Nassau International Airport / V.I.P. Lounge
Sunday 29th December, 2002

 I am on official leave for ten days and will make a private visit to Ireland and the United Kingdom.  Senator Marcus Bethel has been appointed by the Prime Minister to be the acting Minister in my absence.

 I wish to put some perspective on the role of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Foreign Policy of the Government of The Bahamas since 2nd May, 2002.  I think that the Bahamian people have much to be proud about and I hope that what the Ministry has done on their behalf is seen in a positive light.  I once again thank the Permanent Secretary and the staff of the Ministry and our Ambassadors and other representatives overseas for all their help.

 I believe, by way of general comment, that we ought to see our relations with all nations as friendly and cordial, and that we should not see foreign affairs and foreign relations as matters turning on personalities.  We must keep our eyes focused on the long-term relationships and the value of those relationships over time.

 The fact is that individuals come and go, and each individual brings his or her own style; but the Bahamian people are in my view a sophisticated people, able to discern the difference between individual styles and the larger relationships.  Individual styles are temporary and fleeting, but the important point is what is the underlying, long-term relationship between the people of The Bahamas and the people of the countries of the world.

 Whether we look north or south, the people of all countries get along well with the people of the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.  We have no enemies, and we have made no enemies.  We have conducted ourselves properly in the international arena, and this can be evidenced in one respect, notwithstanding the noise in the market, by the recent praise that we received from the United States authorities in Florida for the excellent co-operation that The Bahamas gave, resulting in the largest drug seizures in the history of the country being interdicted and major drug rings interrupted.  All of this happened since May, 2002.  And we have only continued the work of our predecessors in this regard.  This is a proud and incontrovertible fact.

 When you look at the conduct of the diplomatic missions resident in this country and those non-resident missions that serve the country from abroad, you will find that in the main there is great quiet work going on.  Diplomatic work is normally carried out without testiness or provocation.  The general work gets done to the benefit of both countries involved.

 The result of this quiet work will, for example, see a major visit by a high level delegation from the People’s Republic of China in two weeks time and increased technical co-operation with the British Government as well.  The Haiti Embassy and the Cuban Consulate General have both been most helpful on immigration matters between our countries.  On the ground, there is much good and productive work that goes on between The Bahamas and the United States; quietly, efficiently.  It is these high standards in the conduct of diplomacy to which Bahamians respond well and will continue to respond.  We are a focused people, keeping our eyes on the larger picture.

 Feedback is important to the work of any Government Ministry and I have been gratified by the comments and suggestions of Bahamians about how we ought to conduct our foreign affairs.  I continue to welcome those comments because it is the Bahamian people we serve.  It has been an honour to be able to stand up for a people who have defined themselves as worthy of praise.

 Every day in this country thousands of men and women of ordinary means send their children to schools, invest in their young, and the national has also invested its scarce resources in the young people of this country.  As I move about the country, I have met this new Bahamian, well trained, educated to degrees I could never have imagined, full of energy and vigour.  I have visited with students who are studying in Cuba, the United States, the United Kingdom and the Caribbean.  And everywhere I have gone, they have great pride in this country and what it can accomplish.

 In addition, The Bahamas’ performance in the multilateral area at Caricom, the United Nations, the Organization of American States and the Commonwealth has been exemplary.  A very important session of the General Assembly at the UN has recently concluded in which we were called upon to make significant decisions on a wide range of issues including the Middle East, and other critical issues.  We have kept a watchful eye on Iraq and North Korea so that we in The Bahamas can know what the importance is for The Bahamas on these issues.

 And so I urge the press who have been so helpful through all these months and our people generally to think about the larger picture.  Let me assure you of the Ministry’s continued commitment to good diplomacy at all levels and that we work at more than just one level; more than just the public level.  In the words of the late Clement Bethel: this time will pass; tomorrow’s another day.