By: Chris Burke
On May 5, 2011, former US president Bill Clinton and present US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited Turks and Caicos Islands [TCI], for what was reported to be a, “break from their busy schedules to bask in the beautiful TCI sunshine.”
The couple stayed on the famous resort island of Parrot Cay at Donna Karan’s luxury beach home for the entire holiday.
However, TCI insiders have revealed that Mrs. Clinton’s trip to Turks and Caicos was also a fact-finding mission to talk to citizens about the UK occupation. During the couple's trip to TCI, they reportedly covertly spoke with several local citizens. The names of the citizens were not disclosed, but it was reported that both Mr. and Mrs. Clinton conducted interviews. Some reports also suggest that they traveled to North Caicos to question citizens. One witness said, “I know they were asking lots of questions from locals”. However, the exact questions are unknown but had to do with the condition of the TCI citizens following the UK occupation as well as the citizens' loss of democracy and self determination.
How Mr. and Mrs. Clinton came to the decision to interview various TCI citizens is said to have been from a direct plea by a Turks and Caicos citizen who has personal connections with a former US congressman and current Senator from Florida.
More facts are still being investigated. Members of the public are invited to reveal more information, if they are comfortable doing so, by emailing me TCIwatch@gmail.com.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Where Does Barack Obama Stand on UK Colonialism Offensive in Turks and Caicos, His Westminster Speech Gives Clues
By: Chris Burke
On May 25, 2011, we heard United States president Barack Obama in Westminster addressing the United Kingdom government, espouse the virtues of democracy and self determination. Amoung the front row attendees was UK's Foreign Affairs Secretary, William Hague, who appeared distinctly provoked. In a polite way, the United States president called some of the United Kingdom's foreign policies hyprocritical. Mr. Obama complimented the United Kingdom's advanced democracy methods of centuries ago but pointed out that failing to implement the policies of democracy and trials by jury today causes a loss of credibility of its foreign policies. President Obama said that if it's good for the United Kingdom it is also good for all people and nations around the world.
Could Mr. Obama have been talking about the UK invasion of Turks and Caicos (TCI) in August 2009, at least in part? According to many Turks and Caicos Islanders, it felt that Barack Obama was talking right to them. It was assuring that Mr. Obama would take the opportunity to admonish the UK government in their own sacred political lair of Westminster.
One Turks and Caicos citizen emailed me and made an interesting point about Mr. Obama's speech. A young lawyer in TCI said it was completely ironic that a world leader of African decent was scolding white stately men whose ancesters created the imperial kingdom. It was quite ironic.
But in any event, times are changing and Mr. Obama made that clear calling for the UK and the US to step back and let other countries explore their potential for economic greatness, that it doesn't have to be the creation and control of the UK or the US in order for it to be good values and make economic sense.
Mr. Obama is right. The UK has spent centuries trying to control trade, land acquisition and power, for UK value. The time to step back and let outside innovation shine is long past due.
Turks and Caicos was such a nation that was innovating and shining prior to the UK takeover. TCI aspired and succeeded in surpassing the sentiment that countries decsecending from slavery can break free from the shackles of their oppressive white masters and excel. TCI was a young nation that only gained its autonomy 40 years ago when it became a self governing nation. Independence was around the corner as TCI required no financial support or any ties to the UK for anything. TCI was quite wealthy with a GDP that any country would envy at $266 Million (2006 stats).
In hindsight, TCI was not without its challenges. TCI's exploding tourist economy created many new residents, business owners and a growing expatriate population that soon proved to be overpowering the smaller TCI citizen (Belonger) population. The TCI caught the attention of the UK government in 2008; whispers of accusations against the TCI local government began that some were engaging in special interest relationships with foreign developers. Depsite a UK governor installed in the islands at all times overseeing the local government operations, the UK Foreign Commonwealth Office still called for a complete UK government takeover of TCI. The entire takeover was predicated on unproven allegations against a few people in TCI's local government, though it cost the entire populace their democracy and self determination.
Just like that, on August 14, 2009, with UK warships surrounding the Caribbean waters of Turks and Caicos, the UK took direct rule of TCI. It immediately announced the "suspension" of the TCI constitution, which is now being replaced by a UK constitution without a vote or referendum by the TCI citizens. The UK also called for all democracy to be withheld as well as the right to trial by jury. The UK also purports that the expatriate population has tripled the Belonger population and should therefore be afforded a vote and the opportunity to be involved in the TCI government. In a blink of an eye, the TCI citizens lost their constitution, democracy, self determination, right to trial by jury and now non-citizen residents are being bestowed rights in TCI that would diminish the citizens' will.
The UK said that TCI can have their democracy restored after the UK is done transforming the islands to total British rule with the new constitution. A political back-and-forth ensues in the islands to this very day, as the UK plan is nearing its conclusion.
Back in Washington D.C. president Barack Obama has been silent as to the human rights abuses and democracy abuses by the UK in TCI. If Mr. Obama's speech in Westminster is any indication that he is paying attention to the democracy abuses and withholding of self determination in Turks and Cacios, then it couldn't come at a better time since the new UK constitution is set to pass any time which will result in UK permanently taking all rights away from the local citizens.
Mr. Obama made a very good point during his speech, he said that citizens who come from a country of corruption have even more of a right to break free and govern themselves. If UK is insisting that forcing its will in the TCI is founded on past local government corruption, then how does it sqaure up with taking democracy and self determination from the remaining citizens?
Mr. Obama also said that freedom and democracy is something that we cannot take for granted just because we have it. We must all learn to spread it and make it good for others to achieve and that the choice of self determination should fall squarely on the side of those who want to be free.
The Turks and Caicos citizens want to be free. TCI citizens are forceably and incompetently being governed by a foreign country of a culture that shares no heritage to the TCI people. It is colonialism in its most basic form.
