The Tribune

By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

THE government is seeking to establish a formal agreement with the United States for the exclusive exchange of information to better combat migrant smuggling, Foreign Affairs and Immigration Minister Fred Mitchell said yesterday.

Mr Mitchell said The Bahamas government is seeking to establish a memorandum of understanding with the US on the exchange of “dip notes” (diplomatic notes) that would aid in both countries commitments to “combatting organised crime plaguing this region”.

Mr Mitchell made his statements at the signing of the seventh amendment to the Letter of Agreement (LOA) on Narcotics Control and Law Enforcement between the government and the US.

Yesterday’s amendment and contribution of over $2m is the largest single contribution to date under the LOA. The amendment is to aid the country’s fight against drug trafficking, as well as the implementation of various initiatives and programmes.

“Increasingly the assets of the US government have been used to fight migrant smuggling,” Mr Mitchell said yesterday. “This is becoming an ever more complicated area. Right now for example we’re working on an exchange of TIP notes which will in fact be a memorandum of understanding between the two countries on the sharing of intelligence information coming out of interdiction of migrants on the seas.

“So the idea would be that if the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and the Department of Immigration interdict migrants trying to come into The Bahamas, we would ask them certain questions, collect certain information. That information is then shared with the US.”

Speaking on the amendment, Mr Mitchell said: “The significance of this agreement is irrefutable. The Bahamas government recognises that the protection of our borders from the pernicious threats of money laundering, human trafficking and the smuggling of illicit drugs and firearms, requires a concerted effort and welcomes the assistance of its closest neighbour.”

According to Mr Mitchell, the LOA was originally signed in September 2010 as a part of the US-Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), which unites all members of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) to collaborate on regional security with the US as a partner.

Yesterday’s amendment/contribution of $2.745m is the largest to date, the second largest taking place in 2012 under the Free National Movement for a total of $2.5m.

To date, the US has provided $10m towards the country’s fight against drug trafficking. According to the US State Department’s website, the US has committed $263m in funding to CBSI since 2010.

The amendments provide funding to enhance the capabilities of the Royal Bahamas Police Force and Operation Bahamas, Turks and Caicos (OPBAT) to support drug demand reduction programmes, to assist the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services and to increase The Bahamas’ capability to investigate and prosecute crime.

Yesterday, US Charge d’Affaires Lisa Johnson said the amendment shows both governments’ “shared interest in countering illicit trafficking and increasing citizen security in The Bahamas.”

“We look forward to continuing to strengthening our collaboration with The Bahamas to counter illicit trafficking and to help make this region safer and more secure for all of our citizens,” she said.