PM badly advised – Gonsalves

KINGSTOWN, St Vincent (CMC):

PRIME MINISTER Dr Ralph Gonsalves says his Grenadian counterpart, Dr Keith Mitchell, was “wrongly advised or badly misinformed” when, last week, he described as irresponsible, an invitation from Kingstown for people from the Grenadine islands of Carriacou and Petite Martinique to go shopping for food and gas on Union island, which is governed by St Vincent and the Grenadines.

In a lengthy letter to Dr Mitchell on Tuesday, Gonsalves said that the statements by the Grenadian leader “contained several inaccuracies”, but he only mention the “two which are the most egregious”.

In a statement last Saturday, Mitchell, who also serves as minister for national security, told the residents of Carriacou and Petite Martinique that many countries, as part of the strategy to combat COVID-19 pandemic, have instituted stringent measures while others have opted for a more relaxed approach, which, in some cases, have resulted in dire consequences.

“In the fluidity of the pandemic, it may be hard to say which is the right or wrong approach, but countries retain a sovereign right to determine what works best, and when decisions are made, citizens must abide by the laws of their respective countries. Even in the midst of a pandemic, the law must prevail,” he said.

ENTRY RESTRICTIONS

But in his letter, Gonsalves said that from the very beginning, his administration placed certain explicit restrictions on entry to St Vincent and the Grenadines of persons who originated from other countries substantially afflicted by COVID-19.

“These restrictions were tightened, extended, or ramped up on an ongoing basis as the circumstances merited. Indeed, from 10 days ago – before your statements – anyone originating from a CARICOM member state was required, among other things, as a condition of entry, to be quarantined for 14 days, whether or not he or she had symptoms of COVID-19.

“Further, in none of the Grenadine’s islands has there been a port of entry for yachts or pleasure boats for over two weeks now; and there was in place, before your statements, a controlled regime for a trade in goods. Please note, too, that the last international flight to St Vincent and the Grenadines was on March 28, 2020 – long before your statements.”

Gonsalves said it was also a falsehood that he had “encouraged or invited residents of Carriacou and Petite Martinique to enter St Vincent and the Grenadines, in defiance of Grenada’s closure of ports, curfew, and “lockdown”.

“The prime minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines specifically stated that given the history and culture of ‘free movement of persons’ between the islands of the Southern Grenadines (respectively, parts of Grenada and St Vincent and the Grenadines), the government of St Vincent and the Grenadines offered to assist, if assistance were required, with food, medicine, and cooking gas, “but in a structured and organised manner”.

“This genuine and helpful offer was in response to the residents of Carriacou and Petite Martinique arriving in Union Island – despite your government’s curfew and ‘loc-down’ – to purchase or to arrange in the purchase of the said commodities in more-than-modest quantities.

“After all, Grenadians are our dear brothers and sisters, divided only by miniscule degrees of latitude and longitude. I thus find it quite amusing and ironical that some who are egging you on in your blast against me are agitating to raise aloft, swiftly, the fig leaf of sovereignty against a friendly neighbour, yet the same persons oft-times, and easily, surrender it, in substance, to imperialism. I am sure that the distinguished Prime Minister of Grenada is not in that sort of ignoble company,” Gonsalves wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by the Caribbean Media Corporation.