The situation in Turks and Caicos could be the poster child for exactly what Barack Obama was preaching about in Westminster. I sure hope that Mr. Obama has the courage to address this situation directly and right away.
On May 25, 2011, we heard United States president Barack Obama in Westminster addressing the United Kingdom government, espouse the virtues of democracy and self determination. Amoung the front row attendees was UK's Foreign Affairs Secretary, William Hague, who appeared distinctly provoked. In a polite way, the United States president called some of the United Kingdom's foreign policies hyprocritical. Mr. Obama complimented the United Kingdom's advanced democracy methods of centuries ago but pointed out that failing to implement the policies of democracy and trials by jury today causes a loss of credibility of its foreign policies. President Obama said that if it's good for the United Kingdom it is also good for all people and nations around the world.
Could Mr. Obama have been talking about the UK invasion of Turks and Caicos (TCI) in August 2009, at least in part? According to many Turks and Caicos Islanders, it felt that Barack Obama was talking right to them. It was assuring that Mr. Obama would take the opportunity to admonish the UK government in their own sacred political lair of Westminster.
One Turks and Caicos citizen emailed me and made an interesting point about Mr. Obama's speech. A young lawyer in TCI said it was completely ironic that a world leader of African decent was scolding white stately men whose ancesters created the imperial kingdom. It was quite ironic.
But in any event, times are changing and Mr. Obama made that clear calling for the UK and the US to step back and let other countries explore their potential for economic greatness, that it doesn't have to be the creation and control of the UK or the US in order for it to be good values and make economic sense.
Mr. Obama is right. The UK has spent centuries trying to control trade, land acquisition and power, for UK value. The time to step back and let outside innovation shine is long past due.
Turks and Caicos was such a nation that was innovating and shining prior to the UK takeover. TCI aspired and succeeded in surpassing the sentiment that countries decsecending from slavery can break free from the shackles of their oppressive white masters and excel. TCI was a young nation that only gained its autonomy 40 years ago when it became a self governing nation. Independence was around the corner as TCI required no financial support or any ties to the UK for anything. TCI was quite wealthy with a GDP that any country would envy at $266 Million (2006 stats).
In hindsight, TCI was not without its challenges. TCI's exploding tourist economy created many new residents, business owners and a growing expatriate population that soon proved to be overpowering the smaller TCI citizen (Belonger) population. The TCI caught the attention of the UK government in 2008; whispers of accusations against the TCI local government began that some were engaging in special interest relationships with foreign developers. Depsite a UK governor installed in the islands at all times overseeing the local government operations, the UK Foreign Commonwealth Office still called for a complete UK government takeover of TCI. The entire takeover was predicated on unproven allegations against a few people in TCI's local government, though it cost the entire populace their democracy and self determination.
Just like that, on August 14, 2009, with UK warships surrounding the Caribbean waters of Turks and Caicos, the UK took direct rule of TCI. It immediately announced the "suspension" of the TCI constitution, which is now being replaced by a UK constitution without a vote or referendum by the TCI citizens. The UK also called for all democracy to be withheld as well as the right to trial by jury. The UK also purports that the expatriate population has tripled the Belonger population and should therefore be afforded a vote and the opportunity to be involved in the TCI government. In a blink of an eye, the TCI citizens lost their constitution, democracy, self determination, right to trial by jury and now non-citizen residents are being bestowed rights in TCI that would diminish the citizens' will.
The UK said that TCI can have their democracy restored after the UK is done transforming the islands to total British rule with the new constitution. A political back-and-forth ensues in the islands to this very day, as the UK plan is nearing its conclusion.
Back in Washington D.C. president Barack Obama has been silent as to the human rights abuses and democracy abuses by the UK in TCI. If Mr. Obama's speech in Westminster is any indication that he is paying attention to the democracy abuses and withholding of self determination in Turks and Cacios, then it couldn't come at a better time since the new UK constitution is set to pass any time which will result in UK permanently taking all rights away from the local citizens.
Mr. Obama made a very good point during his speech, he said that citizens who come from a country of corruption have even more of a right to break free and govern themselves. If UK is insisting that forcing its will in the TCI is founded on past local government corruption, then how does it sqaure up with taking democracy and self determination from the remaining citizens?
Mr. Obama also said that freedom and democracy is something that we cannot take for granted just because we have it. We must all learn to spread it and make it good for others to achieve and that the choice of self determination should fall squarely on the side of those who want to be free.
The Turks and Caicos citizens want to be free. TCI citizens are forceably and incompetently being governed by a foreign country of a culture that shares no heritage to the TCI people. It is colonialism in its most basic form.
The situation in Turks and Caicos could be the poster child for exactly what Barack Obama was preaching about in Westminster. I sure hope that Mr. Obama has the courage to address this situation directly and right away.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Is there nobody in UK Parliament that Turks and Caicos Islanders can Trust? Parliament Ignores Demands for Local Elections and Return to Democracy
By: Denny G.
It’s commonsense that the members of UK parliament should be smart cookies who are up on their current events. They can’t be oblivious to what is going on in their own territory with the withholding of our local elections and democracy. Turks Islanders are not taking UK abuse laying down anymore. Nobody in parliament is listening to us and we need to wake them up.
God knows that the [installed] British interim government is not listening to us. That's when we turned our attention to parliament and the foreign affairs committee to get someone to listen to us. But what we hear back is stuff like what Lord Nigel Jones told the TCWeekly. He said that we need to work with the British interim government before we can have elections and democracy. Excuse me, but that’s assbackwards. Lord Nigel Jones is saying that we have to work with the corrupt British interim government to stabilize our economy and correct government malfeasance. Excuse me, the British interim government is who destroyed our economy and if they don’t have government malfeasance fixed by now after two years of direct rule then they have proven incompetence or are purposely stonewalling us. Some of us believe that the British interim government is causing the malfeasance on purpose.
