10
UWI TODAY
– SUNDAY 3RD APRIL, 2016
CAMPUS NEWS
The IIR’s 50th Anniversary Black-Tie Dinner
Friday, April 8, 2016 from 7pm
at the University Inn and Conference Centre, St. Augustine Circular Road, St. Augustine.
The President of Guyana, His Excellency Brigadier David Granger, the first alumnus to be
elected Head of State and Government will be the keynote speaker.
International Relations
at
FIFTY
B Y K H E L L O N R O A C H A N D M A R K K I R T O N
Established by an international agreement
between the
Government of Switzerland and the Government of Trinidad
and Tobago in 1966, the Institute of International Relations (IIR)
celebrates its fiftieth anniversary in 2016.This golden jubilee will be
commemorated through a series of events, most notably through a
Black-Tie Dinner and the publication of a book, “A History of the
Institute of International Relations: 50 Years and Beyond” under
the theme “Celebrating the Past; Looking to the Future” (by Dr.
Khellon Q. Roach and Dr. Mark Kirton).
The book traces the evolution of the Institute of International
Relations; a post-graduate institution of The UWI known for
producing Caribbean leaders, housed at the St. Augustine
Campus. It is the story of how a small training institution with
a single classroom and just about 14 students, became a globally
recognized regional centre for the analysis and advancement of
international relations.
It is divided into seven chapters separated into epochs of five
years or more. It begins by outlining the academic precursors to
IIR and the role of the Swiss Government in the establishment of
IIR. It then describes the achievements of the Institute under the
leadership of Swiss staff such as Professors Ulrich Haeflin, Roy
Preiswerk and Yves Collart (all founding Swiss IIR Directors).
The seventies was the period of change; that was when the
Swiss Government ‘passed the baton’ to the Caribbean region to
take ownership and responsibility for IIR and consequently, when
IIR adopted a newConstitution.There followed a period of growth
and then, as the fifth chapter describes it, there was the “The Era of
Challenges &Opportunities (1998–2007).”This chapter identifies
some of the main challenges of the Institute, including that of
financing as a result of the withdrawal of contributing countries,
but also describes the opportunities that emerged through the
strengthening of relations with The UWI and connecting with
IIR alumni.
Chapter 6 speaks about some of the recent activities and
accomplishments of the Institute such as the strengthening of links
with the diplomatic community through its ‘Diplomatic Dialogues’,
and a return to its original mandate of diplomatic training with
the establishment of the Diplomatic Academy of the Caribbean.
The final chapter reflects on the calibre of alumni produced
by the Institute including alumni such as His Excellency Brigadier
David A. Granger, the President of the Co-operative Republic
of Guyana, Professor Sir Kenneth Hall, the former Governor-
General of Jamaica and Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal of The
UWI Mona Campus and the late Ambassador Henry Gill, the
former Director-General of the Caribbean Regional Negotiating
Machinery among others. This chapter gives the reader an
appreciation of the magnitude of service provided by IIR to the
regional and global community over the last five decades.
Inauguration of IIR – Mr. Claude McEachmane, Estate Manager, assists Chancellor HRH Princess
Alice towards Prime Minister of T&T Hon. Dr. Eric Williams. Also on the podium are (facing) US
Ambassador and Prof Ulrich Haeflin – First Director of IIR; & Principal, St Augustine Campus Dr.
Dudley Huggins (back turned). On the ground are lecturers (l to r) Prof. Heinz Meier, Prof. Roy
Preiswerk, Prof. Krishna Bahadoorsingh and Librarian Yola Alleyne.
Early staff and students of IIR.
The Swiss Connection
“Dr Eric Williams made
his first official visit to Switzerland on June 29, 1962
during which he consulted Swiss authorities on several
technical assistance programmes. On his second visit to
Switzerlandon July 17, 1964, Dr EricWilliams conveyedhis
desire that the Government of Switzerland should accept
an advisory role in assisting the Government of Trinidad
to set up a local training programme for Foreign Service
personnel. Subsequent to these dialogues, Delegate of
the Federal Council for Technical Cooperation, August
Lindt, sent Roy Preiswerk to Trinidad ‘to advise the
Government of Trinidad on the setting up of an Institute
of International Relations; recommend to the Swiss
Government ways of cooperating in this venture; and
examine further potential for technical cooperation
between the two governments’. Within the objective
of establishing a similar Graduate Institute of International Studies in Trinidad, an initial
feasibility exercise was conducted in 1964 by the Technical Co-operation Service of the
Government of Switzerland. Simultaneously, comprehensive analyseswere carried out by the
Technical Co-operation Services in the field of international affairs throughout the Caribbean,
in order to ascertain the extent to which the project could be dispersed without waste of
resources. Roy Preiswerk’s 1964 report on the proposed Institute gave concrete evidence in
support of concerns previously expressed by Dr Eric Williams by highlighting several areas
of need, and gave recommendations to be considered in the establishment of the Institute”
(
An excerpt from “Celebrating the Past; Looking to the Future”)
