Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BRIDGETOWN711
2007-06-05 17:13:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Bridgetown
Cable title:  

AMBASSADOR OURISMAN'S MEETING WITH BARBADOS DPM

Tags:  BB ECON ETRD PGOV PINR PREL XL 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0023
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHWN #0711/01 1561713
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 051713Z JUN 07 ZDK
FM AMEMBASSY BRIDGETOWN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4849
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHCV/AMEMBASSY CARACAS PRIORITY 1738
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC PRIORITY
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC PRIORITY
RUHMFISS/DEPT OF HOMELAND SECURITY WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUMIAAA/HQ USSOUTHCOM J2 MIAMI FL PRIORITY
RUMIAAA/HQ USSOUTHCOM J5 MIAMI FL PRIORITY
RUEHCV/USDAO CARACAS VE PRIORITY
C O N F I D E N T I A L BRIDGETOWN 000711 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS


DEPT FOR WHA/CAR (COLLINS) AND EEB/CIP/BA (FETCHKO)
DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO USTR (HINCKLEY)
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/31/2017
TAGS: BB ECON ETRD PGOV PINR PREL XL
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR OURISMAN'S MEETING WITH BARBADOS DPM
MOTTLEY

REF: BRIDGETOWN 632

Classified By: AMBASSADOR MARY M. OURISMAN FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).

C O N F I D E N T I A L BRIDGETOWN 000711

SIPDIS

SIPDIS


DEPT FOR WHA/CAR (COLLINS) AND EEB/CIP/BA (FETCHKO)
DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO USTR (HINCKLEY)
SOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/31/2017
TAGS: BB ECON ETRD PGOV PINR PREL XL
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR OURISMAN'S MEETING WITH BARBADOS DPM
MOTTLEY

REF: BRIDGETOWN 632

Classified By: AMBASSADOR MARY M. OURISMAN FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).


1. (C) Summary: In a May 30 introductory meeting with
Ambassador Mary Ourisman, Barbados' Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Economic Affairs and Development, Mia Mottley,
thanked the United States for its assistance during Cricket
World Cup and looked forward to further cooperation in the
areas of security and commerce. She discussed her possible
participation in the Americas Competitiveness Forum in
Atlanta and plans for meetings in Washington. Ambassador
Ourisman raised with DPM Mottley problems faced by U.S.
companies in the Barbadian market and other bilateral issues.
Mottley assured the Ambassador that Barbados was committed
to creating a welcoming business environment and was seeking
additional investment, especially in the manufacturing
sector. End Summary.

--------------
Cricket World Cup Legacy
--------------


2. (SBU) Barbados' Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of
Economic Affairs and Development, Mia Amor Mottley, began her
first official meeting with Ambassador Ourisman by formally
thanking her for the generous U.S. assistance during Cricket
World Cup (CWC). Mottley, who chaired the regional committee
on Cricket World Cup (CWC) security, appears likely to remain
engaged in current CARICOM efforts to implement on a
permanent basis some of the CWC-related border security
measures, such as the Single Domestic Space and the Joint
Regional Communication Centre. Mottley attended the recent
meeting of CARICOM Ministers responsible for National
Security, where they decided to submit to the CARICOM Heads
of Government, who will meet in July in Barbados, the plan
for a permanent Single Domestic Space. In her view, "the
region was finally buying into it," with "it" being the

effort to use the CWC security measures as a catalyst to
advance the region's integration efforts, especially in the
area of security.

--------------
Caribbean Regional Maritime Agreement
--------------


3. (SBU) Mottley also noted that the region is pushing
forward cooperation under the Caribbean Regional Maritime
Agreement (CRMA),but that the region would need assistance
from the United States and other donors, including the United
Kingdom and the Netherlands. She clarified that Barbados and
Trinidad/Tobago were not requesting any assistance and "would
take care of themselves," but smaller islands like
Antigua/Barbuda and St. Kitts/Nevis were still "exposed."
Adding that the matter had been discussed during the recent
CARICOM National Security ministerial, Mottley thought it
would likely be raised during the June Conference on the
Caribbean in Washington. (Note: Barbados Attorney General
Dale Marshall also raised CRMA assistance with Ambassador
Ourisman during their May 11 meeting. See reftel. The CRMA
is a 2003 agreement that covers boarding rights during
counter-narcotics operations. In response to the original
USG demarche on CRMA, several but not all CARICOM member
states drafted a list of desired equipment as a signing quid
pro quo. End Note.)

