Final Constitution of the 5th Constitutional Convention
Crucians In Focus invites the public to review and comment on the attached Final Constitution of the 5th Constitutional Convention which was approved on May 26, 2009 at The Drive In (Estate Grove Place, St. Croix).
Final Constitution of the 5th Constitutional Convention
The document has been forwarded to the governor who has 10 days to forward it to President Obama. The President then has 60 days to review and forward it to the Congress with his comments. Congress then has 60 days to review the document and either return it as is or modify/amend the document, in whole or in part, as per Public Law 94-584 (full text; previously provided by Delegate Emmanuel in an opinion article). The document returned by Congress will be submitted to the people of the Virgin Islands for approval.
The Proposed Constitution and Another Term for the Governor: not a case of mixing apples and oranges, but rather a case of manipulating opportunity and maximizing strategy.
Anyone who is involved in any planning of any kind knows of the terms, “strategy” and “tactics.” A talk show host recently commented on the deference.
With respect to the PEOPLE and their “voting” for or against, I too pose the question: where is the strategy to convince the majority of voters, non Ancestral-Native, to vote in support of the Proposed Constitution? In addition, how could a successful strategy have been formulated which would have convinced a majority of voters, non Ancestral-Native, to vote against theirs, their children, and grandchildren’s interests? I do not think anyone could devise such a strategy, and I do not think a majority of voters, non Ancestral-Native, would vote for it.
I am considered an Ancestral-Native, but what of the Hispanics who can trace their presence in St. Croix around 1920’s and the French of Frenchtown and Northside who can trace their presence in St. Thomas back to the 1850’s? What are they?
With regards to the POLITICIANS and their “counting” votes, everyone knows the governor is weak, but I think he is thinking strategically. Well at least he can count politically. Someone on another talk show recently hit the nail on the head when he said that, “even the politicians can count, and they know (20) is more than (10), hence the Governor’s STRONG VI RESTORE HOPE stance against the Proposed Constitution.
The delegates who are the proponents of the document might as well consider themselves as part of the governor’s re-election committee.
The truth of the matter is the non Ancestral-Native vote alone is not enough to “deliver” the Proposed Constitution. It will in the end be “still-born.”
The only thing you will “deliver” is another term for the GOVERNOR and VI RESTORE HOPE.
Verdel Petersen:
“The Crucian EDUCATOR”? You N E V E R impressed me. I am not shocked or suprised by your statements. People like you should NOT be in our schools.
Corrected version(the last paragraph in previous posting should have indicated “Ancestral-Native” instead of non Ancestral-Native)
The Proposed Constitution and Another Term for the Governor: not a case of mixing apples and oranges, but rather a case of manipulating opportunity and maximizing strategy.
Anyone who is involved in any planning of any kind knows of the terms, “strategy” and “tactics.” A talk show host recently commented on the deference.
With respect to the PEOPLE and their “voting” for or against, I too pose the question: where is the strategy to convince the majority of voters, non Ancestral-Native, to vote in support of the Proposed Constitution? In addition, how could a successful strategy have been formulated which would have convinced a majority of voters, non Ancestral-Native, to vote against theirs, their children, and grandchildren’s interests? I do not think anyone could devise such a strategy, and I do not think a majority of voters, non Ancestral-Native, would vote for it.
I am considered an Ancestral-Native, but what of the Hispanics who can trace their presence in St. Croix around 1920’s and the French of Frenchtown and Northside who can trace their presence in St. Thomas back to the 1850’s? What are they?
With regards to the POLITICIANS and their “counting” votes, everyone knows the governor is weak, but I think he is thinking strategically. Well at least he can count politically. Someone on another talk show recently hit the nail on the head when he said that, “even the politicians can count, and they know (20) is more than (10), hence the Governor’s STRONG VI RESTORE HOPE stance against the Proposed Constitution.
The delegates who are the proponents of the document might as well consider themselves as part of the governor’s re-election committee.
The truth of the matter is the Ancestral-Native vote alone is not enough to “deliver” the Proposed Constitution. It will in the end be “still-born.”
The only thing you will “deliver” is another term for the GOVERNOR and VI RESTORE HOPE.
So where do we go from here on the matter of the constitution? What should be the next steps?
There is legal process in place. No need for questions on what’s next. Follow what the law directs it’s not a choice.
It appears that the rich and powerful have no faith in the Virgin Islands Voters. Ultimately it is the voting citizens of the Territory that will decide whether the document has merit. Majority rules in America. If the majority think this Constitution is bias or unfair they will vote NO. How can we be afraid of our own principles of democracy? How can we dismantle a legal process because we don’t like the results?
Above all beware!Do not allow this to become “THE” campaign issue. There are so many others, burning and much hotter. Do not allow yourself to be distracted and always “Follow the money”.
The Majority does not rule in America. The constitution of the US protects the rights of minorities from just what this failed VI constitution is trying to do.
The US Constitution protects your rights in the states where you are a minority and it protects my rights here in the islands where I am a minority.
And those are both good things.
Actually you are right Olfart. The Majority doesn’t rule.
MONEY RULES there and here.
Those who control the hand that wield the gavel controls the outcome. Yes, follow the law. But, after all that is (exactly) the issue at hand. Proponents on both sides are adamant that the other parties are not following the law.
This issue can be settled immediately (although only temporarily) by the legislature even while it is before the court. But it is likely that the Legislature will wait to see the memorandum from the court. It’s perhaps unfortunate that we were unable to wait and see what would be feedback from the Federal government.
