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The Caribbean's Stolen Jewel

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The Caribbean's Stolen Jewel December 1983 Marxism Today 11 Bloody Sunday rally, November 1982 The US invasion has destroyed a revolution in its infancy. Andy Green The Caribbean's Stolen Jewel Grenada's revolution invoked such hostility from the US. the future revolutionary government, emer­ The American invasion of Grenada on ged as leading figures in these mobilisations October 25 has many historical prece­ Origins of the revolution and by 1973 they had formed the New dents. The US military has directly The origins of the 1979 revolution, the first Jewel Movement (NJM). Two NJM intervened in the region no less than 135 in the English-speaking Caribbean, lie in people's congresses in the same year each times in the past century. Nor will it have the corruption, neglect and personal drew over 10,000 participants, the latter surprised the people of Grenada who were megalomania that characterised the 23 years calling on Gairy to resign or face a general well aware of the growing hostility of the of government under Eric Gairy. strike. Gairy's response was to intensify White House towards their revolution. It Although he came to power in 1951 physical coercion and on November 18, was only last February that President through his leadership of the small farmers 'Bloody Sunday', 6 NJM leaders were Reagan in a national television speech, and plantation workers, Gairy failed in arrested and brutally beaten by Gairy's condemned Grenada as a 'threat to government to bring concrete benefits to private army known as the Mongoose gang. America national security'. any section of the population, except a Growing popular resistance and increas­ American destabilisation, through prop­ small group of followers and businessmen ingly brutal repression were the hallmark of aganda, military intimidation and economic whom he patronised in return for political the next five years as the NJM consolidated sabotage, has been a daily fact of life for support. Increasingly despised by the its support amongst workers and peasants. Grenadians since the People's Revolution­ estate-owning plantocracy, the new black A three month strike followed Gairy's ary Government PRG) took power in commercial middle class and the working refusal to accede to the Duffus commis­ 1979. However, the clearest warning of class alike, Gairy could only consolidate his sion's recommendation to disband the American intentions came with the 'Ocean power by corruption, patronage, electoral Mongoose gang and ended with the murder venture' manoeuvres in 1981. At that time fraud and the spreading of superstition of Rupert Bishop, Maurice Bishop's father. 12,000 US troops, 250 warships and 1,000 amongst the people. Meanwhile the public Gairy's further survival rested on the fixing aircraft took part in a mock invasion of sector was pillaged, the education and of the 1976 election, the enactment of Yieque Island near Puerto Rico. The hospital services declined and roads and repressive legislation like the banning of operation was code-named Amber and other infrastructure fell into chronic- public sector strikes in 1978 and the Amberines'. echoing Grenada and Grena­ disrepair. unlimited tyranny of the Green Beast army dines,and was undertaken as a rehearsal Despite the growing disaffection of and Mongoose gang, which were responsible lor the future invasion of Grenada. various strata, no effective opposition for numerous other political assassinations. It would be fruitless at this point to emerged until the early 1970s. The return By the end of the decade dairy's reputation speculate about the confused events leading of Maurice Bishop in 1970 marked the had reached its nadir. up to the killing of Maurice Bishop and beginning of a movement towards polarisat­ The final overthrow of Eric Gairy and four of his Cabinet colleagues on October ion, as his immediate leadership of a large the installation of the Peoples' Revolution­ 19. or to predict the immediate future of demonstration in solidarity with worker ary Government took place on March 13 the Xew Jewel Movement which led uprisings in Trinidad precipitated Gairy's 1979 in a decisive and largely unopposed Grenada's four year revolution. It is introduction of Emergency Powers. There movement. Following the leak of an important, however, to sketch out the were further major popular uprisings in the intended plot by Gairy, to be staged whilst history of this youthful revolution whose next two years. Bishop, Radix and he was out of the country, armed popularity and economic achievements Whiteman. who were all to go on to lead C Searle The Struggle Against Destabilisation. 