Lord Michael Ashcroft, British peer, declared war on Kremandala on Thursday, March 28, 2007. This is bad news for Kremandala, but good news for Belize City. The war on Kremandala means that Lord Ashcroft will now start spending money, through his surrogates, to show Belizeans in the media capital just how much he loves them.
Of the ten area representatives in Belize City, I would say at least half of them are either affectionate with, or intimidated by, the mighty Lord. These Ashcroft-supporting area representatives, who are of both political persuasions, will be instructed to initiate, then intensify a propaganda campaign against Kremandala, and they will receive appropriate financing.
I have discussed with you before, the classic nature of our situation in Belize with respect to the presence of an overpowering invader. In these situations, the indigenous or native people will be split into two camps – those who seek accommodation with the invader and those who resist him. (If you are a student, then you can study the case of the Lakota Sioux and compare the accommodation of Red Cloud with the resistance of Crazy Horse.)
I believe that the vast majority of Belize people have seen through Ashcroft, and feel that his games are primarily to benefit himself and his companies. This is called business. But the vast majority of Belize people are poor people, so any assistance offered which makes their life more comfortable, will be accepted.
As an older man, even though my road remains the road of resistance, I do not feel a bitterness or animosity towards those of my people who want to seek accommodation. In my youth, I would have been angry, especially with those leaders who pretend to be militant in the streets, but accept The Man’s handouts behind closed doors. But, you know, these accommodationists are those who consider themselves “bright,” and nobody wants to be dull.
Insofar as Kremandala’s defence against the Ashcroft attack is concerned, we have been receiving expert advice from accountant Cedric Flowers. A high ranking lawyer this week offered his service, and when our defence team met to consult on Wednesday morning, we decided to accept his offer.
In the early days of Partridge Street, we were defended in Supreme Court by lawyers who offered their services for free. They did so because they knew we were indigent. The most notable of these pro bono lawyers were Assad Shoman and Said Musa in the 1970 sedition case, and Dean and Denys Barrow in the Price and Sylvestre libel cases of 1982 and 1983.
Today, Kremandala is still not a wealthy business, but we feel it incumbent upon us to negotiate some payment with our professional help. Presently, the nature of the Ashcroft attack on Kremandala is financial, so Kremandala will require legal and accounting advice and leadership. I am not an accountant or a lawyer. Such men are those who have chosen to spend several years studying, after undergraduate work, to acquire their expertise. When Ashcroft comes at you, he comes at you with an array of lawyers and accountants. Any accountant or lawyer who lines up for Partridge Street against Market Square, immediately has to be considered heroic, at least by us.
So, my short column this week has been by way of giving you an update on the declaration of war, and our preparation for defence. As you can imagine, I have been experiencing a modicum of shock. I am, of course, impressed by the ferocity of the attack, but it wasn’t as if I had not been warned. As I said in last week’s column, I am, besides being shocked, somewhat confused, almost helpless. This is a job, to repeat, for accountants and lawyers.
I man, of course, trust that those of you who have believed in our sincerity, will help us to defend.
Power to the people.