THE appointees to the different ‘State Boards’ in Guyana do not truly reflect the gender, skill and ethnic balance in Guyana. This action by the Government brings exclusion, lack of recognition, and inequality to Guyanese society.
First, exclusion of certain groups of citizens is a way of bringing about social injustice. We must not ignore the conditions that brought about the injustices in the first place; the ‘social structures and institutional contexts that produce inequalities of power and resources. To overcome this, it is important to look beyond ‘existing social arrangements’ and to focus on the wider context – ‘action, decisions about action’ – through which social injustices are perpetrated.
Second, it is not about the distribution of material goods, but also the ‘provision of the means’ to develop and exercise capacities; that is, to participate fully in society.
The so-called “level playing field” is not just about who has access to resources and opportunities, but also relates to whether people are recognised as being of equal worth, and are treated with dignity and respect.
Such recognition depends not only on how individuals treat each other, but also on how groups are represented in decision-making. Recognition, then, is ‘cultural’ and ‘symbolic’.
Lack of recognition and respect may create the conditions in which different forms of discrimination and abuse may flourish, and (re)create a range of social harms. For how long will we suffer this harassment?
Lack of recognition or respect for particular kinds of people may engender discrimination against them, thus preventing the wider society from benefiting from their capacities, talents and skills.
Exclusion may produce new categories of ‘problem population’ that become the scapegoats for a range of social ills, and give rise to new lines of social division and potential conflict.
Poverty, discrimination and inequality, then, produce potential harms for society as a whole, as well as for the individuals directly affected.
Our movement wants to encourage the Government to review its methodology used to select persons that are appointed to the different State Boards. Guyana cannot move forward with half of its population. Both hands are needed to clap.
SARA KHAN
Chairperson
Feminist for Life Network (Guyana)