12 December 1983 Marxism Today supporters of the NJM stormed the army US destabilisation tion programme, new jetties and docks and barracks at True Blue, before proceeding to US economic destabilisation was thorough the celebrated new airport at Point Salines. take control of the island radio station. and unremitting. Not content with with­ The latter would attract increased tourism Here, they announced that the Gairy drawing its own aid, the US government did and obviate the need for tourist 'over­ government had fallen and called on the everything possible to block aid from other nighting' in foreign airports and avoid people to come out in support of the New sources; including attempting to stop the unwelcome dependence on hostile immi­ People's Government. The response was April 1981 EEC Conference in Brussels gration points. Industrial projects included massive and within hours the last police from voting aid for the international the creation of the Sandino Block and Tile station had surrendered. When Gairy airport, ensuring that Grenada was excluded factory and the development of agro- finally tendered his resignation (from the from aid after Hurricane Allen and, in June industry including a range of 'Spice Isle' US) on March 20, 20,000 people turned 1981, offering the Caribbean Development juices and nectars from local produce to out in Queen's Park stadium to celebrate. Bank $4m on the condition that Grenada undercut the wasteful import of expensive was excluded from the beneficiaries. foreign drinks. It was through such An enormous task Although the US failed to have Grenada expansion in capital projects that the The fact that the revolutionary takeover expelled from CARICOM, the Caribbean government was able to reduce unem­ was quick, almost bloodless, and required Economic Community, it was engaged in ployment from 55% under Gairy to 14% in relatively few armed revolutionaries, indi­ constant anti-PRG propaganda in the other 1982. cates, not, as some have claimed, that it was Caribbean states and, through its influence a mere coup d'etat, but that it was over prominent right wing newspapers like It seems likely that a full overwhelmingly popular and faced little Jamaica's Daily Gleaner, put out a barrage serious resistance. However it should be of propaganda against Grenada. scale 'anti-communist' purge seen as the beginning of a revolution and It was in this context of economic will now be instigated. not its accomplishment. The broad masses under-development, US destabilisation of rural and urban workers had risen to and still burgeoning revolutionary con­ Inevitably developments in agriculture depose Gairy and shown their decisive sciousness amongst the mass of the people were slower. This was not just because they support for a revolution which was, in that the socialist NJM set its priorities for depended upon infrastructure improve­ Maurice Bishop's words, 'for work, for the revolution. In the first instance they ments, but also because of the problems, food, for decent housing and health had to be the defence of the revolution, the mentioned earlier, of traditionalism, indi­ services, and for a bright future for our achievement of immediate social and vidualism, under-capitalisation and lack of children.' The local bourgeoisie showed, economic gains for the people, and the a marketing structure. Some immediate for the time being at least, their qualified deepening of political consciousness and improvements were made with the availa­ approval. mass involvement. In the two latter bility of government grants and loans to The tasks that lay ahead were enormous. objectives, the PRG made swift and small farmers through newly created Three hundred years of British and French dramatic progress; to the extent in fact, National Commercial Bank and Grenada colonisation and 23 of 'Hurrican Gairy' had that the US government feared that this National Bank, and the setting up of the left a country with derelict social services, 'new dawn' in Grenada might be emulated national marketing board. More fundamen­ one secondary school and virtually no in other small island Caribbean states. tal changes, however, were a long term industry. Its economy was exceptionally In the economic sphere the immediate objective involving widespread re-education weak, depending for revenue on exports, of strategic objectives were as follows: to and the gradual introduction of new forms which 97% came from three crops — diversify production and reduce depend­ of work. nutmeg, banana and cocoa. It suffered from ence on foreign capitalist markets, to the classic colonial economic legacy of rebuild the primary agriculture sector and Popular involvement dependence on world market prices for a move towards self-sufficiency in food, to The area where the revolution made the narrow range of exports and of the reconstruct the infrastructure of the most visible gains and where it benefited under-development of its primary sector, economy and to expand the state and people most immediately was in the social agriculture. 95% of Grenadian farms arc- co-operative sector. Revenue for this services which has been so neglected by small peasant holdings of less than 5 acres, programme was raised via revised company Gairy and his colonial predecessors. Many traditionally worked without mechanisat­ taxes, new taxes on exported capital and, villages saw electrification introduced for ion or tertiliser, in most cases lor most importantly, through foreign aid.
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