I am pleased to tell you that the report sent out by Wesley Gibbings before his visit to Grenada, which you forwarded to me, is as distorted as what HIS organisation claims to be and I deeply regret and get very angry when the profession I came to late in life, but which I take very seriously, is prostituted by people who, whilst thumping their chests as champions of press freedom, abuse that very freedom and fail to practice or observe one of the main tenets of the profession:

check and double check the FACTS before rushing into print - especially as it relates to controversial matters! Here are the facts:

(1). The Grenada Broadcasting Network (in which the Government owns 40 per cent) had become aware of the story in the "Offshore Alert" publication in which it was alleged that Prime Minister Mitchell had been given US$500,000 as a bribe, by one Resteiner, to appoint him as Grenada Ambassador and they (GBN) began asking questions about it.

In response, the head of the Government Information Service (without referring it to the prime minister) issued a newsrelease saying inter alia (I will fax a copy to you) that it was understood that the contents of the article which are untrue were about "to be aired by your network" and if it was the "full force of the law" would be brought against them.

The release was copied "To All Media Houses". There was never any effort to 'prohibit' publication of the matter and we carried it on our front page.

Later the prime minister announced that he had instituted legal proceedings in Miami against the publisher of the newsletter and will sue anyone who carried libel against him in connection with the matter.

(2). No one has been 'arrested' in connection with the matter. A reporter named Leroy Noel who published a front page article on the matter in a new weekly newspaper was brought in by the police for questioning on the basis of a complaint by the prime minister about criminal libel.

A man (not a 'pampheteer') who was distributing leaflets carrying the story, reportedly printed by the main opposition political party, was also questioned as was a third person, I believe.

(3). Leroy Noel made a claim that, before he was detained for questioning, the prime minister pointed his finger at him and threatened him while he was on his way to Parliament and he also alleges that he has received a telephone call threatening his life.

Noel is well known for twisting things and I believe both claims to be untrue. He stated that two other reporters were with him when he was threatened by the prime minister without him saying anything. One of the other two reporters who works with a blatantly anti-government/Mitchell paper supported this claim. However, the other person present was one of my reporters and when questioned on the matter he said that it was Noel who initiated the exchange after falling in with the prime minister as he was walking into Parliament.

My young man does not recall clearly the words exchanged. What the prime minister said was that (knowing that the opposition was going to raise the matter of the bribe and, among other things, complain that no meeting of Parliament was held in the previous month) Noel said to him something to the effect of "Today is your day, you're going to get it" to which the prime minister responded "Your day is coming too".
Partly because of this distortion I also disbelieve the claim about the telephone threat.

(4). Gibbings complains about the "silence" of the Eastern Caribbean Press Council. Poor fellow! He appears not to understand that the ECPC operates on the basis of 'complaints' and will not deal with matters over which there is likely to be litigation.

Let me assure you once again that freedom of the press is alive and well in Grenada and the best evidence of this is the Grenada Today newspaper which carries each week blatant and severe attacks on the prime minister and his government with impunity - except for the editor being charged for Criminal Libel in connection with a damning article he carried and, after being questioned about the matter he repeated the publication the following week.

Frankly, I believe it is behaviour like this that gives prime ministers the encouragement to want to institute legislation to regulate the media and to retain the law on Criminal. I have made it clear to the prime minister publicly that I will never countenance the former - but cannot blame them onthe latter.

For the benefit of the other recipients of this I would like to make the 'full disclosure' that I and my paper are nominally supporters of the prime minister and his government because we genuinely believe them to be the best available.

However, in my own column and editorially (including this week) I criticise them severely when I think that they are wrong or have made a mistake. If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.

Leslie Pierre
Publisher/Managing Editor
The Grenadian Voice
Spice Island Printers Ltd