You know, I am sorely disappointed in the UK government. We were patient and helpful for a long time. We were trusting that they wanted to help. But the UK government is taking advantage of us and playing games with us. Lord Nigel Jones knows what he is talking about and he knows that Turks Islanders have been sucker punched. He has traded sides from his former position of going to bat for us. That really hurts.
It also really hurts that the UK is not looking out for our best interests. They are playing every trick up their proverbial sleeve to find a way for this draft constitution to bypass our approval. It’s out of order for us to trust the UK who took our democracy from us to start with. Now there is proof out there of some kind of health care deal and developer contracts that is driving the UK to be installed in Turks and Caicos. Our faith in the UK is gone. How can we let the UK govern us on any level even if it’s only as a territory supervisory level? We need independence just to keep the UK armed robbers from our doors.
What also really hurts is that it took the president of the United States to speak of our rights. When Barack Obama made that speech that the territories have a right to self determination and democracy, the camera turned to William Hague who looked angry at the president’s statement. They have no compassion for what they have done to us, only contempt.
We got the short stick being imprisoned by UK politics. They have turned against us and blame us for why we are suffering losses of rights and freedoms. Only abusers do that. It reminds me of a battered wife who is beaten by her husband and she’s blamed because “she had it coming”.
It’s commonsense that the members of UK parliament should be smart cookies who are up on their current events. They can’t be oblivious to what is going on in their own territory with the withholding of our local elections and democracy. Turks Islanders are not taking UK abuse laying down anymore. Nobody in parliament is listening to us and we need to wake them up.
God knows that the [installed] British interim government is not listening to us. That's when we turned our attention to parliament and the foreign affairs committee to get someone to listen to us. But what we hear back is stuff like what Lord Nigel Jones told the TCWeekly. He said that we need to work with the British interim government before we can have elections and democracy. Excuse me, but that’s assbackwards. Lord Nigel Jones is saying that we have to work with the corrupt British interim government to stabilize our economy and correct government malfeasance. Excuse me, the British interim government is who destroyed our economy and if they don’t have government malfeasance fixed by now after two years of direct rule then they have proven incompetence or are purposely stonewalling us. Some of us believe that the British interim government is causing the malfeasance on purpose.
You know, I am sorely disappointed in the UK government. We were patient and helpful for a long time. We were trusting that they wanted to help. But the UK government is taking advantage of us and playing games with us. Lord Nigel Jones knows what he is talking about and he knows that Turks Islanders have been sucker punched. He has traded sides from his former position of going to bat for us. That really hurts.
It also really hurts that the UK is not looking out for our best interests. They are playing every trick up their proverbial sleeve to find a way for this draft constitution to bypass our approval. It’s out of order for us to trust the UK who took our democracy from us to start with. Now there is proof out there of some kind of health care deal and developer contracts that is driving the UK to be installed in Turks and Caicos. Our faith in the UK is gone. How can we let the UK govern us on any level even if it’s only as a territory supervisory level? We need independence just to keep the UK armed robbers from our doors.
What also really hurts is that it took the president of the United States to speak of our rights. When Barack Obama made that speech that the territories have a right to self determination and democracy, the camera turned to William Hague who looked angry at the president’s statement. They have no compassion for what they have done to us, only contempt.
We got the short stick being imprisoned by UK politics. They have turned against us and blame us for why we are suffering losses of rights and freedoms. Only abusers do that. It reminds me of a battered wife who is beaten by her husband and she’s blamed because “she had it coming”.
Power to the People, Wikileaks Empowers Small Country to Fight for Self Determination
[Editor's note: The United Kingdom took the Turks and Caicos Islands in a coup in August 2009. The UK also took all democracy from the people and is trying to impose a new constitution giving UK permanent power there. A blogger from TCIpost discusses the threats and intimidation that he and his countrymen have endured when trying to bring attention to the democracy crisis and special interest deals by the UK which are alleged to have caused the takeover.]
By: John Glasgow
For everyone who has been following my blog, thank you. Even you Mr. Attorney General who I know feels that I picked on him. I am not about to label myself a political activist or anything like that I just see a need to defend my country of Turks and Caicos. Anyone can label me what they like. But like I said all along I label myself a dumb blogger. I started this blog to oppose the British regime hurting us and taking our power from us and hurting us when we try to expose they are taking our power from us. If you have been reading my blog, you know what I am saying. If you haven't, keep reading. I have been doing this for over a year.
My mother would be annoyed that I call myself dumb because she raised me after all and that could be an insult of the highest order to her as a mother. But relax mother, I say I am dumb but I am smart enough to see that the power is in my hands. The power is in all of our hands just some of us don't know it. I was given the gift of emotional intelligence by my mother who taught me to stand firm for my beliefs and to follow in Jesus' footsteps to march on with the message of good no matter what. Even when threatened by Pontius Pilates Jesus continued ahead with his message of truth. Now I am not saying that I am Jesus, so relax. I am saying that TCI people are religious people that have faith that God will save them. Just like God gave Jesus the power forge on with his message, God gave me that strength too.
If you have been reading my blog for the last few days you will see that I have written some entries about our Attorney General and I have gotten under his skin. I never thought that my agitating opinions about him would cause a threat of legal action against me and my blog. Here is where my emotional intelligence comes in and where Mr. AG's exits. I know that I am just a dumb little blogger and I cannot fight the big oppressive powers of the British government and either could most armies. But the British government is too dumb to see that they can't win a war in order to get away with their secret deals and cover ups anymore. I mean, they can probably get away with it if they threaten a weaker person. But not everyone is a weak person and all it takes is one strong person paying attention. It doesn't take an army anymore.
