Mitchell Explains Port Deal

Minister of Foreign Affairs and the Public Service Fred Mitchell speaks with reporters on Wednesday. (Photo by Timothy Clarke)

"The U.S. government and the Bahamas government, I believe judging from the [U.S.] ambassador’s public comments, are agreed that this is a good thing for both countries," Minister Mitchell said, noting that the two countries have cooperated on passenger pre-clearing since 1959.

He firmly denied that the Bahamas has opposed the presence of U.S. Customs officials to assist in the screening.

"First, that is entirely untrue," Minister Mitchell said.

"In connection with one aspect of this project, the question of U.S. Customs officials being involved did not arise. It is incorrect and inaccurate for anyone to assert that the Bahamas government prevented U.S. Customs officials from being at the port for that purpose."

The aspect Minister Mitchell spoke of was the increasingly controversial, alleged no-bid, $6 million contract for the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa to operate equipment that will scan ships for nuclear equipment at the port.

Minister Mitchell pointed out that the port is a "significant" employer and also a "significant contributor" to Grand Bahama’s economy.

The Hutchison Whampoa initiative is known as "the megaports initiative" – a series of bilateral agreements between the U.S. and various nations with transshipment ports through which goods enter the U.S.

The substance of the initiative is that the U.S. will provide equipment to screen containers passing through these ports for radioactive material, and the training to use it. The host country would simply accept and use the equipment.

"The Bahamas government agreed to participate in that programme, and what we agreed to was that the U.S. would supply the equipment and the training…we figured it’s good for us, it’s good for the customers of the port, and so we had no objection to that being done," Minister Mitchell said.

"The only caveat in our agreement to it was that there ought to be a protocol worked out so that if radioactive material were found in any of the containers and had to be disposed of, that it would not be disposed of in the Bahamas."

Minister Mitchell said as he understood, the equipment was already in Freeport and operating well.

The minister pointed out that the Bahamas is also party to a second U.S. initiative called the "Container Security Initiative" (CSI), which is intended to "in a sense pre-clear cargo for security purposes into the United States."

"That initiative would require people from the U.S. Homeland Security being stationed in Freeport," Minister Mitchell said. He explained that these would be U.S. Customs officials, confirming what U.S. Ambassador John Rood has said.

While what Minister Mitchell termed "the modalities" of the daily operation of CSI in the Bahamas would work, he noted that "The Bahamas government has no objection to that because we believe that the marketability of the port is enhanced by that kind of cooperation."

The minister noted that the government was also interested in customs pre-clearance for cargo moving through the port, as this is separate from the security clearance that would be granted under CSI.

This would also enhance the attractiveness of the port to potential customers, Minister Mitchell said.

The minister shied away from opining on the internal politics of the U.S., saying that is "none of our business, really."

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