Caribbean News
Turks and Caicos Islands’ Premier and delegation discuss reform of educational sector with UWI leaders
The UWI Regional Headquarters, Jamaica W.I. Friday, 19 August 2022—The Government of the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) is in the process of reforming its national education and labour sectors to build the human capacity of its people and has turned to The University of the West Indies (The UWI) to strengthen its relationship with the regional academy.
On Monday, August 15, The Honourable Charles Washington Misick, Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands, and a team comprising the Hon. Rachel Taylor, Minister of Education, Employment, Labour and Customer Service; Wesley Clerveaux, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education, Employment, Labour and Customer Services, and other government officials visited The UWI’s Regional Headquarters in Jamaica and met with Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir Hilary Beckles and members of the University’s Executive Management Team to advance discussions on the areas articulated. Vice-Chancellor Beckles and Premier Misick share a mutual desire to foster access to and growth of education in the region and agree on the critical role of The UWI in this regard.
Prioritised on the agenda for the dialogue was partnership on efforts to improve access and efficiency in learning within the TCI education sector. Discussions focused on further strengthening The UWI’s cooperation with the TCI in the short, medium, and long term towards building the human capacity among the Islands’ citizens. Specifically, these talks centred on collaboration with the University Hospital of the West Indies to facilitate nursing programmes for students from the TCIC including internship placements and housing accommodation, as well as joint degree programmes in areas like primary and secondary education, business studies, and social work.
The TCI Government also signalled its interest in the Turks and Caicos Island Community College advancing its
partnership with The UWI. Premier Misick stated, “I am indeed grateful for the opportunity to sit with the executive of UWI’s Mona Campus and Vice-Chancellor Beckles. The Turks and Caicos has and will continue to enjoy a fruitful relationship with the University and I am hopeful of their partnership in helping our country build the human capital capacity needed for our further development.”
Commenting on the visit, Vice-Chancellor Beckles remarked, “It was a pleasure to discuss with Premier Misick and his delegation, the important role that The UWI has to play in realising the vision of his Government in enabling and empowering the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands in achieving their development aspirations. The Premier and I are in complete agreement about the importance of quality and relevant education to the region. The UWI looks forward to forging an even closer collaboration with the Turks and Caicos Islands going forward.”
The visit of the TCI Government delegation significantly builds on a deepening relationship with The UWI. In April this year, the Government hosted the Meetings of the University’s Technical Advisory Committees (TACs) to review its annual budgets, and in 2018, The UWI Open Campus partnered with the TCI Government to re-establish a physical campus site on the Islands.
Release: UWI
Photo captions:
Header: Front row centre: The Honourable Charles Washington Misick, Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands (L) and Professor Sir Hilary Beckles, Vice-Chancellor, The University of the West Indies (R) together with their delegations.
Insert: The Honourable Charles Washington Misick, Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands (L) and Vice-Chancellor Professor Sir Hilary Beckles (R) share a moment after meeting at The UWI’s Regional Headquarters in Jamaica on August 15.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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