PM Mitchell denies ‘sex for food’ charge

Grenada’s Prime Minister Dr Keith Mitchell yesterday described as “un-founded, highly irresponsible and extremely unfortunate,” reports that Trinidad and Tobago soldiers and other security forces were involved in a sex for food exchange with Grenadian women. Mitchell was speaking at a news conference at Whitehall shortly after a meeting with Prime Minister Patrick Manning. Manning had invited his Grenadian counterpart to sensitise him to the discussions he held with international bodies and persons pleading for support for Grenada and other Caricom islands hit by Hurricane Ivan. Mitchell said that at yesterday’s meeting, he asked Manning for four things — retention of Trinidad and Tobago soldiers in Grenada “to send a clear message to those who want to seek to change the government;” continued financial support “even while recognising that Trinidad and Tobago has its own problems; continued exertion from Trinidad and Tobago at the regional and international levels for aid; and technical support in the reconstruction effort.

Addressing the report about sex for food, Mitchell said, “You and I know that in every society there are incidents of what you are talking about. It is not isolated to a particular event. “And even if there were one case like that, to make it out as if it were a massive problem, that is extremely unfortunate. We have no evidence of any problem. And even if there was a problem — one incident or so — I don’t think it is fair to imply that it is a pattern of behaviour. We have no evidence. “The evidence we have is of attempts by some persons — the criminal element in the society — using the opportunity of the blackout to impose themselves on innocent citizens.” Mitchell said this was why the curfew was instituted. He said government had relaxed the dawn to dusk curfew (6 pm to 6 am) to 9 pm to 6 am.

But it had to be very careful about lifting it altogether until it was certain that innocent citizens would not have to face this kind of situation (from the criminals). Mitchell denied that there was any political bias in the distribution of relief supplies, saying the best politics in Grenada right now was “absolutely no politics.” On the issue of the cooperation between government and the opposition, Mitchell said there was a meeting between the two sides and they had advanced a methodology for cooperation on several levels. “But you and I know that you have to be out of your mind to believe that two organisations who were at each others’ throats, every day, every hour, every minute, saying the worst of things (about each other) can in fact sit in the same hole at a particular time and say ‘let’s forget it all’.”