Chief Sec wants laws to protect Tobago's artifacts

THA Chief Secretary Farley Augustine has signalled his administration’s intention to bring legislation to protect Tobago’s artifacts.

He made the statement on Thursday while presenting the Progressive Democratic Patriots’ first Tobago budget in the Assembly Legislature, Scarborough.

The THA is requesting an allocation of $3.97 billion from central government to manage Tobago’s affairs over the next year.

“Given that Tobago has had a more storied past than most other Caribbean territories, there is an urgent need to have an assembly bill sent down to Parliament to have legislation enacted to protect the island’s artifacts,” he told members.

“We have a few indiscriminate and inconsiderate citizens pilfering and trading artifacts from across the island. Individuals have stolen artifacts from state lands and private holdings, and have taken these artifacts into their homes and even exported some.”

Augustine said some people have harvested the artifacts and sold them as scrap iron, and others have repositioned artifacts to their own yards.

He added some people also used artifacts, such as the large coppers once used to boil sugar cane juice, to plant flowers or adorn themselves, thereby robbing the population of access to part of their history.

Saying the THA will explore the possibility of having archaeologists and university students take part in authorised digs, Augustine said in the long run, the assembly will invest in climate-controlled facilities and appropriate spaces to house artifacts and historical records.

Further, he said the THA has decided to establish an antiquities unit to more effectively manage the use of Tobago’s archaeological artifacts as part of the tourism product.

Augustine said in fiscal 2023, the antiquities department will rehabilitate and refurbish various historical sites, including the Speyside waterwheel, the Roxborough cocoa house and the Canoe Bay sugar mills, among others.

The department, he said, will also develop an antiquities registry system to keep accurate records of Tobago’s cultural and historical assets.

The Shaw Park Complex, Tobago’s premier cultural space, will be transformed into an academic facility where tertiary-level institutions can offer degree programmes.

“This will be part of our development of Education for export.”

He said the Departments of Culture and Antiquities will move into the Shaw Park Complex next month. Augustine said he is pleased the development project will finally be put to good use.

He added the Tobago Festivals Commission will be mandated to offer visitors some of the signature heritage festival events, including goat and crab races, throughout the year.

In addition, the commission, along with the Tobago Hospitality and Tourism Institute, will oversee the introduction of a food and wine festival in 2023.