The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

PERRY Christie thinks Prime Minister Philip “Brave” Davis is correct to try to avoid a referendum on gender and human rights issues and instead focus on legislative changes.

Mr Christie, a former prime minister, was asked about the move yesterday after Hubert Ingraham, another former prime minister, presented him with a copy of a book of his speeches. The Ingraham book in entitled: “I say what I mean and I mean what I say.”

This week, Attorney General Ryan Pinder said his ministry has compiled “a suite of legislation” to meet the country’s international human rights obligations, which includes laws addressing gender-based violence and marital rape. He said the laws would also address matters relating to citizenship, asylum and good governance.

The former Centreville MP showed support for the initiatives being brought forth.

“We are now enjoying the experience of a lot of new people in public life for the first time,” he told reporters at his West Bay Street home. “They reflect the thinking of the new Bahamian, so to speak. No matter how new or old we are, there’s a right way to do things and there’s a right way for public policy. Many of the issues that can be classified as social issues or issues that affect the person, marital rape, many of those issues become important because of a class of people who are victims.

“The government is obliged to have under constant review the social situation in our country with a view to always ensuring that it is able to remediate, it’s able to fix some of the problems. It’s able to boldly address problems. When there is a major division in the country, the government has to make a decision on that.

“The government has to make a decision and be prepared to stand or fall on that decision and so I’m very supportive of them in these major social initiatives that Mr Ryan Pinder is bringing forth for his colleagues or the colleagues bring forth for themselves to look at. I’m hoping, therefore, that they simply continue to demonstrate the courage of their conviction, the courage of their belief in that.”

This comes amid heated public conversations about marital rape. Asked this week if he thought the Davis administration would finally criminalise marital rape, Mr Ingraham said he had no doubts it would.

Mr Christie said his administration held a constitutional referendum on gender equality based on advice. It was thought that the people ought to make a decision on important issues of that kind. The majority of people who voted in that exercise rejected all four questions.

A referendum which also sought to address gender inequality, among other issues, failed during a previous Ingraham administration.

Mr Christie applauded Mr Davis’ path to making the changes.

“It is extraordinary to see the thinking of the people as it turned out in the referendum that we had - both gaming and the one on citizenship and then changing the constitution. So I think Mr Davis is right. There is a principle involved and that once we (enter) with taking a decision that is safe, in other words we’re not going to be taking a kind of difficult approach to changes. By that I mean we’re going to have it well thought out and clearly articulated to the people as to what we’re doing and I think Mr Davis is right in trying to avoid a referendum and going directly to the law,” Mr Christie said.