So again: What is the next step? While many sit and wait for the court to act, the wise political strategists are planning three moves ahead. They have already lobbied members of the legislature. They have already lobbied members of the Congress. And they are prepared to lead the populace to agree with their positions.
Here’s an interesting article: http://www.virginislandsdailynews.com/index.pl/article_home?id=17636724
Take note that even the Convention’s attorney who was adamantly proclaiming the native issue unconstitutional says he thinks Gov deJongh overstepped his boundaries. Paul Leary, a political science instructor at UVI agrees. I find it amazing that present and future senators (Hill, Golden, etc) and others who should know better are applauding the governor who is clearly acting as a judge. Do we no longer respect the separation of powers? Why bother write a constitution?
A Case of Majority:
The current governor presently has the MAJORITY OF THE POLITICAL MONEY and has a MAJORITY OF THE POLITICAL MACHINE. All the good governor needs now is to get the MAJORITY OF THE POLITICAL VOTES.
A gift: The Proposed Constitution and its great opposition by the MAJORITY OF THE VOTERS.
As I have said before, the proponents of the Proposed Constitution might as well consider themselves by default a part of the governor’s re-election campaign committee.
“Paul Leary, a political science instructor at UVI agrees.”
UVI does not even have a political science major. I would be hesitant to trust them on any issue of political analysis.
I never said anything about homosexuals. I love all humans regardless of their sexual orientation.
The problem is that some people’s mindsa are always in the gut. Is there a definition for someone who takes dick in the dictionary? What is a dick, anyway?
Why is it okay to call the present Gov. a dictator? It is obvious that some of you are bias and have a filthy mind. Do you understand the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution or the meaning of libel? I have a right to express my opinion as long as I do not knoweanewly make a false statement.
I never said anything about homosexuals. I love all humans regardless of their sexual orientation.
The problem is that some people’s minds are always in the gut. Is there a definition for someone who takes dick in the dictionary? What is a dick, anyway?
Why is it okay to call the present Gov. a dictator? It is obvious that some of you are bias and have a filthy mind. Do you understand the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution or the meaning of libel? I have a right to express my opinion as long as I do not knowingly make a false statement. It is my opinion that the former Gov. was being dictatorial when he convinced other delegates to support a document that discriminates against gay couples.
Anyone who knows me can tell you that I embrace people of all background. Those who think that I am offended by their insult, please note that I am not not at all disturbed. I am a proud heterosexual, but I have friends who are homosexuals or bisexual. Variety is the spice of life. In fact, I would like St. Croix to be a place that welcomes everyone. Any homosexual or bi-sexual reading my comments, please feel free to contact me. I can tell you which hotels and restaurants welcome you.
Again, our present Gov. made a wise decision by not allowing the proposed VI Constitution to go forward. If you are gay, I am sure that you’ll be happy too. The draft prohibits same sex marriages.
We should follow the mesage of the speaker at the 2009 Emancipation Day ceremony in St. Croix who concluded that “It is only from the base of our collective Caribbean identity that will propel us toward a natural political evolution as a society. This is the next phase of emancipation, and perhaps the most challenging phase since the struggle which began in 1848. We must remove the barriers which have been artificially erected to fragment Caribbean people in our society. We must forge the strategic Caribbean alliance which is critical and essential in the building of a 21st Century Virgin Islands. We must embrace the richness of our collective Caribbean identity. We can forward from there.”
Well, sir…It is obvious that having a constitution for the colony is nobody’s priority. Where’s the court decision? Surely, the 10-day deadline to send it to Washington has passed long time. How can the governor determine for we what is constitutional, and what is not? This is nonsense. Any limitations to what we can put in a constitution are based on how Washington applies federal law to the territory. So let the feds determine the constitutionality, not someone who is trying to be politically correct for his benefactors. Some of the stuff in the Marianas and Samoa constitutions – and even some of the things in Guam law – would surely be unconstitutional in the governor’s mind. Why are these things constitutional there, and we can’t even get an assessment of our draft constitution? Nov. 2010 can’t get here too quickly.
Luis Rivera
Yes, LR, you’re right. Like an abused wife, we are focused on the blows we’re getting today and have forgotten the ones we got last week. I have heard nothing about the Draft Constitution for close to a month now. It’s almost like it never happened.
Below is the philosophy of VI Restore “Destroy” Hope and its leadership. The information at this link can be very disturbing if not taken with a grain of salt. Virgin Islands culture has been the target of so many distorted media attacks that it could make your head spin. These attacks have been well calculated throughout the years to erode the true history and culture of native Virgin Islanders. The Virgin Islands indigenous people rights will never be protected in the Virgin Islands Constitution as long as these types of media go unchecked
“In the 1990s, Eastern Caribbean immigrants have been exercising greater voting clout and in 1996 elected Dominican-born David Jones and St. Kitts born Roosevelt David to the 22nd Legislature. In the 1998 elections, five out of 15 senators elected were born in the Eastern Caribbean. These results underscore the importance of an umbrella political organization (The Association of Caribbean Organizations) which mobilized the Eastern Caribbean vote. It also reflects the rejection of nativistic attempts to legitimize a very restrictive definition of “Virgin Islander.”
“In the first instance, the absence of any strong social consensus means that progress in writing a constitution acceptable to voters will be difficult. The major stumbling block here will be the question, “Who is a Virgin Islander?”
http://www.saintmarys.edu/~jmcelroy/Race%20Ethnicity.htm