Come on Mr. AG and British interim government. Don't you see that we live in the age of the computer super highway? The internet can reach thousands of people in different nations around the world in seconds. Colonialisms best tool is conquer and divide. You can't do that anymore. Did you ever hear of a little group called Wikileaks, Mr. AG? They revolutionised the movement of helping citizens to force governments for transparency. This is the world we live in now. You need to modernise your thinking. Threats don't work in the new world of anonymous whistle blowing.
But I want to be honest, Mr. AG. When I wrote all of those articles about you and about the cover ups by the interim government what was I trying to achieve? Just like when the civil servants protested with a sick out, what were they trying to achieve. Do you think somewhere in your shiny head that we are trying to get you to listen. You had so many chances to listen, learn and collaborate with us. The UK doesn't operate like that, does it? You see us as trouble makers that you need to "deal with". With that attitude, Mr. AG, you will never win. You will never have our respect or alliance. We will always be your trouble makers. Nobody is backing down as you will see soon enough.
When you read my blog entries, you were angry like a little school boy. You'll show me, you thought. Where did I read it again, hmmmm, TCI Journal said that the TCIslanders are the children and the UK the parents and the UK needs to punish the children for being bad and that's what caused the UK to take our country. Mr. AG and the UK, you are the bad little children. If you were responsible adults you would not have thought in a million years that taking our rights and threatening us would work. My mother always said that adults must give children freedom to make mistakes, it is as important as sunlight to a seed. But the lot of you are not adults but spoiled children who just want your way in a fit or worse tyrannical monsters trying to govern us with an iron fist. You are not dealing with little children in TCI. You are dealing with clever adults that do not take kindly to threats and taking of our civil rights to keep us from speaking.
You threaten to silence me with criminal and legal threats when I hit a nerve. I find that to be laughable. We live in a world where news travels fast around the world. One click and you are on notice to the world. We live in a world where secrecy is old fashion and Wikileaks is right there listening and waiting. I have faith in the new era of information sharing. There is someone out there right now in the UK or the TCI that will leak the truth about the truth of the British agenda. Maybe it's a MP like Chris Bryant or maybe someone in the FCO or maybe someone in TCI. Somebody or several people out there will come forward with the smoking gun. I get leads and tips every day from my contributors who are your insiders. People know things. You will be accountable for your actions and trying to stop a dumb blogger like me is futile.
By: John Glasgow
For everyone who has been following my blog, thank you. Even you Mr. Attorney General who I know feels that I picked on him. I am not about to label myself a political activist or anything like that I just see a need to defend my country of Turks and Caicos. Anyone can label me what they like. But like I said all along I label myself a dumb blogger. I started this blog to oppose the British regime hurting us and taking our power from us and hurting us when we try to expose they are taking our power from us. If you have been reading my blog, you know what I am saying. If you haven't, keep reading. I have been doing this for over a year.
My mother would be annoyed that I call myself dumb because she raised me after all and that could be an insult of the highest order to her as a mother. But relax mother, I say I am dumb but I am smart enough to see that the power is in my hands. The power is in all of our hands just some of us don't know it. I was given the gift of emotional intelligence by my mother who taught me to stand firm for my beliefs and to follow in Jesus' footsteps to march on with the message of good no matter what. Even when threatened by Pontius Pilates Jesus continued ahead with his message of truth. Now I am not saying that I am Jesus, so relax. I am saying that TCI people are religious people that have faith that God will save them. Just like God gave Jesus the power forge on with his message, God gave me that strength too.
If you have been reading my blog for the last few days you will see that I have written some entries about our Attorney General and I have gotten under his skin. I never thought that my agitating opinions about him would cause a threat of legal action against me and my blog. Here is where my emotional intelligence comes in and where Mr. AG's exits. I know that I am just a dumb little blogger and I cannot fight the big oppressive powers of the British government and either could most armies. But the British government is too dumb to see that they can't win a war in order to get away with their secret deals and cover ups anymore. I mean, they can probably get away with it if they threaten a weaker person. But not everyone is a weak person and all it takes is one strong person paying attention. It doesn't take an army anymore.
Come on Mr. AG and British interim government. Don't you see that we live in the age of the computer super highway? The internet can reach thousands of people in different nations around the world in seconds. Colonialisms best tool is conquer and divide. You can't do that anymore. Did you ever hear of a little group called Wikileaks, Mr. AG? They revolutionised the movement of helping citizens to force governments for transparency. This is the world we live in now. You need to modernise your thinking. Threats don't work in the new world of anonymous whistle blowing.
But I want to be honest, Mr. AG. When I wrote all of those articles about you and about the cover ups by the interim government what was I trying to achieve? Just like when the civil servants protested with a sick out, what were they trying to achieve. Do you think somewhere in your shiny head that we are trying to get you to listen. You had so many chances to listen, learn and collaborate with us. The UK doesn't operate like that, does it? You see us as trouble makers that you need to "deal with". With that attitude, Mr. AG, you will never win. You will never have our respect or alliance. We will always be your trouble makers. Nobody is backing down as you will see soon enough.
When you read my blog entries, you were angry like a little school boy. You'll show me, you thought. Where did I read it again, hmmmm, TCI Journal said that the TCIslanders are the children and the UK the parents and the UK needs to punish the children for being bad and that's what caused the UK to take our country. Mr. AG and the UK, you are the bad little children. If you were responsible adults you would not have thought in a million years that taking our rights and threatening us would work. My mother always said that adults must give children freedom to make mistakes, it is as important as sunlight to a seed. But the lot of you are not adults but spoiled children who just want your way in a fit or worse tyrannical monsters trying to govern us with an iron fist. You are not dealing with little children in TCI. You are dealing with clever adults that do not take kindly to threats and taking of our civil rights to keep us from speaking.
