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NEWSLETTER
Volume 8 Number 9
For The Week Pnd ng 28th June 1980
8th Year Of PUblication - - 242nd issue
-MAN BOWN, UP
A man was killed instantly on Wednesday 25th June when he was
blowsr to bits by a bomb.
The incident took place shortly after 11.30pm in a small
cemetery in the Belmont area on the island's east coast about
five miles north of Pearls airport. Residents of the area
heard the explosion, but it was not until about 7.30 o'clock
on the morning of the 26th that a young boy, passing through
the cemetery, found the body and raised the alarm.
The body had not been moved four hours later when NEWSLETTER
visited the scene. The cemetery is in rising ground some
200 feet from the main road near to a river, anq is reached
by a rough track. There were some 15 or 20 members aq the
PEOPLES RXEVLUTIONARY ARMY present and a ,curious crowd of
about 1CO,.
The body was lying face down partly covered by banana leaves.
It appeared to be that of a black man in his 20s, tall, well
built and wearing Rasta ."locks". Bystanders said his ,
face had been completely destroyed and the aras blow oaf at
the elbows.
continued -
produced & Printed by Alister & Cynthiat I, 1G
|A (i P, Lwg V.Geortoes .Grenada Wastinedito,
THE GRENADA NEWSLETTER
The right leg was lying up the hillside about 30 feet away and, also
up ihe hillside but in another direction about 50 feet away, was
the left leg. They had both been severed from the body at the
knee. The man had been wearing blue jeans and a pair of light
brown suede ankle boots soled with motor car tyre rubber.
*Debris
A resident ,gf the area, Mr Tyrell Wardally,.told NEWSLETTER he had
visited the scene shortly after thi body was discovered. Near the
body he had seen a clock, a damaged walkie-talkie, wbres, a blanket
and a pistol. Mr Wardallyf's home is about 200 feet from where
the body was found and he said debris fell on his roof after the
explosion.
The body was later identified by a relative as James Williams, 24.
Williams is said to have been living with his grandmother- ome
miles away from where his body was found, and was last seen alive
about 6.30pm on the 25th (the day he died) when he left, home.
This incident came just 8 days after a bomb exploded at a rally at
Queens Park, St.Georges. That bomb killed two people and
injured more than 20, and official sources link the two incidents
with the activities of'""counter-revolutionaries".
The Belmont area'is adjacent to the Tivoli/River Antoine area which,
in recent months, has been linked with an anti-Government movement.
That movement came to notice last february whe grup of former
supporters of Prime Minister Bishop's New Jewel Movement' (NJM)
seized the River Antoine estate and announced that it was renamed
"The People's Collective Farm".
'he keys of the estate buildings were given up after three days
and those 'whbh'ad-hijafked 'he estate began negotiations with the
owners for better wages and working conditions for the employees
on the estate. From a document published by the hijackers,
however, it was' clear there were political motives underlying the
industrial relations aspect of the matter.
That document was strongly against the Peoples Revo ationary
government (PRG). It dubbed the PRG. leaders "pseudo-
continued -
Week Ending 28.6.80
Page 2
THE GRENuJA NEWSLETTER
revolutionaries" and said if the leade-s "were acting in the
interests of the majority of the people and not of a handful of
rich Grenadians and themselves", they would, among other things,
immediately nationalise all insurance companies and banks, and
introduce Grenada's own currency.
This matter came to a head on April 25th when Dennis Charles and
Ken Bain, two of the group of former NJM supporters at Tivili, were
arrested and others of the group went underground. At the same
time, Kennedy Budhlall, a senior member of the Peoples
Revolutionary Army stationed at Pearls airport, and an associate
of Charles and Bain, was also arrested.
Helicopter
According to the PRG, these men, together with others, plotted to
size Pearls airport at Midnight on Saturday 26th April as a first
step towards overthrowing the Government. According to official
sources, a helicopter flew over the airport at the time it is
alleged it was to be seized, and the PRG said the.United States
Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) was involved in the plot.
These arrests created strong anti-Government feeling in the
Tivoli area and there were two protest demonstrations early
in May. There were also two pro-Government demonstrations.
The pro-Government demonstrations were bigger than the
demonstrations protesting the arrests but, because the PRG
moved numbers of secondary school students into the area to join
the pro-Government demonstrations, the number of persons taking
part in the demonstrations cannot be taken as as accurate indicator
of public feeling in the area.
Some two weeks later, Evan Bhola and two others of the group of
former NJM supporters who had gone underground were arrested in the
sister island of Carriacou. Others are being sought by the
Security Forces, and official sources link the Queens Park and
Belmon. boml incidents with this group.
