THE PUBLIC OF BARBADOS should be made aware of the impending signature by Barbados and other Caribbean states on Wednesday November 15, 2023, in Apia, Samoa, of the “Samoa Agreement” between member countries of the Organisation of African,  Caribbean and Pacific States (ACP) and the European Union (EU). 

The Samoa Agreement is the successor to the 2000 Cotonou Agreement, which in turn succeeded the earlier 1975 Lomé Convention.

The Cotonou and Lomé agreements were practical trade and economic cooperation agreements between the ACP and EU. The proposed Samoa agreement is, however,  infused with questionable new and emergent human rights provisions relating to gender, and the provision of comprehensive sexuality education (CSE).

There has been much discussion around the signing and ratification of this legally binding treaty which potentially obligates the participating governments to several international strategies, initiatives and programmes that are currently not legally binding, but may become legally binding upon the signing and ratification of the Samoa Agreement. The finality of this agreement is evident in Article 97, which states that “no treaty, convention, agreement or arrangement of any kind between one or more member states of the European Union and one or more OACPS members shall impede the implementation of this Agreement”.

Notable inclusions are the future outcomes of the Beijing and ICPD review conferences, the UNESCO Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education, and the WHO Human
Reproduction Programme publication Sexual Health, Human Rights and the Law.

The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action includes provision for abortion on demand, prostitution rights, LGBTQ rights and sexual rights for children. The  UNESCO Technical Guidance states that countries are required to guarantee adolescents’ rights to privacy and confidentiality by providing sexual and reproductive health services without parental consent on the basis of their evolving capacities. It also makes it clear that the integration of a “gender perspective” throughout CSE curricula is integral to the effectiveness of CSE programmes. Participating states are also required to ensure that the gender perspective is systematically mainstreamed across all policies, including through the creation and consolidation of legal frameworks.

Several nations have objected to various aspects of this agreement. Since May 2021, Hungary declared its objections on the basis of migration and gender ideology issues. Some ACP states have agreed not to sign this “partnership” agreement without significant modification to the provisions. It has also been proposed, at the very least, to enter a reservation to the effect that nothing in the agreement shall be construed to promote or encourage abortion, comprehensive sexuality education, rights related to sexual orientation or gender identity or autonomous sexual rights for children of minor age, and that the implementation of the agreement must be effected with full respect for the national sovereignty, laws and religious and cultural values of the respective countries. According to a news report by Reuters in April of this year, Hungary’s minister of foreign affairs has received assurances that issues such as education, sexual rights and labour market regulation will remain under national authority.

It is our understanding that the governments of Jamaica and Namibia have stated definitively that they do not intend to sign the Samoa Agreement at this time in its present form. We call upon the Government of Barbados to state its position with regard to the signing of this agreement, which, once signed, will be legally binding for a period of 20 years. Barbados cannot afford to compromise its sovereignty by committing to a clearly unequal “partnership”. – HUTSON INNISS, Family-Faith-Freedom, Barbados.

Daily NATION Letters – To the Editor