Stop the tomfoolery!!!

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Parent Category: Nov 2011

Category: Week ending Nov 05th, 2011

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EDITORIAL

If former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Elvin Nimrod is to be believed then there was never an offer from Mainland China to pay-off the island’s loan debts to Taiwan as part of the arrangement to break ties and recognise Beijing as part of the One-China policy pursued by the Keith Mitchell government in the aftermath of Hurricane Ivan in September 2004.

 Nimrod is maintaining that the Keppel Foundation had no real part to play in the switch of diplomatic ties from Taiwan to Mainland China.

 If the now Number Two man in the New National Party (NNP) is continuing to maintain such a position then he is either engaging in tomfoolery of the Grenadian people or is totally ignorant of the discussions which took place in the days leading up to the switch.

 There is a plethora of documents circulating in the country, which suggest that a US$50 million offer was on the table as part of the “money diplomacy” of Mainland China to get rid of the Taiwanese from this East Caribbean Island.

 Perhaps, Mr. Nimrod was really not aware of the discussions since they were taking place in the Office of the Prime Minister and not his Ministry of Legal Affairs.

 A central figure in these discussions was one Richardson Andrews, the Special Advisor to Prime Minister Mitchell.

 In the absence of any formal diplomatic ties between Grenada and Mainland China, a third party had to be used to bring the two sides together and help broker the deal. That assignment was clearly undertaken by the Keppel Foundation.

 Anyone in doubt of this should obtain the copy of a letter dated December 3, 2004 written by Prime Minister Mitchell and addressed to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Mainland China, Li Zhao Xing and sent to him through the Keppel Foundation with an address in Oxford, England.

 It said in part: “I (Keith Mitchell) am now able to confirm to your Excellency that my Government has formally accepted the invitation extended to us through the Keppel Foundation and to advise you that I will undertake the visit(to China)from 11th December to 16th December 2004.

 The same Dr. Mitchell went on in the said letter to put into perspective the role played by the Keppel Foundation in helping to re-establish ties between Beijing and St. George’s.

 Dr. Mitchell told the Chinese Foreign Minister: “We are particularly pleased with the progress made in the preparation of the Memorandum of Understanding. Working with the Keppel Foundation, we have successfully completed our consideration of the MOU. It is now submitted for your consideration, and we seek your indication as to whether the conditions therein are workable”.

 One day later, Richardson Andrews, the Special Advisor to PM Mitchell was in contact with the same Keppel Foundation reviewing several aspects of the proposed agreement between the two countries as part of the behind the scene move to ditch the Taiwanese.

 This is what Mr. Andrews wrote in his letter dated November 4, 2004 to Frank Hwang, the President of the foundation, which was the Third party that brokered the China/Grenada deal.

 He said: “Further to our various correspondence and conversations, and with specific reference to the development of the agreement, I can confirm the following understanding we have reached so far:

(1) A cash donation of US$50 Million to the Treasury of Government of Grenada.

(2) Provision of gratuitous aid for the restoration and preparation of the National Stadium Complex. Cricket and Athletics, to enable the completion and readiness in 2006 for the hosting of the Cricket World Cup tournament in early 2007.

(3) Complete settlement of the Taiwanese Debt prior to the announcement of the normalization of relations between our two countries”.

The NEW TODAY would like to ask those who can speak truthfully on behalf of the NNP government to state clearly whether they were duped by the Keppel Foundation in the discussions leading up to establishing ties with Taiwan.

 The Chinese are known to be honourable people? Where is the US$50 million dollars that was promised?

 Perhaps, Mr. Nimrod is really in no way to address these specific issues since the negotiations were taking place between the Office of Prime Minister Mitchell and the Chinese.

 The information seen so far seem to suggest that it is only Dr. Mitchell and Richardson Andrews who can truthfully speak on the real and important issues about the Chinese deal - not Mr. Nimrod.

 Dr. Mitchell needs to break his silence and come clean with the Grenadian people. Please Sir, do not continue to put Nimrod and Anthony Boatswain as the mouthpiece to speak on the issues and come in person before the Grenadian people.

 Dr. Mitchell has a significant role to play in explaining to this nation all the offers that were on the table with the Keppel Foundation that pertained to the negotiations for recognizing Mainland China as part of the One-China policy.

 Let’s stop the “tomfoolery” on the offers from China to repay the Taiwanese loans and also address the important issue of the promised one million U.S dollars from the Keppel Foundation for an Education Trust Fund that should have been given in the name of Dr. Keith Mitchell.

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