You threaten to silence me with criminal and legal threats when I hit a nerve. I find that to be laughable. We live in a world where news travels fast around the world. One click and you are on notice to the world. We live in a world where secrecy is old fashion and Wikileaks is right there listening and waiting. I have faith in the new era of information sharing. There is someone out there right now in the UK or the TCI that will leak the truth about the truth of the British agenda. Maybe it's a MP like Chris Bryant or maybe someone in the FCO or maybe someone in TCI. Somebody or several people out there will come forward with the smoking gun. I get leads and tips every day from my contributors who are your insiders. People know things. You will be accountable for your actions and trying to stop a dumb blogger like me is futile.
Friday, May 27, 2011
UK Alleged to be Forcing Turks and Caicos Citizens to make Criminal Allegations Against Foreign Developers
By: John Glasgow
It is alleged that members of the SIPT [UK special prosecution team] went to Salt Cay yesterday harassing senior citizens trying to coerce them into signing false statements to oust Mario Hoffman and other developers. What kind of people would harass senior citizens and try to trick them to sign statements which they never made? Only lowlife contemptable Brits with no conscience of fair play and decency would commit such low down acts. If our senior citizens are not safe and afforded the respect they deserve then who is safe in the Turks and Caicos Islands?
However I am told that those senior citizens represented themselves well and race those investigators asses from in front of their doors. According to information received, the senior citizens reminded the SIPT team members that the British totally neglected the Island of Salt Cay and its residents during hurricane IKE and if it wasn't for Mario Hoffman and other developers Salt Cay residents may not have survived. I am proud of our senior citizens who light a fire under the SIPT team tails and race them out of town.
My concern now is that the resting places/grave yards of our love ones may not be safe. It appears that the SIPT Team is so desperate for information that I would not put it pass them to lay in wait for the spirits of our love ones and harass them for information. This investigation appears to have hit a ghost trail and it is clear that the investigators are now clutching at straws and jumping at shadows. I once again would like to urge SIPT over jealous investigators if these allegations are true to tone down and record exactly what they are told and not what they would like to hear.
It appears that the harassment and intimidation are not only confined to the the SIPT investigation Team. It now appears that the interim regime and the AG chambers are prepared to devote considerable time and resources to deny this lonely idiotic blogger his constitutional rights to free speech and to disseminate information in the public's interest. This is tantamount to an abuse of office. There are many serious problems in the Turks and Caicos which demand the full and undivided attention of the interim regime. Instead it appears that it is more important to the interim regime to threaten and intimidate the editor of the TCI POST. I condemn this in the strongest possible way.
It is the duty of the interim administration to engage the public in an on going conversation to allay their fears and to convince them that policy decisions made by the interim regime are in the best interest of the people of the Turks and Caicos. Instead it appears that the interim regime would spare no efforts to muzzle this editor. I wish to put the interim regime on notice as of now in case they did not get the message that they would have to jail me or assasinate me to shut me up. Threats of legal actions are nothing more than an attempt to shut me up and I don't take kindly to such threats. I will continue to ask hard questons of the interim regime and I expect nothing less than honest straight forward statements from those who took it on themselves to govern me without my consent. John Glasgow
It is alleged that members of the SIPT [UK special prosecution team] went to Salt Cay yesterday harassing senior citizens trying to coerce them into signing false statements to oust Mario Hoffman and other developers. What kind of people would harass senior citizens and try to trick them to sign statements which they never made? Only lowlife contemptable Brits with no conscience of fair play and decency would commit such low down acts. If our senior citizens are not safe and afforded the respect they deserve then who is safe in the Turks and Caicos Islands?
However I am told that those senior citizens represented themselves well and race those investigators asses from in front of their doors. According to information received, the senior citizens reminded the SIPT team members that the British totally neglected the Island of Salt Cay and its residents during hurricane IKE and if it wasn't for Mario Hoffman and other developers Salt Cay residents may not have survived. I am proud of our senior citizens who light a fire under the SIPT team tails and race them out of town.
My concern now is that the resting places/grave yards of our love ones may not be safe. It appears that the SIPT Team is so desperate for information that I would not put it pass them to lay in wait for the spirits of our love ones and harass them for information. This investigation appears to have hit a ghost trail and it is clear that the investigators are now clutching at straws and jumping at shadows. I once again would like to urge SIPT over jealous investigators if these allegations are true to tone down and record exactly what they are told and not what they would like to hear.
It appears that the harassment and intimidation are not only confined to the the SIPT investigation Team. It now appears that the interim regime and the AG chambers are prepared to devote considerable time and resources to deny this lonely idiotic blogger his constitutional rights to free speech and to disseminate information in the public's interest. This is tantamount to an abuse of office. There are many serious problems in the Turks and Caicos which demand the full and undivided attention of the interim regime. Instead it appears that it is more important to the interim regime to threaten and intimidate the editor of the TCI POST. I condemn this in the strongest possible way.
It is the duty of the interim administration to engage the public in an on going conversation to allay their fears and to convince them that policy decisions made by the interim regime are in the best interest of the people of the Turks and Caicos. Instead it appears that the interim regime would spare no efforts to muzzle this editor. I wish to put the interim regime on notice as of now in case they did not get the message that they would have to jail me or assasinate me to shut me up. Threats of legal actions are nothing more than an attempt to shut me up and I don't take kindly to such threats. I will continue to ask hard questons of the interim regime and I expect nothing less than honest straight forward statements from those who took it on themselves to govern me without my consent. John Glasgow
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Who is to blame for political turmoil in Turks and Caicos? Every citizen should join together to oppose UK rule
By: Real Patriot
This is a question that I have thought long and hard about, even before the British invaded our country and took our rights. We can all blame the British for what they have done to hurt our country, our economy and our individual lives. But that's just passing the buck and a game that we as Islanders do. Why do we do that? Because we are lazy and vain. Yes, I said. People who know me know I talk real. I want to talk real now.
