Vet standards

May 21, 2008

Dear Sir,

I am no longer able to keep the pen sheathed, and therefore request space to respond to Senator David Burch's inappropriate and ill-considered recent attack on local veterinary practitioners, and those giving voice to their disquiet in that 'place of privilege', the Senate.

The concerns of practising veterinary surgeons over the unsolicited and unapproved inclusion of CARICOM-registered practitioners in the Veterinary Act 2008,(5b) does not deserve his automated dismissal, as racism.

He has been instrumental in passing a law, which will affect professionals present and future, with whom he has little or no contact. Had he invested the time and trouble demonstrated by Senator Swan, or Dr. Hughes he would have discovered for himself that graduates of the 'new' CARICOM institutions, are in the sad position of having virtually no global mobility apart from within certain of the CARICOM states.

In addition, CARICOM, unlike the EU, US or Canada, has no published or agreed unified standard for the practice of veterinary medicine. So, unless, their licensee had sat and passed supplementary registration exams in one of the listed jurisdictions (US, EU, Canada or one of those institutions in an alternative jurisdiction such as Australia or S. Africa, whose registration examination for practitioners has been recognised by the registration authorities of the EU, US or Canada), there is no insight into the level of expertise of the applicant.

Instead of regarding even this area as a suitable platform for his all-too-frequent, populist, racial denunciations, he should – in my personal opinion – take a more profound view of the consequences he invokes for young Bermudians by including the CARICOM at this time.

Young aspiring Bermudian veterinary students and graduates have high expectations of living standards, income, and global mobility. To fulfill these expectations they will need to be equipped with, and exposed to the kind of training and qualifications that will realise, not frustrate them.

Who better to advise them than those who have achieved this fulfillment?

Little or no attention has been focused on the simple fact that the very small Bermudian Veterinary Profession has always declined to set a local veterinary registration examination (despite pressure from one past A.G. under a different government) for those graduates wishing to practice here.

Doctors, dentists, lawyers and other professional bodies all set their local registration examinations. We were in effect simply substituting the local exam with one from and overseas jurisdiction as described above. Now we shall have these standards imposed.

The global veterinary profession is subject to a very high level of environmental and ethical pressures and health standards. It is not merely responsible, (as one correspondent to the RG intentionally demeaning, put it) "looking after people's precious pets". Far more is at stake. We are the safety net entrusted with preventing the spread of disease from many animal species to that oh-so-important – one forming the subject of this letter.

The political strong-arming of veterinary professionals, either by legislative or administrative intimidation and public denunciation is no novelty in history, and just another crack in the facade of "Bermudian Democracy". To paraphrase Richard Stangel (managing editor of Time magazine): reasoned argument "can only be feared by those who believe an excess of democracy is synonymous with a freefall into anarchy". No wonder this edition of the PLP Government is so fearful of a free press, and what a pity they only refer to history after subjecting it to 'pigmentary' bias.

It is misleading, and intended to incite racial hatred, when it is suggested locally practising veterinary professionals have dismissed all CARICOM graduates/licencees. The use of this tool by our Agent Provocateur Numero Uno to cover up unqualified interference and imposition of an – as yet – unrecognised and unquantifiable registration authority by stealth is to be expected from a government with a speak-out-and-the-State-will-crush-you attitude to free speech.

Unless of course it is they who are doing the talking.

Dr. A. M. WARE-CIETERS M.R.C.V.S.

St. David's

Fastest marathoner

Dear Sir,

Your "Saturday Spotlight" on the tradition of Bermuda Day was very interesting and insightful. For the record I have to clarify that although my friend Ray Swan is indeed the Bermuda record holder for the marathon (26.2 miles) he is not "Bermuda's fastest marathon runner" as mentioned in the article.

My personal best of 2:21:19 (Detroit, October 1972) is over five minutes faster than the present record and three faster marathons were recorded since I came to Bermuda in 1976. viz: New York City 1983 (2:25:43); Carlisle, Pennsylvania 1984 (2:24:55) and Duluth, Minnesota 1984 (2:24:30). All of these performances are well documented.

Incidentally, the 1983 New York City performance still stands as the fastest time run there by any Bermuda resident despite the large annual influx of our runners to that race.

As an aside, Cal Bean and I will shortly be encouraging many former distance runners to prepare for the historic 2009 May 24th event. We are hoping to gather a mass of "Golden Oldies" to participate and raise funds for a charity yet to be designated.

PETER LEVER

Why change school?

May 22, 2008

Dear Sir,

Why is it that this Government would propose to change the structure of St. George's Prep, a lone shining star in the clouded local education system? St. George's Prep is arguably the only public school that is working the way it should – giving a sound education to a diversified group of students. The school's model is working and it doesn't need fixing – it is a model that should heralded and copied Island wide, not destroyed.

Professor David Hopkins recommendation to group schools under a self-governing federation that favours "the appointment of boards, filled largely by election, to run schools or federations of schools, building on the current example of aided schools" certainly should be acted upon, but wouldn't it make sense to try this model on a group of schools that are performing on a sub-par level first to see if it will work? There are plenty to choose from without having to go in and change the structure of the one school that is a success story.

The PLP was elected to empower the people, and empowerment begins with education. Sadly, it is the PLP that are failing the youth of Bermuda through their educational policies, and as a result are taking the majority further away from the empowerment that they have been promised.

A CONCERNED BERMUDIAN

Devonshire