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Dr Rita Pemberton

The very first concern that faced Tobago was possession – to which European administration would the island fall?
Following a very lengthy period of European conflict over several Caribbean islands, which escalated during the 18th century, Tobago was among the islands whose ownership France conceded to Britain under the Treaty of Paris in 1763.
Despite the treaty, the rivalry for territory had not abated, for the bruised ego of the French did not allow its rulers to give up hopes of owning the island.
Fully recognising this, the British administration was determined to maintain a permanent hold. As a consequence, speedy arrangements to settle the island were made with the intent that the presence of a settled population with vested interests would strengthen the British hold and provide a residential force of defence against foreign aggression.
Decisions regarding the island’s future as a British colony were made by the Board of Trade.
The board was an advisory body established in 1696 to supervise colonial affairs. From its inception until 1781, it functioned as the main policy-making body of the British government, and its primary purpose was to make colonies profitable.
Having availed itself of information on the island, the Board of Trade declared Tobago a valuable island with “no inhabitants but a few Caribs and French turtlers,” which was taken to mean it was open for British occupation and business.
The board moved with alacrity to populate the island with British settlers. It immediately ordered a survey made and the island divided according to specified priorities. Their concerns about land use were reflected in a size-based allocation of land resources to various activities.
The island was divided into parishes ranging between 6,000 and 10,000 acres and including reserves for fortifications and other military purposes. Secondly, towns which ranged from 500-1,000 acres were to be laid out in lots not exceeding six acres each, with a 60-foot reservation on the water side for wharves, quays and other public uses.
Also included were 100-200 acres for use as a glebe for the minister and 30-60 acres for a schoolmaster. Hence there was consideration for pastoral care and education, both of which would strengthen the British presence, through the Anglican Church.
The next area of concern, unusual for that period, was the environment, which reflected the growing influence of scientists who identified the relationship between tree cover and climate and used the Barbados experience to illustrate the negative impact of forest clearance. Therefore, it was considered important for reserves of wood to be kept in suitable places sufficient to maintain the necessary rainfall.
The remaining land was to be allotted in portions of 100-300 acres for purchase by people who intended to establish plantations. The lot-size restrictions were intended to increase the numbers of operating plantations and therefore of British residents.
But reserves of 800 acres were mandated for each parish to create ten-30-acre lots for poor settlers. This was part of the strategy to shore up the number of white residents and provide services required on the plantations.
The board authorised the selection of surveyors and engineers to prepare accurate plans for the sale of land and a team was promptly dispatched. The first English maps of the island were produced, and as instructed, the island divided into saleable lots. The first purchasers came from among the surveyors and engineers, most of whom became prominent figures in the island’s administration. They included Gedney Clarke, Robert Stewart and William Young, who each purchased 500 acres;
Richard Ottley and George Young purchased 400 acres; and Claude Simpson, who bought 300 acres.
The next concern was governance. On September 16, 1767, a letter from 28 Tobago proprietors was dispatched to the Governor in General of the islands of Grenada and the Grenadines, St Vincent and Dominica to draw attention to their unswerving efforts to change the face of the island with their cultivation, despite challenges they faced to bring it to a flourishing state. Notwithstanding environmental impact, they detailed the progress that had been made clearing forests and establishing plantations and towards becoming one of the most flourishing of His Majesty’s possessions.
However, they outlined the dangers to which they were exposed, to underscore their request for a council of proprietors to make essential regulations until a civil government and legislative power were established. The request was approved on February 15, 1768, and the House of Assembly established the following year.
Armed with law-making and administrative power, the council and assembly made partisan laws. Within three years, on January 23, 1771. a petition signed by Robert Stewart of the council and James Simpson, Speaker of the House of Assembly, requested imperial assistance to deal with the security challenges they faced from external aggression and internal insurrection.
This petition was made on the heels of a revolt by the enslaved which threatened to destroy the nascent plantations. In it the planters lamented their defencelessness and the heavy debt burden they bore to avert disaster.
The response was not as favourable as they had hoped, and the issue continued to be the thorn in colonial/imperial relations, at the centre of which was the question of balancing central government interests with those of the colony.
In the 21st century there are parallel concerns. While the contention is no longer between rival European powers, but between political parties. After a deadlock in the first THA elections, the year is marked by an unusual second election in the same year. The question of which administration will manage the affairs of the island for the next four years grips nationwide attention, as there is a heated campaign by the competing political parties for control of the THA.
Determining the best land use for the island remains a debated issue which relates to establishing a balance between appropriate, affordable developmental goals and environmental protection.
In addition, several pertinent questions affect various interest groups differently. Which is the best course of action to serve the interests of the population? Whose voices should be heard – the loudest? And of course, as in the 18th century, regarding the allocation of funds and scarce resources, the need to balance national and island considerations remains a source of conflict.
The environmental concern raised in the 18th century is a present-day global concern because environmental degradation has assumed disastrous proportions. Scientists have been warning about the global need to reduce the carbon footprint by reducing emissions. Tobago has been affected by changing weather patterns and dwindling marine life. especially in the coral reefs.
However, the environmental issue assumed another dimension when it was catapulted into politics with a complaint that the reallocation of constituencies omitted a significant area which happens to be the very space carefully demarcated and preserved as a forest reserve to protect the island’s environment.
The critics, who lamented the absence of a constituency in this area, were painfully unaware of the historical creation, existence and location of the forest reserve and that there was no mechanism which would allow its occupants – the island’s birds and wildlife – to exercise voting rights!
This is a sadly serious development which is reminiscent of the partisan approach to governance taken by the ruling 18th-century politicians, but is inappropriate for 21st-century politics. It reflects the need for all aspiring politicians to have mandatory exposure to the country’s history and geography.
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