GEORGETOWN,
Guyana, Monday July 9, 2012 – Grenada’s protracted dispute with Taiwan over a
US$30 million debt is a lesson for small island nations caught in the middle of
a tug-of-war by developed nations to win hearts and minds in the region and
access minerals and other natural resources.
So
says Wazir Mohamed, a Caribbean-born assistant professor of sociology at the
University of Indiana, East, in a recent interview with Inter Press Service
(IPS).
"There
are a lot of implications for small states being caught in a new type of cold
War in the world today," he told IPS. "Nothing has changed in the way
capital is being used by the West and nations like China. It is a new form of
colonialism, but the only thing different to the past is that this new form is
now being implemented and effected much more rapidly than in the past using
capital that is very, very mobile.
"Caribbean
nations have to be careful about being caught in the middle of these geopolitical
fights involving other nations," said Mohamed.
For
other nations like St Lucia, the issue is of prime importance and one to
monitor very closely as it could also face similar problems. The last
government in 2007 had ironically kicked out China and replaced it with Taiwan, pending the decision of another administration in the late 1990s.
China
has so far not retaliated by demanding back its money, notably funding for a
new sports stadium, hospital and buildings in St. Lucia's industrial zone, but
has condemned local officials outright for its diplomatic expulsion.
"We
have been very careful about making this decision, and now that we have taken
it, we do not expect the Chinese will love us any more for it," said then
Foreign Minister Rufus George Bousquet. "But we expect that they will
conduct themselves in a manner that is acceptable to our government."
Bousquet's
government has since lost power. The new administration of Prime Minister Kenny
Anthony has already spoken to both sides, but for now is playing it safe and
has remained loyal to Taiwan even though it had chosen China in a previous
period in office. Bousquet had also said the policy back then was to deal with
which donor was willing to give more.
Once
Taiwan departed Grenada, China moved in to win hearts, funding a national
sports stadium and donating generously to reconstruction efforts in the
aftermath of Hurricane Ivan, which devastated the island in September 2004.
Other
Caribbean trade bloc nations that recognise Taiwan over China include Haiti,
St. Kitts, St. Vincent, Belize and now St. Lucia, even though the official
policy of the bloc is for a "one China Policy".
For
now it appears that mainland China is winning. Last September, many regional
leaders travelled to Trinidad for the China-Caricom forum where the delegation
from Beijing offered up to US$1 billion dollars in soft loans to fund projects
throughout the region.
Some
states, like Caribbean Community headquarters Guyana, signed on quickly by
proposing various projects for funding, but Taiwan does not have that luxury as
its diplomatic and aid outreach is confined only to those with which it has
formal diplomatic relations.
SOURCE:
http://www.caribbean360.com/index.php/news/guyana_news/594906.html#ixzz20D9U9JQT
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