The Gombey Liberation Movement (GLM), originally the Gombey Liberation Party, is a

political organisation A political organization is any organization that involves itself in the political process, including political parties, non-governmental organizations, and special interest advocacy groups. Political organizations are those engaged in politic ...

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

that contested the 2003 general election. The party did not contest the next election in 2007 and only ran its leader as a candidate in 2011. It eventually transformed itself into an organisation instead of a party having never attained a seat in the Bermuda Parliament. Twenty-four-year-old artist and musician Gavin Sundjata Smith, the only known member, created the GLP with the assistance of his brother Corin, a former member of the youth wing of the Progressive Labour Party and future

United Bermuda Party The United Bermuda Party (UBP) was a political party in Bermuda, which represented itself as centrist party with a moderate social and fiscal agenda. The party held power in Bermuda's House of Assembly continuously from 1968 to 1998, the 47-year ...

candidate, and used the name of a type of local dancer, the

Gombey The Gombey is an iconic symbol of Bermuda, a cultural expression full of colorful and intricate masquerade, dance, and drumming. This folk tradition reflects the island's blend of African, Caribbean and British cultures with Indigenous influeces ...

, to attract interest in the party.

Platform

Under the slogan, "The Power of One", the GLP's political platform — directed towards the Bermudian youth — revolved around removing the remnants of colonialism and British influence from Bermuda. Much of this influence comes in the form of the

Governor of Bermuda The governor of Bermuda (officially Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Somers Isles (alias the Islands of Bermuda)) is the representative of the British monarch in the British overseas territory of Bermuda. For the purposes of this arti ...

, whom Smith claimed was consolidating his power — backed by a conservative

neo-colonial Neocolonialism is the control by a state (usually, a former colonial power) over another nominally independent state (usually, a former colony) through indirect means. The term ''neocolonialism'' was first used after World War II to refer to t ...

movement — over the

Bermuda Police Service The Bermuda Police Service is the law enforcement agency of the British Overseas Territory and former Imperial fortress of Bermuda. Overview The BPS is responsible for policing the entire archipelago, including incorporated municipalities, ...

, the

Bermuda Regiment The Royal Bermuda Regiment (RBR) is the home defence unit of the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda. It is a single Territorial Army (United Kingdom), territorial infantry battalion#British Army, battalion that was formed on the amalgamation ...

and the legal and banking systems. GLP intended to use "therapeutic" instead of "adversarial" measures to attain its goals, including civic engagement and a balance between "grassroots values" and "establishment priorities": Grassroots values * Faith * Family * Fulfillment * Fairness * Freedom * Fun * Flexibility * Unity Establishment priorities * Ideology * Bureaucracy * Necessity * Force * Control * Protocol * Efficiency * Order Other goals included the rejuvenation of local culture through the establishment of "culture centres" on several derelict sites. More ambitious proposals included relocating the

Bermuda International Airport L.F. Wade International Airport , formerly named Bermuda International Airport, is the sole airport serving the British Overseas Territories, British overseas territory of Bermuda in the north Atlantic Ocean. It is located in the parish of St. Ge ...

and redeveloping St. George's historic forts for a variety of purposes, as well as initiating truth and reconciliation.

Public response

Though many individuals found Smith and the GLP an entertaining concept, few took him seriously. Of those that did was a section who responded with great hostility, including threats to Smith's family. The origin of this hostility is attributed by some to the use of the phrase "Gombey" and the fact that the GLP was running against then-Premier Jennifer Smith.Johnson, Ayo.
Gombey Liberation Party leader feels hard knocks of politics
, ''The Royal Gazette'', July 19, 2003

2003 election

During the 2003 general election, founder Gavin Smith was the party's only candidate and ran for the St. George's North constituency, against the PLP's then-Premier Jennifer Smith and the UBP's Kenneth Bascome. He received 16 votes, or about 0.2% of the ballots cast, compared to J. Smith's 423 and Bascome's 415. G. Smith's final count was the lowest of the election, followed by 41 votes for the National Liberal Party's lone candidate Graeme Outerbridge, and 51 votes for the lone independent candidate Stuart Hayward, both of whom were more publicly known than Smith. In fact, these three, and one each from the two main parties, were the only candidates to receive fewer than a hundred votes.

References

External links

Gavin Smith Mini-Biography

Smith vs. Smith: Gombey candidate likes his chances in St. George's

Time to let my peers know their power says Gavin
{{Bermudian political parties Defunct political parties in Bermuda Political parties established in 2003 2003 establishments in Bermuda