Much missed: Elvis Dias in younger days
14th March 2024
By Lewis BetsyThis is such a sad time as I have lost another dear friend, Elvis Dias.He died four days after his 66th birthday and with family and friends, I attended his funeral at Our Lady of the Vi... more...
By Lewis Betsy  The scandal of what is happening with the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission is an outrageous insult to the people of Seychelles. In his State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Ramkalawan referred to the TRNUC, but he never offered anything serious or concrete concerning what would happen to the victims. I had previously warned that the Commission looked doomed to fail.  Yet it must not fail. The Government must not let the victims down. The truth is that the TRNUC has become a joke for the LDS Government. They are playing politics with it and applying a delaying tactics strategy with the victims.  The time has come to say enough is enough. My case number is No 2 and I am sure by now the Government must have had an idea where mine and all the many other cases were heading. It is not that difficult. We simply want justice and compensation for all the hurt we have suffered since 1977.  Naturally, we need answers to achieve closure.  In the meantime, we are forced to wait and trauma continues to impact families. Those that decided to stay in Seychelles have also suffered, but it was their choice not to bring their cases to the TRNUC.  It appears there is a blame culture going on: We are not children of Seychelles now because we brought our cases to the TRNUC. However, the suffering goes on for all.. For some victims it is too late. They have died with no answers forthcoming. So I ask: Where are the lists and names of the perpetrators? Why is the President keeping the lists from us? Is he protecting someone? Of the few perpetrators who came to the TRNUC, only five or six of them publicly said sorry for what they had done. And that was it. I note that many other known perpetrators are out and about in town, mixing freely with the public. It has become a sick joke and we, the victims, are suffering. The fact is I believe the TRNUC has become such a shambles that no one wants to deal with it. The LDS have the power they want and are cynically running the country without a care in the world. They have no sense of responsibility or duty. The LDS government is trying to wash its hands when it comes to paying the victims – though I see that they managed to find the money to pay all the Commissioners.  Yet who set up this scenario in the first place? It was Ramkalawan and former President Danny Faure. Timing is all, of course, and there are elections next year. We’ve got to watch it, or LDS might use the victims again to get another term in office. The more you think about the issue the more it makes you sick. How on Earth are we ever going to achieve unity in Seychelles when this situation persists?
11th March 2024
By Lewis BetsyThe scandal of what is happening with the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission is an outrageous insult to the people of Seychelles.In his State of the Nation Address (SONA... more...
Hope: Lewis Betsy meets President Danny Faure at State House on 16th March 2017 to discuss unity.
11th March 2024
By Lewis BetsyI write this with a great sense of loss and despair. For decades now I have campaigned for my beloved Seychelles to achieve unity.It is now March 2024 and there is nothing like it in sig... more...
1st March 2024
By Lewis BetsyWe heard optimistic words about the future of Seychelles from President Wavel Ramkalawan in his State of the Nation Address for 2024, but will these hopes be fulfilled?He talked about th... more...
Expert: Alain St.Ange addresses the audience at the African-Asian Union ceremony
29th February 2024
Seychelles tourism expert Alain St.Ange was part of the awards panel that declared Sharm El-Sheikh the Tourism Capital City 2024.The former Tourism Minister for Seychelles who now heads his own touris... more...
Devoted mother: Helen Azolan
31st January 2024
By Lewis BetsyIt was with great sadness that my wife and I said a final farewell to our dear friend Helen Azolan.Helen, a much-loved mother of four, died aged 64, and Seychellois families and friends ... more...
Dedication: Rosie Bistoquet (picture The National Assembly of Seychelles)
8th January 2024
By Lewis BetsyI would like to pay a personal tribute to the life and work of Rosie Bistoquet, a member of the Seychelles National Assembly, whose life has ended so tragically.Rosie Bistoquet, 62 and a... more...
Best wishes: Lewis Betsy, publisher of Seychelles Life
20th December 2023
By Lewis BetsySeychelles Life would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.It has been a terrible time for those hit by the floods and then the massive explosion in Mahe.My heart... more...

Our October elections will give us the chance to change history in Seychelles. We must seize that opportunity

14th August 2020
Lewis Betsy: We must work together to rebuild Seychelles
Lewis Betsy: We must work together to rebuild Seychelles
Danny Faure: Took everyone by surprise
Danny Faure: Took everyone by surprise

 

By Lewis Betsy

 

Seychelles needs a big change and this October is the time to make it happen.

For the first time, we have the Presidential elections running alongside the National Assembly elections. 

I think Danny Faure took everyone by surprise when he linked the two elections together, but it could be a blessing in disguise.

It gives Seychellois an unprecedented opportunity to achieve what up to now has seemed impossible: to have a new President and one not under the thumb of an untrustworthy ruling party – and an Assembly run by a united opposition that can truly represent the majority of the people.

It will have been a long time coming.

Since the 5th June 1977, our beautiful Seychelles has been controlled by one party renamed through the years as SPUP, Parti Lepep and today United Seychelles.

Through the decades and the various presidents, Rene, Michel and Faure, we have been fed the same old story by the same group of people who have clung on to a position of power they no longer deserve.

They have not looked after the people they have governed. Time after time it has been the old story of government politicians trotting out the same old stale policies to preserve their elite position at the expense of the people.

What have they to show for these years of mis-rule?

The cost of living is too high and an unbearable nightmare for many.

The drugs problem is getting worst and now we have more than 6,000 of our young people registered addicts. 

This has to stop.

