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Mitchell hits out at ‘hateful’ criticism by attorney Fred Smith

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PLP Chairman Fred Mitchell.

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Staff Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

FOREIGN Affairs and Immigration Minister Fred Mitchell responded yesterday to the “hateful” criticism attorney Fred Smith, QC, allegedly made about The Bahamas recently.

This marks the most recent verbal sparring in a long running war of words between the two men.

Speaking in the House of Assembly, Mr Mitchell said: “Mr Smith, who is himself a naturalised citizen of The Bahamas, and was given shelter in this country, has indicated the following and I quote: ‘The fact is The Bahamas is a very racist, a very xenophobic, a nationally insecure and a very hateful place to foreigners.’

“This is absolutely untrue,” Mr Mitchell added. “This is a statement that comes from someone who presents himself as a human rights activist. He makes his living and a livelihood in The Bahamas. This is the equivalent of a fisherman calling his own fish stink. Given the wide circulation of the documents, no immigration minister can allow this comment to stand unchallenged, particularly as it was delivered in the face of 65 foreign people who live in The Bahamas and are valued investors here. It is hateful; it is deceitful.

“This is ungrateful. It is dishonest. It is unpatriotic. All fun and jokes aside, as a public policy maker, as a member of Parliament, as a minister of the government, I am sworn to defend the Bahamas and its Constitution and its people without fear or favour. I do not appreciate in the least this attempt to smear me and to smear the government and the wider Bahamian people, no matter how it is dressed up.”

Mr Mitchell was referring to comments Mr Smith allegedly made during a meeting of the Coral Beach Condominium Association on January 15.

Sixty-five people, “most of them non-nationals,” attended the meeting, Mr Mitchell said. It was at the meeting Mr Smith criticised the government for getting involved in “the private financial or private disputes in a condominium association.”

An audio recording of the meeting was circulated yesterday.

In the recording, a man, purportedly Mr Smith, can be heard warning those attending that they may be deported.

“ . . . It is inappropriate for the government to get involved in the private, financial disputes in a private condominium association like this. Why is Fred Mitchell, the minister of immigration, getting involved in a dispute that exists between condominium owners. Why is he picking on Bruno Rufa. . .or others?

“ . . . Make no mistake, when the new board decides to enforce the lien against some Bahamian who refuses to pay the maintenance, you will be the next one that immigration will try and deport.”

Mr Smith also purportedly said: “It’s a very difficult environment to live in. You’re all white for the most part and it’s a big problem for a lot of the black Bahamians that you’re down here. Believe it or not, they want your money, they want you to spend it, but they don’t like you.

“The fact is that The Bahamas is a very racist, very xenophobic, nationally insecure and a very hateful place to foreigners.”

Mr Smith represents Grand Bahama resident Bruno Rufa, a Canadian citizen, who has been accused of working in The Bahamas without the legal authority to do so.

Comments

bluesky 7 years, 11 months ago

Shame on QC Fred Smith, Why is he promoting hate towards Bahamians, in the Coral Beach Community... Many owners are speaking out against his hateful and racist behavior.. Coral Beach Owners finally stood up to Bruno Rufa and kicked him out as president. Fred Smith threatened to sue the owners if the New Board does not pay the outstanding one million dollars legal fees for Bruno Rufa,s criminal and Immigration matters. out of the goodness of his heart, he claimed he didn't bill the one million as yet, because he didn't want Coral Beach to go bankrupt. So disappointed in Fred Smith.

seagrape 7 years, 11 months ago

It appears that the QC was on the brink of a nervous breakdown at the coral beach condo meeting recently held in Freeport. How else to explain his behavior. A trip to the mountains in Tibet is long over due.

stoner 7 years, 11 months ago

Personally, it is my strong opinion that the local QC is correct in that there is hate towards white people and not just any outsiders in general. The local population is off the strong opinion that hey are taking away their jobs.They look at all white as inferior to them. This is correct in many ways because the locals are uneducated and unskilled and can't perform the jobs that foreigins do. They just don't have the skills.It is very angry for locals to look at and I agree. They want the other man's job and salary but can't perform due to lack of skills.Personally they should still be working in the sugar cane fields or harvesting cane or working for a plantation owner.I worked there in Nassau and they all wanted your job for the money that you made and not your job because they were not qualified. It is sad and personally I blame on the Govt.They have been in power for thirty three years since independants and still can,t see it.Wake up for god's sake and forget about smelling the roses and help the general population.

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