Chief among those being sought are Kenneth "Buck" Budhlall and
Russel Budhlali, brothers of Kennedy Budhlall, and their cousin
Roland J Budhlall.
Wqe Ending 28.6.80
Page 3
Page 4 THE GRENADA NEWSLETTER WeeK Enainq 8.o.8Oa
"TORCHLIGHT" DIRECT ORS TO WRITE GOVERNMENT
Shareholders of Grenada Publishers Ltd, owners of the banned
"Torchlight" newspaper, have expressed concern over Government's
failure to acknowledge receipt of a letter written by the Company
more than a month ago.
That letter, dated May 21st last, was read to the Company's Annual
General Meeting on June 26th, and shareholders learned from it that
their Directors have denied Government's charges that "Torchlight"
attempted to destabilizee" the Peoples Revolutionary Government (PRG).
.It was following those charges that, last October, "Torchlight" was
ordered closed by the Secretary for National Security.
tShareholders learned also that the Directors have advised Government
'that they are ready to hold discussions with Government relative to
freopcning "Torchlight", but no reply has been received from the PRG.
Law
After the closure of "Torchlight", Government passed a law which
automatically vested in Government all shares in the Company held by
Grenadians above a limit of 4% each of the capital of the Company.
All shares held by aliens were also automatically vested in the
Government.
This law makes Government the largest shareholder in the Company with
31% of the shares, and Government was represented at the Annual
General Meeting by Mr Lauriston Wilson Jr, Permanent Secretary in,
the Ministry of Finance. Acting on Mr Wilson's suggestion, the
!meeting decided to write Government reminding of the Company's
letter and asking for a reply.
The audited accounts of Grenada Publishers Ltd, presented to the
Annual General Meeting, show that, in the year ending 31st December
1979, the Company lost EC$15,666.00. The printing department
showed a gross profit increase of EC$6,869.00 over the 1978 figure
of EC$30,847.00, but gross profit figures for the newspaper
department dropped from the 1978 figure of EC$76,140.00 to
EC$32,259.00.
- continued -
rrrn i 'IrcC
-i --L
THE GRENADA NEWSLETTER
"In 1977, for the first time since the company was established in
1974, the Accounts showed a modest net profit of BC$13,706.00",
the Directors Report says. "In 1978, as a result of substantial
improvement in newspaper circulation and advertising revenues, that
profit was increased to EC$38,169.00. For the year under
review, the picture has changed dramatically and the Company has
now reverted to a loss position ....."
The total unrelieved losses of the Grenada Publishers Ltd stood
at EC$162,773.OO at 31st December 1979.
(377 words)
HEALTH SERVICES WORKSHOP
A Caricom sponsored workshop for personnel in the health services
was conducted in Grenada from 23rd to 28th June.
Funded by the United States Agency for International Development,
the workshop was part of a regional project which will benefit
Grenada, Barbados, St.Lucia, St.Vincent, Dominica, Antigua,
Montserrat, St.Kitts and Belize.
Team Leader of the workshop is Mr Alston Fergusson and he,told
NEWSLETTER that the project, which was started last September, is
divided into "packages".
"Package A is a basic management course introducing participants to
functions of management and giving them basic training in
communications, planning, organising, staffing and controlling", he
said. "To follow in the second half of this year will be
package B, a course in team building, and later we will have
courses in supervision and advanced techniques of management."
In addition to the courses in management, Mr Fergusson said, the
project includes technical assistance in .the fields of health
planning, information systems, organisational analysis and district
health team building.
- continued -
Week Ending 28.6.80
-. 1W L_.. ^ ^ On^
Page 6 THE CRENADA NEWSLETTER weeK nallng 2o.o.ou
Of the nine Countries involved in the project, only Dominica has
not yet had the courses in basic management. Those courses are
expected to start in that country on July 7th.
(194 words)
US PUBLISHES DENIAL
The PFxbados FmbFassy of the United States has denied that the
United.States was in any way involved in the bomb incident which
killed two people at a rally at Queens Park, St.Georges on June
19th. The denial was issued in Bridgetown, Barbados on June
24th.
"The Embassy takes this opportunity to state categorically that no
Agency of the U S Government was in any way involved in that
occurance", a press release from the Embassy says. "The
Embassy further denies allegations that the United Stares
Government is engaged in any effort whatsoever to 'destabilize'
the Peoples Revolutionary Government of Grenada."
This statement comes in the wake of accusations by the Peoples
Revolutionary Government (PRG) that the United States Central
Intelligence Agency was involved in the bomb incident and other
attemptss to destabilizee" the PRG.
