By R.M. Austin
Former Guyana Ambassador to Beijing, China

It was rumored for some time that Stabroek News would not survive. Yet when the newspaper itself announced its closure on the 13th of February, it came as a collective national shock. The paper had become an important, if not essential, part of the political and social landscape.

It became known for its balanced coverage of the news and its outstanding editorials, some of which were reproduced in the Christian Science Monitor. It earned respect for its unrelenting fight for democracy, its commitment to the principles of accountability and transparency, and its capacity to focus national attention on critical issues such as free and fair elections, the bloody period in our history from 1999 to 2002, and the perennial Border Controversy with Venezuela.

This newspaper had become the voice and conscience of the nation. As such, it attracted the hostility of governments in Guyana. Efforts were made in the past to shut it down. Its closure cannot be unrelated to the hostile agenda of some politicians who abhorred the sting of its critical functions.

Stabroek News had carved out a role for itself that made it the top newspaper in Guyana and the region. There is no doubt, therefore, that Guyana as a nation will be culturally poorer for its closure.

The Board of Stabroek News, in an editorial on February 13th, listed several reasons for the newspaper’s inability to survive. Among these were the changing nature of the news, declining circulation, the massive outstanding debt of $80 million owed to the newspaper by the government — a debt it refused to pay — and the many difficulties of publishing a daily and weekly newspaper in Guyana.

To be sure, Stabroek’s in Guyana is not a unique phenomenon. In fact, the newspaper is the second in the region to close its doors. The Trinidad and Tobago Newsday which has been in existence for some 30 years, also closed its doors. Indeed, the disappearance of newspapers as a result of technological developments has also been occurring in the advanced nations such as the US. 136 newspapers have been closed down there. Some have merged with other news outfits to survive. Stabroek had that option too. It could have merged with other regional news entities but opted to maintain its independence.

Stabroek News came into being at a time when Guyana had only one national newspaper and press freedom was under threat. President Burnham had just died, and President Hoyte succeeded him.

Hoyte was, by temperament and conviction, a believer in democracy and press freedom. In a speech to Guyana’s Heads of Mission in 1985, he said economic development had to be accompanied by “a certain intellectual climate… we cannot develop if thoughts are inhibited and ideas snuffed.” By the time he joined other leaders of the Caribbean Community in Mustique, St. Vincent, in 1986, Hoyte was prepared to agree to the idea of a free press in Guyana.

This position was not without motivation. He understood that the bold economic reforms he was contemplating could only succeed if there was a free press. This was also necessary because the Western nations expected to underwrite his Economic Recovery Programme would insist on press freedom.

Hoyte’s decision to open the press in Guyana, taken in the context of free and fair elections, was communicated to the Trinidadian press baron Ken Gordon. Gordon, in turn, conveyed this decision to David De Caires, who seized the opportunity to establish Stabroek News.

I have been fortunate to be close to the founders of Stabroek News, its editors, staff, vendors, and workers. I therefore saw at close hand how it evolved beyond a mere newspaper into an institution that provided benefits to its workers and fostered a workplace culture that inspired impressive loyalty at every level.

It will be hard to replace Stabroek News.