The reason we are in the horrific condition we are in with the British has some to do with our mentality. We have missed the boat and we need to confront our mistakes. We are lazy and roll with the tide and waves instead of swimming to safe land, because it's easier and we don't want to help each other. We fail ourselves by drawing conclusions instead of doing the work to find out for ourselves what we need to do. We let someone else do the work and then complain when the outcomes stinks. I was proud of us with the constitutional talks because at the last minute some of our leaders decided that they would take up the cause and put their objections in writing. But how long did it take for us flailing around rolling in the tide without an anchor? There was no working together.
Look at what it has taken for us to realise that we are being extorted and taken advantage of by the British. It took us so long because we were rolling with the tide lulled by the retched stories of Michael Misick instead of paying attention to what was really going on by the British. Nobody could reach us in our mental block. We allowed people like Shaun Malcolm to control the water and we just floated in it. We didn't do the work.
When we finally got our heads right and realized that we had a monumental, life changing political catastrophe with the British occupation, what did we do? We went our separate ways trying to distance ourselves from that group or this group because it wasn't an advantage for us personally. I heard so many people say that they wouldn't attend a constitutional meeting planned by our own because there wouldn't be enough in attendance and they would look foolish attending. Then you have websites bringing awareness and political transparency like TCI POST but you have the same 20 people commenting and participating. This is the only website that will reach readers beyond our islands that calls attention to our plight and only 20 people are participating. Nobody from other parts of the world are going to read our Facebook pages that shows how we feel. For all we know the world thinks we like the British rule and that only 20 freaks are complaining. Turks and Caicos Informers have a Google Group forum saying the same things as TCI POST, but it's not public. Why haven't TCI POST and Informers joined forces to get better exposure? See what I'm talking about? We are too vain not wanting to share resources or ideas, everyone wans it to be there own idea and control it.
That is why we were paralized when the British got here because we had no cohesion, we were lazy and vain. I just read a Wikileaks cable from December 22, 2010, only a few short months ago. The Bahamas questioned why CARICOM was not more forceful in stopping the British invasion to Turks and Caicos. Do you know what CARICOM said? I will quote, "TCI [was] too 'fractured' to launch a credible opposition to UK rule". The political parties and their constituents would not come together to launch a credible opposition. OUCH! That hurts but doens't it really say it all. We don't joining together and we keep ideas and resources to ourselves because we are vain. We have paid the ultimate price for our mistakes.
So who's to blame for where we are today? I think we should take some blame for being too lazy and vain. I heard someone say once that we are too passive as a people. No, we are not passive. We are passive aggressive and we feel it is our right to disconnect when our vanity is at stake. That is what is causing us to lose the battle for our rights and freedoms. We have a few groups discussing the plight taken up here or there, some radio shows, on Facebook, on Informers, sometimes in our newspapers, sometimes in an individual political thesis that is only for exclusive reading by email. But how will that get anything done? It took us two years to get our heads right to see that the British government here means us no good. What will it take for us to do the work to oppose this?
Look at our employment problems. I say we are lazy thinkers. We want something for nothing and when it came to our past employment issues we let it tear us apart and create divisions. We spend so much time worrying about which foreigner going to hire Belongers and fighting about it that we didn't see a creative way to compromise so that everyone can win. We are still talking about it to this day. How many hear Expressions and Robert Hall give his opinion about hiring non Belongers. I like what Robert said. He said that it's not always about job qualification that gets someone hired, it's an attitude and compatibility. We think that because someone other than a Belonger gets a job that we should be angry at the employer, the person who got the job and the system. We let positive solutions escape us by focusing on petty things. We are lazy, we had no ideas. I think if we passed around a piece of paper every one of us could think of five ways to solve the old employment problem. But no, we dwelled on it and we dwell on it to this day. You know, we can blame whomever we want but we also created a division with the expats, yes the same expats that nearly triple us in population and now want to run our government. We need to be more marketable as workers and allow businesses to succeed the way they needed to for our own economic growth and we can take advantage of that by creating products and services from the extra visitors. That's how our local economy can thrive. We can offer incentives for foreign employers to hire Belongers but we shoud not hurt relationships with bitterness and laziness to find a better way. But now look at what happened, we are not just competing with foreign workers, we are being axed from our jobs and replaced by British nationals. I blame us to some of that because we didn't focus on where we needed to be. That's what my mother use to call "Penny wise but pound foolish."
We are keeping our own selves down. We have the same 20 people staying consistent with their public message when there should be thousands of us. Our leaders are doing their own things and should be joining the public debate not keeping their opinions guarded and sacred, it's not the time. Other people have opinions but won't join together for one reason or another and we are being foolish.
Have we not learned from any of our past? We are sinking. We are riding the tides and waves of others doing and nobody is swimming for their lives or for our lives. We are drowining and it is our fault. Where are the other people joining in the debate, putting their opinions out there, taking a chance to show their solidarity? If there was ever a time to have courage and put our laziness and vanity aside, it's right now. 20 people cannot fight for all of us, if the saying is that there's unity in numbers then the numbers are against us.
This is a question that I have thought long and hard about, even before the British invaded our country and took our rights. We can all blame the British for what they have done to hurt our country, our economy and our individual lives. But that's just passing the buck and a game that we as Islanders do. Why do we do that? Because we are lazy and vain. Yes, I said. People who know me know I talk real. I want to talk real now.
The reason we are in the horrific condition we are in with the British has some to do with our mentality. We have missed the boat and we need to confront our mistakes. We are lazy and roll with the tide and waves instead of swimming to safe land, because it's easier and we don't want to help each other. We fail ourselves by drawing conclusions instead of doing the work to find out for ourselves what we need to do. We let someone else do the work and then complain when the outcomes stinks. I was proud of us with the constitutional talks because at the last minute some of our leaders decided that they would take up the cause and put their objections in writing. But how long did it take for us flailing around rolling in the tide without an anchor? There was no working together.
