures. results, we need to recognise reigned supreme, was clearly The procedure for law-mak­ that democracy is a system flouted. It was subordinated ing was through decree by the which can only improve on it­ not just to the will of the revolutionary government. self. The more opportunities party, but to the will of a This is what I mean when I people have to have a say, the very powerful minority say that these structures were more democracy becomes within the party. not law-making structures. strengthened and the better the They were only consultation form of democracy that will An "advanced structures, with no power eventually evolve. The people vanguard" should above the party to make laws. themselves, through their par­ never "supersede the This meant that, when the ticipation, will have had a say will of the people" crisis came in 1983, there over the shaping of the final There are certain lessons were no procedures in place form. which need to be learned to deal with differences from the Grenadan revol­ which emerged at the top Fratricidal strife ution. No matter how level of government. So that, within the leadership wonderful a leadership may although the experience of The other aspect is that one be, no matter how demo­ the Grenada revolution was has to recognise that the Gre­ cratic they may be in very rich in terms of ex­ nada revolution effectively allowing expression of ideas, perimentation in democratic committed suicide by its the important thing is that forms, the failure of the pro­ handling of the events in there must be procedures and cess was that, when it really 1983. The fact that the revol­ structures that allow for the mattered in the end, this pro­ ution degenerated into people's voice to be heard. cess was not used to resolve fratricide meant that it cre­ The will of no party should the conflict. ated a very traumatic ever supersede the will of the It was the aim of the revol­ experience for the people. people in the country. ution to institutionalise these The confidence of the people No matter how politically structures but this had not was destroyed. advanced a vanguard may happened by the time the The left in the Caribbean, think they are, if they are too crisis erupted. In August as a whole, has taken a lot of far ahead of people then they 1983, Maurice Bishop an­ blows because of that. I think degenerate into ultra-leftism. nounced the formation of a that, while people have had They take decisions which constitutional committee that taste of a new type of are not agreed on by the which was to look at the ex­ democracy, they are still people, and which lay the periences and experiments of cynical of the way in which basis for their alienation the re volution and draw up a what they see as an external from the people. In that case, new constitution after con­ ideology degenerated and they cease to be a leadership, sultation with the mass yielded such a result. and that leads to the demise organisations. The process The fundamental promise of the revolution. & 71 SALBVol15No8