Fred Mitchell - Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs critical of U.S. Embassy officials in Nassau on WikiLeaks diplomatic cables

Mitchell critical of Americans over WikiLeaks cables

CHESTER ROBARDS
Guardian Staff Reporter
thenassauguardian
chester@nasguard.com





Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell was critical yesterday of U.S. Embassy officials responsible for certain information contained in diplomatic cables obtained by The Nassau Guardian through the whistleblower organization WikiLeaks.

Mitchell said the Americans accepted “propaganda lines” about the Progressive Liberal Party.

“It strains credibility to me that U.S. professional diplomats, a person so high as a deputy chief of mission who was actually sitting in the seat of the ambassador, would accept and adopt uncritically propaganda lines from the Free National Movement (FNM),” Mitchell said in the House of Assembly during his contribution to the budget debate.

“That is simply not a professional report.”

During the years of the (Perry) Christie administration, deputy chief of mission was Dr. Brent Hardt.

One cable that followed a meeting between the Progressive Liberal Party and U.S. Embassy officials after the 2007 general election, painted the PLP as a party that “seemed more interested in photographs and a press release of the meeting to signal their continuing good relations with the U.S.”

Yesterday, however, Mitchell dismissed the cables as “untested” and “gossipy,”.

“But the country can learn from this,” Mitchell said.

“Our public officials including myself can learn the cautionary tale of being careful with your mouths, not to let these positions cause you to show off.

“...Secondly, that Bahamian public officials must stand up for The Bahamas at all times. Bahamians must come first.

“Thirdly that Bahamians should not allow their opinions of themselves to be governed by their ability to travel to the United States.”

Mitchell suggested that the U.S. Embassy consider disassociating itself with the information in the leaked cables so as to dismiss the notion that they were an official view of events.

And though Mitchell insisted that the cables have become (seemingly reliable) tools to attack the PLP, cables on the Free National Movement (FNM) has already been released as well.

“Here we have a press that does not support the PLP,” Mitchell said.

“They oppose the PLP. They have now used their resources to get these so-called cables. They do not get an independent panel to edit and release the information.

“Instead they arrogate to themselves the right to selectively choose what to release. Now in a situation where there is support for the FNM why would anybody not be surprised that the PLP is the subject of these attacks with the same tendentious propaganda and slogans of the FNM now repeated in the mouths allegedly of U.S. diplomats.”

Mitchell also scolded Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham for “spilling all his guts” to “junior U.S. officials,” which the cables also exposed.

Mitchell was referring to a meeting Ingraham had in 2003 with a U.S. Embassy official in which Ingraham extensively discussed local politics, according to a cable.

“(Some people) wonder if it is possible for a former president of the United Stares to spill his guts to junior Bahamian diplomatic officers about his own people,” Mitchell said.

He called for current Minister of Foreign Affairs Brent Symonette to use this “teachable” moment in U.S./Bahamian political affairs to explain to the Bahamian people the role of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the role of The Bahamas as a member of a global community.

Mitchell contended that the cables have not changed The Bahamas’ relationship with the U.S.

“The relationship is sound as ever,” he said.

“These alleged cables do not change the fundamentals with the United States,” said Mitchell. “This is a teachable moment. And I call on the ministry to use its resources to teach the Bahamian people about their country and its role in the world.”

Jun 01, 2011

thenassauguardian