The ninth summit of the Group of 15 was held in Montego Bay, on the west coast of Jamaica, between 10th and 12th January 1999. The gathering had brought together leaders, representatives and policymakers from Non-Aligned nations which had joined together to create a forum to foster cooperation and develop information, which could collectively be presented to other international groups, as the World Trade Organization and the Group of Eight. The G-15, originally established at the ninth Non-Aligned Movement summit in Belgrade, Yugoslavia, in September 1989, had the common goal of enhanced growth and prosperity among developing countries in the areas of investment, trade and technology.
I recall being a part of the entourage of Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who attended the G-15 Summit as a tall leader from India, along with Jaswant Singh as his Foreign Minister. For this G-15 meeting, Jamaica had been the host. As part of the West Indies, the island country is known for its sugar plantations, its cricket ground, Sabina Park, in the capital city of Kingston, and for being the land of Bob Marley — singer, composer and lyricist, known for his very popular number, ‘No Woman No Cry’.
I remember Jaswant Singh, who died on 27 September 2020, as a highly cultured person, who was charismatic during the deliberations, as he was at other times too. He was positioned in a beautiful suite on the seafront in a posh area in Montego Bay. The Indian media was stationed at the Holiday Inn, a beautiful resort overlooking the placid waters of the beach. Dozens of hotels are located on this northern side of the small city and, virtually, the entire island is dotted with excellent tourist facilities which meet the high Americans standards.
The official media had been given a specific time to interview the Foreign Minister on India’s position at the summit. Obviously, I, along with my camera crew, was there for the setup and the interview well before the appointed time.
The noteworthy part was that, while waiting to interview him for DD News, Jaswant Singh asked the Senior Officer of the MEA in the room, if he could have some red wine for the one-to-one bilaterals with other Foreign Ministers. The senior diplomat replied that it would be arranged shortly and tried to forage into the fridge and bar in the room to check what was in stock, but Singh remarked humbly that he wanted to keep one bottle for his personal use and “would like to pay for it”. Although he was told that this request was nothing unusual and, officially, he was within his rights to express this requirement, his simple and honest remark left an indelible mark on my mind.
A small and insignificant interaction can, at times, tell a long story. I wondered, are politicians truly like this? Although it is difficult to accept politicians at their face value, the courtesy shown to me and my cameraperson during the summit was something I cherished for a long time.
In Jamaica, Jaswant Singh was always polite and courteous and, just before the interview, told his staff to look after me and my cameraman, when he was informed of a sudden change in the time table. I had to wait for one unscheduled bilateral, which had suddenly cropped up at that time, and a foreign minister of a Latin American country was virtually at his doorstep. The time it took for this bilateral to be over gave me a good opportunity to savour the beautiful ambience of the surroundings. Each suite was built on stilts on the beach, facing the sea, which was safely at a little distance. The brief interview with him also took place in a very cordial atmosphere.
Now looking back, and keeping courtesies at bay, I wonder if during Singh’s tenure as part of the Vajpayee government, he made for a better Foreign Minister or a better Finance Minister. Circumstances in the North and South Blocks would have brought in their own atmospherics.