In a national'broadcast on June 19th, Prime Minister Maurice Bishop
blamed "imperialism and their local reactionary agents" for the
bomb incident. And, he asked Grenadians to remember Viet Nam
where "thousands and millions of people were killed by U S
imperialism." The June 19th bomb incident, he said, "is part
of a total unfolding plan aimed at the destruction of the Grenada
revolution."
(197 words)
GOVERNMENT MAKES OFFER FOR SEAMOON
The Ponrploc Aovliutionary Government (PRG) has made ah offer to
purchase the "S-amoon" race track and pavilion located on the
island's east coast a short distance from Pearls airport.
continued -
jl_
Week Ending 28.6.30 THE GRENADA NEWSLETTER Page 7
"Seamoon" race track, once the centre or horse-racing in Grenada,
belongs to the Grenada Racing Company Ltd. Two decades ago,
there existed in Grenada two horse-racing organizations, the
Grenada Turf Club and the St.Andrews Race Club, and there was
friction between them. The former, holding its meetings at
Queens Park, St.Georges, was the representative of the Jockey Club
and the official racing authority in Grenada, but the latter had
greater support from the public.
Early in the 60s, the two racing organizations amalgamated as the
Grenada Racing Co Ltd, operating at the Seamoon race track. Towards
the end of the 70s, however, the Company came under pressure from
the Government of Premier Eric Gairy and ceased to hold race
meetings. In latter years, the pavilion and grounds have been
used for political meetings and rallies.
Proposal
Last October., the Directors of the Company approached the
Government with a view to selling the property which is 50 acres
and the pavilion. NEWSLETTER is advised that the PRG has now
considered the proposal and has advised the Company that it is
willing to purchase the property for EC$300,000.00.
Two alternative methods of payment have been proposed as follows:-
Alternative I
Cash 9E$100,000.00
Airport Bonds 200,000.00
SC$300,000.00
Alternative II
Cash EC$100,000.OO
Airport Bonds 100,000.00
Payment schedule
over 10 years 100,000.00
EC$300,000 .0
The Airport Bonds referred to are Government bonds on sale to
finance the building of the international airport now under
construction. These bonds pay interest at 6% per annum and are
redeemable at par in the year 2000 or earlier at the Government's
option.
- continued -
Page 8 TfhE GRrNADA NEWSLETTER Week ending 28.6.80
NEWSLETTER is advised that a meeting of the Company is to be
called to discuss Government's proposals.
(314 words)
BANANA BAROMETER
Total Pounds
Shipped to...
S.1978
31,329,521
29,805,398
27,881,052
25,603,992
23,814,791
21,273,037
L8,748,730
15,369,158
L2,532,604
9,576,104
6,769,839
3, 7f1 ,002
1979
30,909,292
28,909,371
25,996,791
23,547,561
21,465,760
19,597,697
16,548,601
13,811,088
11,030,527
8,228,054
6,055,675
3,374,687
1980
- 1.34%
- 3.01%
- 6.76%
- 8.03%
- 9.86%
- 7.87%
-11.73%
-10.14%
-11.98%
-14.07%
-10.55%
- 9.06%
10,706,030
7,963,321
5,830,929
3,255,111
[December
i Qctober i
Septembe
I Ju_ _
- 3.71% I lebrua-y
3 .5 ... '._. ',
- 3.54% !T nuar-r.
Cotal Dollars (EC)
larned to....
1978
9,408,509
8,967,352
8,382,371
7,650,980
7,036,196
6,180,346
5,349,667
-4,257,377
3,395,955
2,530,502
1,773,422
961,909
1979
9,822,400
9,274,319
8,453,969
7,695,367
6,995,465
6,301,442
5,105,946
4,148,878
3,163,850
2,246,667
1,627,932
922,307
+ 4.39%
+ 3.42%
+ .85%
+ .71%
- .58%
+ 1.96%
- 4.56%
- 2.55%
- 6.83%
-11.22%.
- 8.20%
- 4.12%
3,583,197 +11.70%
2,566,457 +12.46%
1,825,401 +10.82%
969,961 + 4.91%
Se t er
K..Julu.t__j
I. June -
| May.
Hb March Ii:
-IFebruar
- '---a--
4JiJnuary jry .