I just hope that the Seychellois who have relied on United Seychelles to represent their best interests see that they have actually been duped.

Faure’s government is going nowhere, so now is the time for Seychelles to change course and to give the Seychellois people a chance to breath again.

People need to think seriously about what is important when they go to the polls in October.

It is important that Seychellois take the bull by the horns and change their destiny by bringing down the dinosaurs of United Seychelles.

We have had clear reminders of the past in the hearings of the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission.

We have heard some terrible things from the people giving their evidence.

They have described how they have been victimised and brutalised with so many of them having to leave Seychelles and go into exile. They have spoken of atrocities, killings and disappearances that have taken place in our beautiful islands.

With some 300 cases, the people on the commission panel have had a tough job. I imagine there has been a lot of pressure from various sides to ensure that the government’s image is not too badly tarnished.

That, of course, is a little late in the day.

The hearings have been stopped because of the election, as it is thought people would use it as a platform. This is true. But it goes both ways. I listened with disbelief to some accounts, particularly some from guys in the army. All I heard was lie after lie. 

We want truth but we also want reconciliation and unity. Covering up the past is not going to help. We should look to South Africa where assailants met up with their victims. Some good came of that.

Covid-19 has played a big role in this election and it has forced Danny Faure to call for unity for the first since the coup d’etat. That met with ridicule. The idea was good, but it was a meaningless gesture. He should have brought about unity a lot earlier.

It was empty talk on top of more empty talk. 

In the meantime, Seychelles has been going round in circles. We have had so many false starts and I am not going to let the Opposition off the hook here.

For last four years Linyon Demokratik Seselwa have held the reins of power in the National Assembly.

They have set up endless committees and made many declarations of intent, but my overall feeling is that they have not achieved as much as they should have. I think they could have done more. 

It’s true they did good things – but not enough of them.

I accept that it’s a tough job dealing with the government: you are banging your head against the wall and everything takes ages. But the role of the Opposition is to hold the government of the day to account. 

I want the Opposition to acknowledge that this is a huge responsibility not to be taken lightly and get on with it.

We should maintain pressure on the politicians to deliver what they promise.

Wavel Ramkalawan’s team did not always do what it was meant to do: champion the people and ensure the government fulfilled its moral and legal obligations.

Government and Opposition both need to up their game and we must keep on at them until they do so.

As for the so-called Third Force, I confess I no longer understand what is going on.

So where has all this left us?

In all this time of global uncertainty we need everyone to join as one. The elections of October 22 to 24 should give us that chance for change.  

Now is the moment for all Seychellois to rebuild our beautiful islands and only by working together can we can achieve this.

Latest News

Farewell to my good friend Elvis Dias
14th March 2024
Much missed: Elvis Dias in younger days
By Lewis BetsyThis is such a sad time as I have lost another dear friend, Elvis Dias.He died four… more...
The TRNUC is a complete shambles… it is an outrage that Ramkalawan must fix
11th March 2024
By Lewis Betsy  The scandal of what is happening with the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity Commission is an outrageous insult to the people of Seychelles. In his State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Ramkalawan referred to the TRNUC, but he never offered anything serious or concrete concerning what would happen to the victims. I had previously warned that the Commission looked doomed to fail.  Yet it must not fail. The Government must not let the victims down. The truth is that the TRNUC has become a joke for the LDS Government. They are playing politics with it and applying a delaying tactics strategy with the victims.  The time has come to say enough is enough. My case number is No 2 and I am sure by now the Government must have had an idea where mine and all the many other cases were heading. It is not that difficult. We simply want justice and compensation for all the hurt we have suffered since 1977.  Naturally, we need answers to achieve closure.  In the meantime, we are forced to wait and trauma continues to impact families. Those that decided to stay in Seychelles have also suffered, but it was their choice not to bring their cases to the TRNUC.  It appears there is a blame culture going on: We are not children of Seychelles now because we brought our cases to the TRNUC. However, the suffering goes on for all.. For some victims it is too late. They have died with no answers forthcoming. So I ask: Where are the lists and names of the perpetrators? Why is the President keeping the lists from us? Is he protecting someone? Of the few perpetrators who came to the TRNUC, only five or six of them publicly said sorry for what they had done. And that was it. I note that many other known perpetrators are out and about in town, mixing freely with the public. It has become a sick joke and we, the victims, are suffering. The fact is I believe the TRNUC has become such a shambles that no one wants to deal with it. The LDS have the power they want and are cynically running the country without a care in the world. They have no sense of responsibility or duty. The LDS government is trying to wash its hands when it comes to paying the victims – though I see that they managed to find the money to pay all the Commissioners.  Yet who set up this scenario in the first place? It was Ramkalawan and former President Danny Faure. Timing is all, of course, and there are elections next year. We’ve got to watch it, or LDS might use the victims again to get another term in office. The more you think about the issue the more it makes you sick. How on Earth are we ever going to achieve unity in Seychelles when this situation persists?
By Lewis BetsyThe scandal of what is happening with the Truth, Reconciliation and National Unity… more...
We must pursue the idea of unity, the future of Seychelles depends on it
11th March 2024
Hope: Lewis Betsy meets President Danny Faure at State House on 16th March 2017 to discuss unity.
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Dedication: Rosie Bistoquet (picture The National Assembly of Seychelles)
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I wish you a peaceful Christmas and hope we can celebrate 2024 as a year of harmony
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Best wishes: Lewis Betsy, publisher of Seychelles Life
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