THE theme for the 12th Caribbean Festival of Arts (CARIFESTA XII) is “Our roots, our culture, our common future”, and Haiti will welcome both CARICOM sister countries and international invitees as the Region collectively displays its prowess in the creative arts.CARIFESTA, the brainchild of Guyana’s late Executive President Forbes Burnham, started in 1972.
The idea of a cultural gathering for Caribbean artistes came out of the desire to bridge the cultural gap in the anglophone Caribbean as a step toward Regional integration.
This is an opportunity not only for Haiti to re-engage CARICOM integration, but also for CARICOM sister countries to delve into the culture of Haiti that has long been misunderstood, under-appreciated, and under-represented through western eyes.
While formal institutions such as the West Indian Federation and CARIFTA have been outlived, CARIFESTA, through the sharing of culture, has withstood the test of time.
“Culture is a unifying force and a cornerstone in our integration movement,” according to Dr. Hilary Brown, Director of the Culture Department at the CARICOM Secretariat.
Brown told reporters at an afternoon press conference at the CARICOM Secretariat, Liliendaal, that the event’s 1972 conception came “in response to requests from artistes in the Region to celebrate the arts, foster a vision of Caribbean unity, and positively advance Caribbean culture” at both the regional and international levels.
“In its original design, this multi-disciplinary, mega event that showcases the cultural expressions of artistes in over 30 countries in the Caribbean was to be held, and to date, we have had 11 CARIFESTAS staged in seven countries,” Brown continued.
The rights of a CARICOM country to host CARIFESTA is not a bidding process, but is based on consensus at the level of the CARICOM Heads of Government. At the same time, hosting CARIFESTA is not limited to CARICOM countries, since Cuba hosted the third CARIFESTA (CARIFESTA III) in 1979.
While Brown noted that there is some pressure for the introduction of a competitive bidding process, the decision remains an effort of consensus between the CARICOM Heads of Government and the countries interested in hosting the event. Barbados will host CARIFESTA XIII in 2019.
Representing the interest of the CARIFESTA XII host country, Haiti’s Ambassador to CARICOM, Peterson Noel said, via conference call from Haiti, the festival is to be held across five cities in Haiti.
He noted this decision comes out of respect for the peculiarities of each city. Port-Au-Prince, which is the centre of Haiti’s political and economic life, will share the spotlight with cities like Jacmel, and Les Cayes in southern Haiti, and Cap-Haïtien and Gonaïves in the north.
The budget for the mega event stands at some US$7M, but the Haitian envoy said that the organising committee is looking to collaborate with the private sector to balance any expenditure that may go over the stipulated budget.
Since its conception some 43 years ago, CARIFESTA has been subject to a major overhaul in 2004, which saw the re-designing of the entire structure. That overhaul came out of consultations with CARICOM’s Ministers of Culture; Council for Human and Social Development; and later endorsed by the CARICOM Heads of Government.
“The new CARIFESTA model that we are pursuing seeks to ensure that CARIFESTA is more dynamic, economically viable, and meets the expectations of regional and international audiences,” Dr. Brown said, while explaining the need for greater media coverage of the opening, closing ceremonies, and other aspects.
The event is not limited to participation by CARICOM member countries. According to Haiti’s CARICOM Ambassador, Peterson Noel, invitations were sent to all foreign missions in Haiti to attend the event.
Acting on the point of CARIFESTA’s role of promoting integration, and the involvement of non-CARICOM nations, Noel was asked whether Haiti’s neighbour to the east, The Dominican Republic (DR), has been invited, and if so, whether it had accepted the invitation.
Although Haiti and the DR share one land mass, the two countries have long disagreed on issues relating to free movement. More recently, the DR has come under fire from the international community for arbitrarily removing Dominicans born of Haitian parentage from the DR. So far, some 500,000 Dominicans have been expelled from the DR to Haiti, where many of them have no familial relations.
Responding to whether the DR has responded to Haiti’s invitation, Ambassador Noel said the DR has given an “informal acceptance” to CARIFESTA XII. He did not specify however, what was meant by an “informal acceptance.” Countries outside of CARICOM such as the United States, Canada, India, and Mexico have expressed their willingness to be part of the festivities.
Caribbean integration continues to fall prey to restrictions within the Region, however. Ambassador Noel alluded to the cost of intra-regional travel as one such restriction, since travel between CARICOM countries remains expensive, due to the lack of direct flights.
On that note, Ambassador Noel, who is also the vice-chairman of Haiti’s CARIFESTA Committee, said the body was exploring the option for the Haitian Government to waive fees for chartered flights to Haiti from Caribbean destinations.
Such a plan would see the reduction of individual airfares by US$125 to US$150. Noel said there should be a response from Haiti’s Ministry of Finance by next week.

 
By Derwayne Wills