The Opposition yesterday denounced a video making the rounds on Social Media alleging that China is using the absence of a United States Ambassador in The Bahamas to strengthen its ties here. Taking aim at one America News Report, Progressive Liberal Party Chairman Senator Fred Mitchell dismissed such report as not credible, and as such, Bahamians ought to be very careful how they embrace information coming from that source.
Mr. Mitchell said, “we have to always, as citizens of The Bahamas, and Government and Opposition, keep our rational minds when dealing with all of our public policy matters. And not go off behind dog whistles, racism and xenophobia. When you look at the report, it is filled with all of those things.
“The interesting thing is One America has twisted these facts to together in this report, which makes it seem as if the hordes from the Far East are coming to take over The Bahamas, is simply inaccurate, and as I said, if we keep our rational minds, we’d say they are not true.”
Senator Mitchell said, “the plot which they say is coming at us, is the Chinese have some hegemonic designs on The Bahamas and have some security challenge or threat to the United States.
“And so that is the point that many people have asked me to comment on as a former Foreign Minister.
“I would say, as a general proposition, The Bahamas is firmly within the trade and political ambit of the Unites States of America, we’re joined at the hip. Geography dictates that, and I don’t think that there is any evidence that the Chinese are trying to do anything. In fact they could not do anything about the geography, if they wanted to. The fact is our geography and the United States is our largest trading partner.”
The Senator said, “as far as we can tell, when the Progressive Liberal Party was in government, all of the investments in The Bahamas, by so-called China, were actually through corporations which were simply in the commercial business of lending money.
“The Port, for example, about which they speak, is a port which is funded by an interest in Hong Kong, which is a special Administrative Section of the People’s Republic of China, and is owned by private individuals. That investment has been quite a successful investment for Freeport. There are differences of opinion on whether or not we are getting as much as we should get from it, but that is a private investment, that’s not a Chinese, as in Chinese Government investment.
“The interesting thing about the comment they make about Baha Mar, is that Baha Mar, although the ultimate beneficial owner is a private citizen, he’s also a private investor who runs and controls Baha Mar, and the company, if I’m not mistaken, is an American company, which that investor owns, so if the Americans can allow the Chinese to own an American company, what then is the issue with the Commonwealth of The Bahamas?” Senator Mitchell asked.
The United States and China are embroiled in a Trade War with every indication pointing that it will be a long war.
