On December 12, 1970, the National Joint Action Committee (NJAC) hosted a march to rededicate the nation to the creation of a “new and just society.”
This was three weeks after the lifting of the 1970 State of Emergency (SoE) which had been in effect from April 21-November 20.
NJAC supplied the following information in remembrance of the 52nd anniversary of the event.
Rededication Day was a call for a continued commitment to the pursuit of a more humane and just society. It was a call to adopt the principles and values which could drive the process of national transformation. It was indeed a call to the nation to rebuild the strong bonds of brotherhood and sisterhood, which was used to re-define the entire nation as a family.
The love which grew out of this principle led to a 56 per cent reduction in the crime rate in 1970. This still stands as the record for largest percentage reduction ever achieved in the level of crime in any calendar year in Trinidad and Tobago.
It was also a call for a continued opening of business opportunities to a wider cross-section of citizens in the private sector, while providing access to managerial positions in the then-emerging public sector.
December 12 was set as the day on which to remind the national community of the critical need to continue to take control of economic, financial, educational, cultural and social institutions, in order to give true meaning to independence and nationhood. It was a most fervent call for national unity as a foundation principle in the building of any strong and progressive nation.
As we reflect on the significance of rededication day, we must pay our respects and highest tribute to the leader of the TT Revolution, the late Chief Servant, Makandal Daaga, ORTT, who hit the road with public meetings immediately after the state of emergency ended on November 20, 1970, and with due commitment and his characteristic boldness, to mobilise a demonstration of rededication, within three weeks. The government responded with the declaration of a limited, one-month state of emergency, within the confines of Port of Spain, to keep the demonstrators outside of the capital city, while using it as an instrument to deter people from participating in the march.
As we pay tribute to the chief servant, we must also remember and celebrate the resolute role played by NJAC and even more so, the courageous and heroic stand of the TT population, all contributing to a movement which inspired the most significant and transformative period in the history of our little nation.
[caption id="attachment_990743" align="alignnone" width="422"] The late NJAC Chief Servant, Makandal Daaga. - Photos courtesy NJAC[/caption]
It was a revolution which also captivated the spirit and imagination of the entire Caribbean, giving rise to the formation of the Caribbean Liberation Steering Committee (CLSC), chaired by Daaga, and which included such distinguished personalities as Khafra Kambon (TT), Eusi Kwayana, regional co-ordinator of the committee (Guyana), R
