US bullying Caribbean nations, top officials say

Two top Caribbean Community officials are openly accusing the US of bullying the region to force nations to swallow American foreign policy directives, with one even clinging to hopes that the situation will soon change for the better.

In separate pronouncements at the weekend, Antiguan Prime Minister Gaston Browne and former Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding say that they remain puzzled as to why a region which is among the friendliest to the US globally is being unfairly punished by an insensitive administration in Washington for petty reasons.

Just last week, the State Department republished a list of countries around the world whose nationals will be required to lodge up to $20,000 as a bond while applying for limited tourist visas. The new measures make the bond both permanent and mandatory for three Caricom bloc nations —Antigua, Dominica and Grenada — in addition to Cuba in the wider Caribbean. For Prime Minister Browne, this was a huge blow to citizens in the federation with Barbuda. He says small nations are being bullied by a superpower.

Angered by the latest development, Browne at the weekend fired off a letter to President Donald Trump asking for a review of the mandate. A formal diplomatic note has also been sent to Secretary of State Marco Rubio asking for an explanation as to why Antigua and Barbuda has been included in the list of nations whose citizens must fork out the relatively large deposit in order to obtain a limited B-1, B-2 visa to the US.

“The government’s objective is not confrontation,” the prime minister said. “It is to ensure that decisions affecting the people of Antigua and Barbuda are based upon accurate information and upon the substantial steps our country has taken in close cooperation with the United States to address every legitimate concern that has been raised. We believe the time is now right for a review.”

The latest developments come as Antigua and the US continue to spar over the number of non-national deportees the US wants to dump on the federation each month. The cabinet has made it clear it will accept no more than 10 individuals per year who are healthy, possess no criminal records, and whose boarding, lodging, and medical care are taken care of by a reluctant US. Washington, on the other hand, wants to send up to 120 per year. Prime Minister Browne has said this number would amount to political suicide in a nation of merely 103,000 as the deportees would not only stand out among the population but can also pose a security threat.

In a separate weekend statement, the prime minister urged locals to stand strong against bullyism and the unfair treatment by the US.

“Stand firm against the evil, discriminatory, and bullying practices of the powerful,” he said. “Do not fear. Do not despair. Soldier on in optimism for a brighter future. Do not worry, my dear people. Do not fear. We are covered by God’s almighty hand. The challenges that are meant to break us will certainly make us stronger.”

In this regard, Browne appeared to have the support of former Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding. Speaking at a weekend function in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Golding contended that he understands why regional governments have been acting and responding to US interaction with the Caribbean in a careful manner. They are being bullied by a superpower.

“When Caribbean governments adopt a measured, cautious approach to America’s bullying tactics, it is because they understand the pickle they are in. Make a wrong move, defiantly defend the Cuban (medical) assistance programs and our partnership with China, they pay a price. They understand how careful they have to be when their hand is in the mouth of an angry lion,” Golding said. “I cautiously cling to the hope that this will pass, that the hemisphere will once again be a neighborhood of peace; mutual understanding and respect; where true friendship prevails; where all of its people can pursue their own destiny with dignity and purpose; and where we can look upon America as a friend indeed.”

First announced late last year, American officials had linked the bond mandate to discomfort with the sale of golden passports and local citizenship to foreigners with alleged dubious backgrounds and to the number of visa overstays from Antigua, Dominica, and Grenada. Officials in all three nations balked at such suggestions that these tiny nations with tiny populations contribute to significant overstay rates, linking the bond issue to punishment for their reluctance to accept a large number of deportees and also their reluctance to back US policies on Venezuela.