Look at what it has taken for us to realise that we are being extorted and taken advantage of by the British. It took us so long because we were rolling with the tide lulled by the retched stories of Michael Misick instead of paying attention to what was really going on by the British. Nobody could reach us in our mental block. We allowed people like Shaun Malcolm to control the water and we just floated in it. We didn't do the work.
When we finally got our heads right and realized that we had a monumental, life changing political catastrophe with the British occupation, what did we do? We went our separate ways trying to distance ourselves from that group or this group because it wasn't an advantage for us personally. I heard so many people say that they wouldn't attend a constitutional meeting planned by our own because there wouldn't be enough in attendance and they would look foolish attending. Then you have websites bringing awareness and political transparency like TCI POST but you have the same 20 people commenting and participating. This is the only website that will reach readers beyond our islands that calls attention to our plight and only 20 people are participating. Nobody from other parts of the world are going to read our Facebook pages that shows how we feel. For all we know the world thinks we like the British rule and that only 20 freaks are complaining. Turks and Caicos Informers have a Google Group forum saying the same things as TCI POST, but it's not public. Why haven't TCI POST and Informers joined forces to get better exposure? See what I'm talking about? We are too vain not wanting to share resources or ideas, everyone wans it to be there own idea and control it.
That is why we were paralized when the British got here because we had no cohesion, we were lazy and vain. I just read a Wikileaks cable from December 22, 2010, only a few short months ago. The Bahamas questioned why CARICOM was not more forceful in stopping the British invasion to Turks and Caicos. Do you know what CARICOM said? I will quote, "TCI [was] too 'fractured' to launch a credible opposition to UK rule". The political parties and their constituents would not come together to launch a credible opposition. OUCH! That hurts but doens't it really say it all. We don't joining together and we keep ideas and resources to ourselves because we are vain. We have paid the ultimate price for our mistakes.
So who's to blame for where we are today? I think we should take some blame for being too lazy and vain. I heard someone say once that we are too passive as a people. No, we are not passive. We are passive aggressive and we feel it is our right to disconnect when our vanity is at stake. That is what is causing us to lose the battle for our rights and freedoms. We have a few groups discussing the plight taken up here or there, some radio shows, on Facebook, on Informers, sometimes in our newspapers, sometimes in an individual political thesis that is only for exclusive reading by email. But how will that get anything done? It took us two years to get our heads right to see that the British government here means us no good. What will it take for us to do the work to oppose this?
Look at our employment problems. I say we are lazy thinkers. We want something for nothing and when it came to our past employment issues we let it tear us apart and create divisions. We spend so much time worrying about which foreigner going to hire Belongers and fighting about it that we didn't see a creative way to compromise so that everyone can win. We are still talking about it to this day. How many hear Expressions and Robert Hall give his opinion about hiring non Belongers. I like what Robert said. He said that it's not always about job qualification that gets someone hired, it's an attitude and compatibility. We think that because someone other than a Belonger gets a job that we should be angry at the employer, the person who got the job and the system. We let positive solutions escape us by focusing on petty things. We are lazy, we had no ideas. I think if we passed around a piece of paper every one of us could think of five ways to solve the old employment problem. But no, we dwelled on it and we dwell on it to this day. You know, we can blame whomever we want but we also created a division with the expats, yes the same expats that nearly triple us in population and now want to run our government. We need to be more marketable as workers and allow businesses to succeed the way they needed to for our own economic growth and we can take advantage of that by creating products and services from the extra visitors. That's how our local economy can thrive. We can offer incentives for foreign employers to hire Belongers but we shoud not hurt relationships with bitterness and laziness to find a better way. But now look at what happened, we are not just competing with foreign workers, we are being axed from our jobs and replaced by British nationals. I blame us to some of that because we didn't focus on where we needed to be. That's what my mother use to call "Penny wise but pound foolish."
We are keeping our own selves down. We have the same 20 people staying consistent with their public message when there should be thousands of us. Our leaders are doing their own things and should be joining the public debate not keeping their opinions guarded and sacred, it's not the time. Other people have opinions but won't join together for one reason or another and we are being foolish.
Have we not learned from any of our past? We are sinking. We are riding the tides and waves of others doing and nobody is swimming for their lives or for our lives. We are drowining and it is our fault. Where are the other people joining in the debate, putting their opinions out there, taking a chance to show their solidarity? If there was ever a time to have courage and put our laziness and vanity aside, it's right now. 20 people cannot fight for all of us, if the saying is that there's unity in numbers then the numbers are against us.
Turks and Caicos Islands on the Agenda for UN Convention Eradicating Colonialism, May 31 - June 2, a plea to Francisco Carrión-Mena of Ecuador
By: Chris Burke
The United Nations has a long-standing history of advocating to end world colonialism. In so doing, decades ago, the UN general assembly created a special committee for decolonization to work specifically to eradicate colonization in the world. We learn that the UN special committee will meet in Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, from May 31 to June 2 in its annual convention.
Turks and Caicos Islands is scheduled on the agenda for discussion, along with the other remaining 15 non-self-governing territories.
The United Nations General Assembly has declared all forms of colonialism incompatible with the principles of international law, and as such supports the colonies' ability to preserve the cultural identity and national unity of Territories under their administration, encouraging the full development of indigenous cultures so as to facilitate “the unfettered exercise of the right of self-determination”. The UN has unrelentingly reaffirmed its committment calling for an end to colonialism and calling for the governing powers to grant colonies the right to achieve genuine self-government and economic self-reliance.
The call for self determination is particularly important for one of the last remaining 16 colonies, Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) in the Caribbean. TCI was a self governing territory of the United Kingdom whose government fell to the UK powers on August 14, 2009 amidst allegations of local government corruption.