-------------- -
Upcoming Conferences and Mottley's Hill Agenda
-------------- -


4. (SBU) In response to the Ambassador's question whether
Mottley would travel to Atlanta for the June 10-13 Americas
Competitiveness Forum (ACF),Mottley said she was considering
it and would more than likely accept the invitation. She
thought she would be able to travel because Barbados, unlike
Jamaica, was not yet in "high election alert." Mottley
expressed her hope that the ACF would be structured in such a
way so that the "Caribbean region would not get swallowed up
by the Latins," as is usually the case in other fora. The
Ambassador reassured her by noting that Secretary Gutierrez

was planning to meet with the CARICOM representatives
separately, and the ACF would include a panel on business
opportunities in the CARICOM region. In the event that she
would attend the ACF, Mottley asked for assistance in
arranging a brief conversation with Treasury Secretary
Paulson regarding Barbados' lack of access to World Bank and
Inter-American Development Bank loans. According to Mottley,
Barbados still needs access to concessional development
finance.


5. (SBU) Prior to visiting Atlanta, Mottley hopes to pay a
round of calls in Washington, specifically focusing on
meetings in Congress regarding the recently proposed "Stop
Tax Haven Abuse Act." She said it was unfortunate that
Barbados had to wage another battle against being labeled as
a tax haven, noting that Barbados had been taken off the OECD
list of tax havens years earlier. She hoped that her
meetings would help lower what she termed the "information
deficit on the Hill" concerning this issue.


6. (SBU) Mottley said that she was unlikely to attend the
Conference on the Caribbean in Washington. Current plans
have PM Arthur and FM Miller leading the Barbadian
delegation. In addition to mentioning the CRMA assistance
request, Mottley also thought that CARICOM may raise criminal
deportees as an issue for the Conference. She clarified that
Barbados has never seen deportees as a problem, and said that
Barbados would continue to be "laid back" about it. However,
Jamaica, Trinidad/Tobago, and Guyana were making a strong
push within CARICOM to place this issue on the June agenda
and have prepared studies on the subject. While Mottley did
not provide any other specifics on possible agenda items for
the June Conference, she did express a hope that the United
States and CARICOM could rebalance their dialogue so that it
would encompass more than just security.

--------------
Doing Business in Barbados
--------------


7. (SBU) In response to the Ambassador's question regarding
the ongoing dispute between the U.S.-owned TeleBarbados and
Cable & Wireless, Mottley acknowledged that she was aware of
the matter, but had not seen the Ambassador's May 25 letter.
Like other Barbadian officials, she claimed that her Ministry
had "no jurisdiction in that matter. It is between the FTC
(Fair Trading Commission) and the courts." She added that she
would try to stay engaged, but did not offer any specific
steps she would take. In her view, the key to resolving this
and any other problems in the Barbadian telecommunications
sector was the second phase of the government's
telecommunication liberalization, which is currently in a
preparatory stage. Mottley expected the government to
complete its consultations with the industry and produce new
legislation over the next two months.


8. (SBU) The Ambassador also brought to Mottley's attention
complaints from other companies, both U.S. and local, about
high port charges, as well as costly and cumbersome customs
regulations. Mottley stated that the Barbadian government
was committed to resolving these problems and had already
established a ministerial committee, which included her as
well as other ministers with economic portfolios, to consider
how to reform the Barbadian customs. She thought that the
government would be able to implement the reforms over the
next 18 months. With regard to the Bridgetown port, she said
that those problems would not be "easy to unlock because the
port is the last bastion of union power." (Note: Mottley is
correct that the unions have a firm grip over the Bridgetown
port's labor force. When necessary, the unions are not
afraid to exercise this power, and inevitably, they get what
they want. For example, they shut down the port only days
before the start of the Cricket World Cup, and the government
along with the port management quickly capitulated on the
unions' demands. End Note.)