'- 1- -' .-..: .:.'"*--:'- +
,. ... ".r ," r + .. . '" --:
' j.+"' +i + "N '. ___...':.
tiat point Tqo pointt passengerr Traffic
April 1980
St.Thomas
St.Croix
St Maarten
St.Kitts
Montserrat
Antigua
Guadeloupe
Dominica
Martinique
't.Lucia
Barbados
ft.Vincent
G ada
Trinidad
Total
S-
STX
SXM
SKB
MNI
ANU
YT
DOM
FDF
"LU
BGI
GND
"I-)'
STT STX SXM
107
129
109
3.41
21
381
.2
41
5
16
7
75
142
4--
230
1
28
3
21
2
102
12
399
6
77
.1
43
16
5
SKB MNI
281 11
146 4
97 4
36
45
711
4
10
8
21
44
7
1
- 894 506 897 1375
ANU
270
191
261
655
1363
1347
149
12 573
106
19 -275
9 308
60
29
14
1442 4254
PTP
13
8
8
7
437
250
3
112
139
DOM
37
50
51
19
10
561
124
171
255
406
14
FDF SLU
1 15
10 32
8
9 13
4.
86 213
25
151 207
503
474
436
2
2048
115
BGI
5
5
11
55
16
220
50
443
486
2410
2761
5 18 10 55 2476
7 29 71 301
989 1745 1179 3309 9239
SVD G:MD POS Total
740 St.Thomas
3 578 St.Croix
2 1 619 St.Maarten
5 3 1359 St.Kitts
3 1 1416 Montisrtat
41 27 4 4657 Aptigua
2 2 .55 Guadeloupe
23 18 26 1859 Dominica
1 .9 3 .1293 Martinique
54 141 127 3968 St.Lucia
2410 1789 136 7750 Barbados
119 1293 4.76 St Vincent
53 2378. 5025 Grenada
1250 2227 3899 Trinidad
3847 4335 3969 37030
Left hand column represents
point of origin of traffic; top line represents destination
Figures at right represent total traffic originating; figures at foot represent..total
traffic arriving.
Page 10. THE GRENADA NEWSLETTER Week Ending 28.6.80
LIAI PASSENGER TRAFFIC
During the first quarter of 1980, Liat handled 228,650 passenger
passenger arrivals and departures (PAD). Busiest point in
the airline's fourteen point circuit was Barbados with 53,264 PAD,
representing 23.29% of the total traffic.
Next busy point was Grenada with 28,859 PAD (12.62%), followed by
Antigua with 28,092 PAD (12.29%), St.Vincent with 23,877 PAD
(10.49%) and St.Lucia with 20,427 PAD (8.93%)
At the low end of the scale in terms of traffic were St.Maarten,
St.Thomas and St Croix in that order. Over the three month
period, Liat had 4,890 PAD (2.13%) at St.Maarten, 4,759 PAD (2.08%)
at st Thomas and 2,933 PAD (1.28%) at St.Croix.
(103 words)
NEWS SHORTS
An International Students Seminar began. in Grenada on June 27th
and is expected to run until June 30th. Twenty-seven Youth and
Student Bodies are represented at this seminar which is jointly
sponsored by the International Union of Students, the Grenada
National Students Council and the National Youth Organisation.
(49 words)
Grenada/Cuba Communications Agreement
Minister of Communications, Works & Labour Selwyn Strachan and
his Cuban counterpart, Sr.Pedro Guelmas signed an agreement in
the area of communications on June 16th. According to the
Government Information Services, this agreement is expected to
bring improvements and upgrading to Grenada's communication
services.
(43 words)
Honorary Swedish Consul Appointed
Mrs Angela Smith has been appointed Honorary Swedish Consul in
Grenada. Mrs Smith, President of the Grenada Employers
Federation, is wife of Consultant Electronics Engineer,
Mr Raymond Smith.
(25 words)
Week Ending 28.6.80 THE GRENADA NEWSLETTER Page 11
Prime Minister BisIhop Rplies to Barbados Bishop
Prime Minister Maurice Bishop has said that statements
attributed to Anglican Bishop of Barbados, Drexel Gomez,
identify the Bishop as a "spokesman for imperialism".
According to the Government Information Services, Bishop
Drexel Gomez is reported to have said that the Grenada
revolution and its leadership had to continue to rule by
violence, the gun and the bomb.
"Such attacks would always be led by U S imperialism
backed and supported by other imperialist forced and a tiny
local and regional minority which thrives on exploitation",
Prime Minister Bishop said.
(88 words)
Agricultural Students Graduate
Forty-seven students graduated from the Mirabeau Farm Training
School on June 26th. They completed a pne year course in
modern techniques of farmingL
(24 words)
Venezuela Names Resident Ambassador
Retired Brigader General Hermes Jose Salas Rivero has been named
resident Ambassador to Grenada. He is expected to take up his
duties shortly.
(23 words)
Aliste ghes
2 June 1980
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