Fred Mitchell: Defend nation's reputation ahead of Cuban protests

By RASHAD ROLLE

FOREIGN Affairs and Immigration Minister Fred Mitchell is encouraging Bahamians at home and in Miami to defend the nation’s reputation ahead of planned protests tomorrow by Cubans in Miami.

On Tuesday, Ramon Saul Sanchez, president of Democracy Movement, a Human Rights group based in Miami, told The Tribune his group will go on a hunger strike in Miami ports and travel in vessels displaying large signs when cruise ships headed for Nassau leave Miami ports tomorrow.

Mr Mitchell, speaking to The Tribune from Singapore yesterday, said he has had “enough” of these protesters who need to “give it a rest.”

“I’m trying to organize Bahamians in Miami and at home,” he said. “If we don’t push back then people will start to believe that it is true. All Bahamians have to speak out against this.”

“We are the Bahamas, sitting in the middle of two countries, the US and Cuba. They are both friends of ours. There is no reason to be defaming this country. We are not in their ideological fight. If they want to go to the US then they should apply to the US for visas.”

“People in our detention lock ups are treated humanely. If there are issues let us know and we will address them. The conditions are humane, they are not the best, but people are not beaten.”

Comments

concernedcitizen says...

friddie had to fly to singapore for a manicure ,,lol ,,defend us ,we been selling ourselves to the highest bidder since running the civil war blockade ,,now we got Dr Frankenstien injecting himself in front of most of our goverment MP,s while the head of our task force on stem cell legislation is in jail in Panama ,but in our defense we do wear lovely hats to church while the preacher mens that engae in all kind of sexual shennigans shout themselves horse ..

Posted 18 July 2013, 4:05 p.m. Suggest removal

jackflash says...

Sorry But I have to agree with Dred Fred..

AND (Tal) I am a Red shirt, drive a red car and just painted my crawfishen boats bottom red (actually it was cheaper then blue pant).

This is just a smoke screen from the Cuban Miami group.
Spend your money in Ft. Lauderdale - not Miami!

Posted 18 July 2013, 8:58 p.m. Suggest removal

john33xyz says...

When an opposition MP visited the Detention Centre the other day, news reporters with cameras (or without cameras) were not allowed in.

Uhm..

Posted 18 July 2013, 9 p.m. Suggest removal

jackflash says...

No should they have been allowed.

Just think- video the inside so that people can learn the exits and plan escapes or plots against the state.

If the leader of the opposition says it was fine then it is good enough for me.

Posted 19 July 2013, 12:01 p.m. Suggest removal

Tarzan says...

Why has the U.S. not accepted our ambassador's credentials?

Assuming the detention center videos were fraudulent, why did someone go to all the trouble to do that to Bahamas-land?

Maybe Comrade Fred needs to offer a report to the public on how important Cuban tourism is to our economy compared to U.S. tourism.

Maybe he needs to forget his personal affection for the communist tyrants in Cuba, and start doing his job in the best interests of the Bahamian people.

Hey Fred, please check out which side of the bread our butter is on. Cuba and the U.S. "they are both friends of ours": Does Fred intend to give both equal status as "friends" of the Bahamas?

Yes he does, every chance he gets and including the U.S. nearly chokes in his throat. Ergo the U.S. is ignoring his pick for ambassador to their country, and is issuing travel warnings to tourists thinking of coming to our country.

There are consequences to the Bahamas resulting from the P.M. leaving Fred to pander to his personal, far left, ideological views.

Posted 19 July 2013, 11:36 a.m. Suggest removal

banker says...

Plus we voted for China to be admitted to the Human Rights Tribunal of the UN (Haa!!!) because of the quid pro quo for the stadium and the loans. This was all against the wishes of the US. The US has fat intelligence files on the goings on of Fred and Phillip in China.

I would be willing to bet that there is a deep back story to this video.

In my ten years or so of knowing Dred Fred, I have learned that the explicit truth never comes out of his mouth unvarnished. He always has an agenda and sprinkles in lies, half truths and innuendo (make your own Italian joke here) with everything that he says. He has a real problem with telling the truth even in casual conversation.

Posted 19 July 2013, 12:09 p.m. Suggest removal

Log in to comment