THE EDITOR:
IN its editorial of Friday, April 21, 2006, Barbados’ largest circulation, The Nation, under a bold headline “CLICO and freedom of the Press’ claimed that after running various articles on recent industrial unrest that had occurred with the company, “the Nation Publishing Company was served by CLICO’s agents with cancellation notices of all advertising previously booked”.

As the editorial went on to point out, the other newspaper, The Advocate, chose not to publish details of the strike action by CLICO staff and they have retained the company’s advertising. Sadly on Barbados, we have been forced to accept an increasing level of Press censorship and the failure to print letters to the Editor which highlight growing public concern over a number of issues.

My own weekly column on tourism was withdrawn due to the same threat of revoking advertising revenue, despite its contents over the years being factual to the letter.

One is left to wonder if the Board members and shareholders of CLICO will support this executive decision, which clearly appears to intimidate a publication of 33 years standing with by far the largest readership in Barbados and substantial following overseas.

Not to forget its global presence through the Internet.

CLICO already has substantial investments on Barbados and independent thinkers like myself are left to ponder if we really want to spend our hard-earned monies with a company that feels it can control “the freedom of the Press”.

THE EDITOR:
WHY is everyone saying that Panday did so much for the people of Trinidad and Tobago?

Was he ever paid for his services?

I mean, was he ever compensated for all this serving that he did?

I am a teacher and I taught many students who got jobs and are doing well and making a contribution to society.

You don’t see me going around boasting about all I did.

Why? Because I am paid to do a job.

Panday is paid and paid hansomely at that, just to oppose.

He doesn’t want to be in the government.

History proves my case.

He was there twice before and was either kicked out or threw himself out of power.

That is one for the Guinness Book of Records.

I really would like someone to tell me what Panday did for Trinidad, except send us backwards in time by giving power to the People’s National Movement (PNM) when the United National Congress (UNC) should still have been in power.

Or maybe he did a lot for Caroni Ltd.?

Caroni Ltd. workers supported him from the start of his career.

And when he got in power, he turned his back on them, only for the PNM to put the hurt on them when they got in power ... so it can’t be that.

Wasn’t Panday charged with an offense and convicted?

Who’s fault is that?

A wise man once said “there is no sin like stupidity”.

Panday’s government made the law. He was convicted of a crime and was sentenced accordingly. He is a lawyer.

He should have known better. If a policeman was found guilty of rape.

Don’t you think the punishment should be the maximum?

Because he knows that this is against the law more than anyone else.

I looked at what happened at Rienzi Complex the night that Panday was jailed and the behaviour I saw was disgraceful.

These are the people striving to be the replacement government.

A rumshop brawl would have been more dignified.

If the UNC feels I am going to waste my vote on that type of behaviour they have another thing coming. If they can’t respect people in authority (Dookeran), what or who else would they respect.

One thing I can say about Manning is that while he may not be the brightest Prime Minister we ever had, he surely has class.

You never see anyone in the PNM behaving like that.

Panday now wants to heal the rifts in the party.

What utter contempt for the public.

He is the reason for all the problems.

One day Ramesh is Neemakaram.

Next day he is the saviour.

One day he supports Dookeran, next day Dookeran wants to sell out the UNC. One day Moonilal is a little boy, the next day he is brilliant.

If the UNC really feels that they could form the next government with that type of behaviour, well let’s just say that not all the mad people are in St. Ann’s.

And even if, because of some divine intervention, the UNC happens to win the next election, what guarantees do we have that they won’t find a way to give power to the PNM.

Mr Panday, what goes around comes around.

For too long, you destroyed people because they had an independent mind.

It’s time for Karma to play it’s role.

My personal opinion is, I am not sorry for you.

You live by the sword you die by the sword.

You have been convicted and you are now a criminal.

Remember the time you called teachers criminals?

Well, who is the real criminal now?

My only regret, from all of this is the fact that the PNM would be staying another five years in power, and with more than the two-thirds majority. That is truly frightening for me.

THE EDITOR:
I AM writing in support of the aluminum smelter for La Brea.

Too many people who do not live in the area are making statements on behalf of the communities in this part of the country.

I am from the La Brea area and I welcome the new company Alutrint into our community.

I have been waiting a long time for the return of industrial development to this religion and not going to stand by while outsiders encourage the government to stop the construction of the smelter.

These same people made a big protest when the LNG Plant was being built in La Brea and they forced the authorities to move it to Pt. Fortin.

Today, La Brea is still without any major industry and the hypocrites are coming back to tell us that the aluminum will kill us.

I want to tell them that poverty and unemployment have been killing us for years and none of them lifted a finger to help.

When the same LNG was shifted to Point Fortin and new industries were built in Pt. Lisas nobody cared about us in La Brea.

Now all of a sudden there are all kinds of letter in the newspapers and articles saying the aluminum is not good for La Brea.

Not one of them live in the area and they probably cannot find La Brea without a map.

Have they ever visited Sobo, Chinee Village, Vessigny, Square Deal or even Union to see how the people have been living?

I am now hearing that an Ethylene complex is going to be built in Central and some people believe that this can cause cancer.

I am waiting to see if there will be protest marches in Couva and Chaguanas?

But that will never happen because the people in Central Trinidad know the value of industrial development.

They have seen how their communities have grown in recent years and how many of them now have permanent, well-paid jobs.

They have seen how business is booming in Central and contractors have made millions from the companies on the Point Lisas Industrial Estate.

Many of them are among the worst polluters in the country but who cares?

But in La Brea the environment must never be touched and people down here must remain poor and unemployed?

We must sell mango and breadfruit for the rest of our lives and our children must always leave the area to get good jobs.

I want to remind the hypocrites that in 1998 the previous government announced plans to build a smelter in Couva.

Did any of them protest?

It is time for La Brea to stand up for itself.

We want Alutrint to start operations as soon as possible and we want them to bring all the benefits that other communities are enjoying.

THE EDITOR:
WHEN the atomic plant at Chernobyl was planned and eventually set up, no one thought that there would be problems down the road.

The same can be said of the chemical plant at Bhopal in India.

I am certain that the people of these two places were given all assurances of the safety to them and the environment.

I am certain that the carrot of jobs were dangled before the people, but what happened?

Disaster, the people of those two places were sacrificed at the altar of money.

Compensation is yet to be given to the people of Bhopal, although that could not compensate for the loss of lives and the destruction done to the environment.

There have been many environmental and human disasters done by big businesses and they just walked away.

Is our flunky government going to ignore the past because of the carrots of money and jobs and ignore the environment and peoples’ lives?