Following an appeal by Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Leslie Miller for a meeting with officials of the Atlantic Undersea Test and Evaluation Centre, a small delegation of government officials and media including The Tribune – travlled to the island to get a firsthand look at the facility.
The trip, which was organised by the US Embassy, was intended to give Bahamians more access to information about the base’s affects on marine life and human beings living in the area.
In the past, the research and testing facility has been blamed for an increase of cancer cases in Andros as well as a number of whale beachings.
Initially representatives from all media houses and several environmentalists were invited to tour the base yesterday.
However, late Wednesday night, environmentalists, including Sam Duncombe of ReEarth as well as the media houses Island FM/Cable 12, the Bahama Journal and the Punch, were told that there was no space for them on the helicopter taking the delegation to Andros.
In response to the environmentalists’ invitations being cancelled, Androsians yesterday morning protested in front of the gates of AUTEC.
“We are really appalled at this treatment. AUTEC is a matter of the public concern, and they didn’t allow any members of the public to go onto the base;” Andros-based environmentalist Margo Blackwell told The Tribune in a telephone interview.
Ms Blackwell said that she was very disappointed in the way the authorities had handled the promised visit to the base.
“I am appalled at how the whole trip has been organised and that there are ministers of my government that invited me, and then disinvited me, and feel okay going on AUTEC without any representation from the people,” she said.
Ms Blackwell said that Androsians held a town meeting on Wednesday night to discuss the longstanding concerns locals have had with the US base.
Although almost a 100 people attended the meeting, only about a dozen people joined the protest. “There’s a big fear for a lot of people to demonstrate against AUTEC since it offers so much employment,” she said.
However, locals used the town meeting to compile a list of questions concerning operations at the US base which will be presented to all relevant officials, she said.
Androsian Steve Smith, who was among the protesters, told The Tribune that he felt it was an affront for government officials not to meet with the locals before going onto the base.
“The government leaders went straight to AUTEC without meeting with the people. I feel like they should have come and talked to us, the people, first, and listened to our concerns,” he said.
Jerome Sawyer, news director of Island FM and Cable 12, said that he considered the exclusion of certain media houses a “grave insult.”
By KARIN HERIG Tribune Staff Reporter
