REVOLT IN THE CARIBBEAN TYNY ISLAND OF ANGUILLA IS LOOKING FOR A PARTNER

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31412, 4 July 1967, Page 14

REVOLT IN THE CARIBBEAN TYNY ISLAND OF ANGUILLA IS LOOKING FOR A PARTNER

(By

CHARLES SMITH

in the "Financial Times". London)

(Reprinted by arrangement)

The request by the tiny east Caribbean island of Anguilla to become associated with the United States in the same way as Puerto Rico is almost certain to be turned down. The United States does not want to get involved in the bitter intricacies of English-speaking Caribbean politics from which Britain has been trying rather unsuccessfully to extricate itself over the last few years. But if commonwealth status on the Puerto Rican model is not the answer to Anguilla’s problems some solution has clearly got to be found.

The island has declared a sort of “unilateral declaration of independence” from the State of St. Kitts/Nevis/Anguilla which ceased to be a British colony and became an “associated state”, with internal self government early this year. It looks as if it may be able to make the “unilateral declaration of independence” stick, but how is an island of 5000 people, with few other assets besides sandy beaches and a pleasant climate, to survive as an independent entity? Farcical Start The trouble between Anguilla and St. Kitts began early this year in what at first appeared to be a typical Caribbean farce. At a beauty competition held to elect a “Miss Associated State” in January there were riots and denunciations of the St. Kitts Government and the winner was stoned. Shortly afterwards, however, the “warden" of the island, Mr John Byron (who was also the St Kitts representative) made a midnight escape when his residence was set fire to by rioters. Then early in May the struggle culminated with an attack on the Anguilla police station, the expulsion of the island’s entire 13-man police force, and the blockade of the airstrip with parked cars. Telecommunications between Anguilla and St. Kitts were also broken off—and have apparently been completely destroyed at the Anguilla end. In order to arrange an interview with St Kitts Government last week, the Anguillan “Ambassador at Large,” Mr Gerry Gurnby, had to take a launch over to the neighbouring Franco-Dutch island of St. Martin and send a cable from there. “Dictator” Premier The Anguillans’ reasons for making their breakaway are extremely simple. They claim that Mr Robert Bradshaw, the St. Kitts Premier, is a “dictator” who is bent on suppressing the popular will of the two “out islands” of Anguilla and Nevis, and who is already too powerful to be dealt with by constitutional means. As evidence of Mr Bradshaw's bad faith they cite his failure to introduce “island councils” and local elections along the lines laid down in the St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla constitution. An opposition delegation visited London just before the move to associated statehood in February and put its case to the Commonwealth Office which in turn extracted—or thought it had extracted —an undertaking from Mr Bradshaw to introduce the councils immediately after associated status; but since then hardly a word on the subject has been breathed by the St. Kitts Government.

As further evidence against Mr Bradshaw the Anguillans point to what they claim are other “sinister” features of his government. One of his first acts after the attainment of associated status was to reintroduce flogging into the island’s penal system, and he is rumoured to be in favour of public executions. The terms of the new St. Kitts

emergency regulations which permit the expulsion of “suspicious foreigners” without charge have also been held against Mr Bradshaw; but accusations of undemocratic behaviour have been flowing freely in the other direction as well. Clique Of Gunmen

Mr Bradshaw claims that the new rulers of Anguilla are a “clique of gunmen" who had been smuggling arms from the neighbouring American Virgin Islands for some months before they seized power. He had also “unearthed” plans for a coup against the government in Basseterre and even a plot against his own life. The entire episode has a comic opera atmosphere which is not diminished by the extraordinary difficulty which the two sides have in taking any action against one another. Anguilla is 70 miles by sea from St. Kitts. and the only vessels available for conducting any kind of force from one island to the other are antiquated and uncomfortable West Indian sailing schooners which take two days to make the trip and would be certain to make any body of men too seasick to put down a “unilateral declaration of independence” on their arrival. It is because of this that Mr Bradshaw has hinted that he would like the loan of the British frigate H.M.S. Salisbury which is permanently stationed in the east Caribbean to “ferry” soldiers or police from St. Kitts to Anguilla. But before he can do this he needs the men, and so far there seems to be little chance of his getting them. Bradshaw has appealed to

four Commonwealth countries in the Caribbean —Jamaica, Trinidad, Guyana and Barbadoes — for military or police aid but seems to have been refused by all four. His only chance of getting any help from his neighbours seems to be by convincing them that revolution is about to break out in St. Kitts itself. Britain’s Position Britain’s position in the dispute is extraordinarily complicated—and highly uncomfortable. Under the terms of the associated state-hood agreement Britain gave up responsibility for the internal affairs of the islands, but retained control over defence and external affairs. Britain has a diplomatic representative in St. Lucia, another of the associated States, but not in St. Kitts itself, which has meant that during part of the crisis—and certainly in its initial phase—the Government was only informed at second hand of what was happening in Basseterre. In any case it is showing an understandable reluctance to get too closely involved. No official stand has been taken on the rights or wrongs of Anguilla's defection. In private, however, the Government has almost certainly been putting pressure on Mr Bradshaw to honour his commitment on the creation of a regional government for Anguilla, and not to do anything drastic to the 20-odd political prisoners whom he now has in gaol in Basseterre. Britain is also trying in conjunction with the four independent Commonwealth territories to arrange a meeting between the Premier and his opponents on neutral ground. But this is proving difficult; many of the people who would have to attend such a meeting are in gaol and the St. Kitts government is showing no disposition to release them. Future Status If no-one takes any action to help Mr Bradshaw it is hard to see how he can put down the rebels, but even if he gives up the attempt this will not be the end of the matter, because the Anguillans do not seriously think that they can remain entirely independent. They thought first of reverting to colonial status, then, last week, of joining'the United States, and they have at various times put out feelers towards both the British and the American Virgin Islands. It remains to be seen whether any of these approaches will come to anything. What is certain is that things cannot remain as they are.