Shortly thereafter, the United Nations specifically addressed the matter of Turks and Caicos on September 23, 2009, condemning UK’s actions in Turks and Caicos. In Section X (4) of the UN report, the United Nations addresses Turks and Caicos Islands’ direct rule by Great Britain and specifically calls for, “restoration of constitutional arrangements providing for representative democracy through elected territorial Government as soon as possible.” The UN also declared UK’s actions in Turks and Caicos is a "clear step in the wrong direction."
The UN should know and understand when discussing the UK’s seizing of Turks and Caicos, that the TCI citizens’ have suffered a complete loss of democracy, right to trial by jury and right to vote on any matter or for their own local leader.
Since the UK takeover of Turks and Caicos, the entire populace has been governed under a literal dictatorial political system, ongoing now for two years. In these two years, the special corruption team installed by the UK has discovered no proof of corruption, issued no indictments, scheduled no trials. Yet, the entire populace has been victims of democracy injustice and other abuses by the UK, merely predicated on the alleged wrong doing of just a handful of people. Nonetheless, the UK maintains that the people must wait until after it imposes its own constitution on the islands, a new constitution that will forcefully replace the constitution created by the TCI people in 2006 which demonstrated no constitutional failings of any kind.
It is every democracy-loving citizen’s hope that the UN’s Chairman of the Special Committee, Ambassador Francisco Carrión-Mena of Ecuador, will intervene on behalf of the citizens of TCI who have had their democracy forcibly taken. The UN is urged to make an inquiry and its own findings as to the new UK constitution, findings show that it will permanently take democracy and self determination from the TCI people giving UK ultimate power there, as it has been enjoying for the last two years. An UN inquiry is even more important because the UK refuses to allow a referendum on the new constitution and is relying solely on collecting “suggestions” from the citizens instead of using a democratic method of weighing the will of the people.
The over-reaching political system that the UK has established in Turks and Caicos has many trickle down affects, such as the disappearance of the local treasury, the firing of local citizens from their jobs (replaced by British nationals) and certainly not least the forcible eviction of average citizens from their lands. The British have also allegedly been engaging in special interest contracts in the Turks and Caicos including government health care contracts as well as land development, which is suspected to have contributed to this government takeover zeal.
Every world citizen should uphold the Turks and Caicos citizens’ right to democracy and self determination. We hold the UN to a higher standard and specifically call for it to be incumbent on the UN to investigate the political failings by the UK and taking of rights and freedoms from the Turks and Caicos people.
The United Nations has a long-standing history of advocating to end world colonialism. In so doing, decades ago, the UN general assembly created a special committee for decolonization to work specifically to eradicate colonization in the world. We learn that the UN special committee will meet in Kingstown, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, from May 31 to June 2 in its annual convention.
Turks and Caicos Islands is scheduled on the agenda for discussion, along with the other remaining 15 non-self-governing territories.
The United Nations General Assembly has declared all forms of colonialism incompatible with the principles of international law, and as such supports the colonies' ability to preserve the cultural identity and national unity of Territories under their administration, encouraging the full development of indigenous cultures so as to facilitate “the unfettered exercise of the right of self-determination”. The UN has unrelentingly reaffirmed its committment calling for an end to colonialism and calling for the governing powers to grant colonies the right to achieve genuine self-government and economic self-reliance.
The call for self determination is particularly important for one of the last remaining 16 colonies, Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI) in the Caribbean. TCI was a self governing territory of the United Kingdom whose government fell to the UK powers on August 14, 2009 amidst allegations of local government corruption.
Shortly thereafter, the United Nations specifically addressed the matter of Turks and Caicos on September 23, 2009, condemning UK’s actions in Turks and Caicos. In Section X (4) of the UN report, the United Nations addresses Turks and Caicos Islands’ direct rule by Great Britain and specifically calls for, “restoration of constitutional arrangements providing for representative democracy through elected territorial Government as soon as possible.” The UN also declared UK’s actions in Turks and Caicos is a "clear step in the wrong direction."
The UN should know and understand when discussing the UK’s seizing of Turks and Caicos, that the TCI citizens’ have suffered a complete loss of democracy, right to trial by jury and right to vote on any matter or for their own local leader.
Since the UK takeover of Turks and Caicos, the entire populace has been governed under a literal dictatorial political system, ongoing now for two years. In these two years, the special corruption team installed by the UK has discovered no proof of corruption, issued no indictments, scheduled no trials. Yet, the entire populace has been victims of democracy injustice and other abuses by the UK, merely predicated on the alleged wrong doing of just a handful of people. Nonetheless, the UK maintains that the people must wait until after it imposes its own constitution on the islands, a new constitution that will forcefully replace the constitution created by the TCI people in 2006 which demonstrated no constitutional failings of any kind.
It is every democracy-loving citizen’s hope that the UN’s Chairman of the Special Committee, Ambassador Francisco Carrión-Mena of Ecuador, will intervene on behalf of the citizens of TCI who have had their democracy forcibly taken. The UN is urged to make an inquiry and its own findings as to the new UK constitution, findings show that it will permanently take democracy and self determination from the TCI people giving UK ultimate power there, as it has been enjoying for the last two years. An UN inquiry is even more important because the UK refuses to allow a referendum on the new constitution and is relying solely on collecting “suggestions” from the citizens instead of using a democratic method of weighing the will of the people.
The over-reaching political system that the UK has established in Turks and Caicos has many trickle down affects, such as the disappearance of the local treasury, the firing of local citizens from their jobs (replaced by British nationals) and certainly not least the forcible eviction of average citizens from their lands. The British have also allegedly been engaging in special interest contracts in the Turks and Caicos including government health care contracts as well as land development, which is suspected to have contributed to this government takeover zeal.
Every world citizen should uphold the Turks and Caicos citizens’ right to democracy and self determination. We hold the UN to a higher standard and specifically call for it to be incumbent on the UN to investigate the political failings by the UK and taking of rights and freedoms from the Turks and Caicos people.
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