9. (SBU) Despite the problems faced by TeleBarbados and
other U.S. investors, Mottley spoke at length about her
efforts to position Barbados as a good place to invest and do
business. She recently presented Barbados' new industrial

policy in the Parliament, in which the government identified
attracting additional foreign investment as a key challenge
for the country. Since assuming her role as Minister of
Economic Affairs and Development in early 2006, Mottley has
spoken frequently about Barbados' need to grow its
manufacturing sector, and the new industrial policy sets the
ambitious target of doubling Barbados' exports over the next
five years. Mottley thought that reaching the target would
be possible if Barbados could attract at least two sizable
investments from abroad. Her vision for Barbados' economy
also includes the country's growing network of tax and
investment treaties, which she hopes will enable investors to
use Barbados as a springboard for onward investment to other
markets. She noted that Barbados has been especially
successful in attracting Canadian companies, which enjoy
substantial tax savings by operating out of Barbados.

--------------
Preclearance Facility for Barbados
--------------


10. (SBU) Another way Barbados would like to boost its
economic performance is by increasing tourism, especially
from the United States. Mottley renewed her government's
earlier request for a DHS/ICE preclearance facility at the
Bridgetown airport. She termed the proposed facility a
gesture of "tremendous good will" and argued that it would
ease pressure off U.S. ports of entry. While Mottley viewed
the facility as "one of the little things that can help us
become more sufficient and a regional travel hub," DCM Gilroy
countered that this was a complex undertaking for the U.S.
government and something that we have implemented only in
places with much higher passenger traffic.

--------------
Confiscated Weapons
--------------


11. (C) Ambassador Ourisman inquired into the case of a
consignment of weapons which had been seized by Barbados
Customs in 2006 due to inadequate advance notification by the
United States. The weapons had been procured under the
Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program for St. Lucia and
Dominica. Ambassador Ourisman stressed that the Embassy now
has in place proper procedures to preclude future problems.
Mottley was familiar with the situation, and promised to
raise the matter with Foreign Minister Miller.

--------------
Comment
--------------


12. (C) Mottley is among the most active and visible members
of PM Arthur's cabinet. Her leadership and management
credentials are recognized not only in Barbados, but across
the region as evidenced by her appointment as the chair of
the regional committee on Cricket World Cup security. Until
recently, she was viewed as the unquestioned heir apparent to
PM Arthur. However, the February 2006 cabinet reshuffle saw
Mottley lose the important Attorney General and Home Affairs
portfolio and assume the position of Deputy Prime Minister
and Minister of Economic Affairs and Development. Some
commentators have viewed this change as a demotion for
Mottley and as a sign that PM Arthur was seeking to sideline
her by putting her in charge of the economic portfolio, in
which she had no prior experience or interest. Many also
took PM Arthur's decision last fall to seek a fourth term,
despite earlier signals that he was preparing to retire, as a
confirmation that PM Arthur and the ruling Barbados Labour
Party (BLP) leadership were no longer prepared to see Mottley
take over the BLP reins.


13. (C) Former Senator Philip Goddard, an excellent contact
of the Embassy, recently confirmed to the DCM in a private
conversation that internal BLP leadership is absolutely
determined that Mottley would not lead the party, should they
be returned to power in the next elections. According to
Goddard, senior BLP officials believe that Mottley,s
personal life makes her an unacceptable choice to lead the
party and the nation. Mottley is widely believed to be gay,


and while that does not seem to have hindered her career,
Goddard clarified that it was her episodes of physical
violence that lost her support among the BLP kingmakers.
This information has not surfaced publicly and has not been
confirmed. However, in mid-May, one of Barbados' dailies,
The Nation, reported that Mottley had submitted her
resignation from cabinet because of her disagreements with PM
Arthur. The Nation went on to say that PM Arthur refused to
accept her resignation. Mottley later vehemently denied this
report.


14. (C) At 41, Mottley is among the youngest members of PM
Arthur's cabinet. She is also probably the most capable and
articulate. Nevertheless, Goddard's claims, if true, coupled
with Mottley's abrasiveness and overconfidence, which are
unlikely to have won her many friends within the BLP, could
bring her promising political career to an end. While that
would leave the BLP without an apparent successor to PM
Arthur, the BLP's leadership may have calculated that they
will have sufficient time to find an appropriate replacement
during PM Arthur's fourth term, which it is widely believed
he will win in the next election.
OURISMAN