Society
It's time to stop the supply of golden elephants
Published 31 May 1999
The previous editor of the New Statesman, Ian Hargreaves, for a brief period called me "Mr Montserrat". This was because I broke the Montserrat story in this column, but he could not then understand why I was going on about an insignificant island overwhelmed by an equally insignificant volcano. But Montserrat, a UK colony, was and still is our responsibility. The question arose: who would take care of these islanders when they were suddenly unable to inhabit two-thirds of their land ?
I suggested that the entire island be evacuated and the population settled elsewhere. Montserratians already live in the US, Canada, Britain and, of all places, Antigua. Britain, I said, should assist with resettlement, even to the point of constructing an additional village in Antigua.
Now, from a population of 8,000, only 2,500 to 3,000 are left. Any other figure ought to be treated with grave suspicion: for those with vested interests, the higher the figure, the merrier.
The politicos on the island have been attempting to extort, from the Treasury, huge sums. Clare Short warned that they would be demanding golden elephants next. In the midst of the uproar caused by her remarks, I wrote that she was absolutely right.
My association with Montserrat goes back to Margaret Thatcher's reign, when a young child on the island fell seriously ill with a heart problem. It was generally accepted that should she make her way to London, where she would receive medical treatment free of charge. Thatcher personally intervened to deny the child free medical care. I visited Montserrat in pursuit of the story, when a hurricane sat on the island and blew away everything in sight. It would cost millions of pounds to return the island to normalcy. I suggested evacuation to the governor. It would not be the last natural disaster - I predicted then that the volcano might begin to rumble.
The island's chief minister wanted the freedom to spend the millions that had arrived in aid. But the governor was worried about contracts for rebuilding going to politicians' friends without proper tender and about jobs going to party members who lacked the necessary skills - the whole caboodle that repeats itself time and again in every Caribbean country. So I suggested that Montserrat and other colonies should be cut loose, and independence forced upon them. That did not happen, and we have drifted into the current situation.
Now David Brandt, the chief minister of the island, has been to London. So far he has received £75 million in aid and the promise of full citizenship rights for his people. Then, for those already settled here, the British government will pay the air passage home and the taxi fare to the airport for any Montserratian.
Brandt, however, thinks £75 million for 2,500 people is not enough. He wants more golden elephants. Not only that. The Foreign Office requires countries, on receipt of aid, to subscribe to a human-rights declaration. Brandt does not wish to obey such rules. He has a propensity, as do so many Caribbean rulers, for hanging those convicted of murder. He also hates homosexuals. He gathered 450 of his people at Hackney Town Hall in east London a few days ago and said in no uncertain terms: "Who wants homosexuals in Montserrat?" And the audience roared in support. I never knew that I would live to see colonialism dressed in much more progressive garb than its opposite.
So should Montserrat now become independent? In truth there is nothing left to be independent with. Only a third of the island can be occupied; the other two-thirds, including the capital, is covered in a layer of poisonous ash. In the occupied areas, people live in squalor; there is no proper housing, no productive activity of any kind. To continue to support Montserrat is to funnel funds down a hole with a politicians' trough at the other end.
The islanders should be told that it can't go on. Britain will finance a final evacuation - not to be supervised by Brandt and his chums - and that is all.
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