Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - October 6, 1985, Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg free press october pages 1724 Uble in Bahamas pm at Hub of cocaine controversy the sunday London Queen Elizabeths visit to the Bahamas later this month to open the 16th Commonwealth Confer ence will be disrupted by the demonstrations against her the islands prime sir Lynden his opponents say he is corrupt and a Leader of the Progress Ive Liberal party and prime minis Ter for the past 18 is accused by the opposition the free National of allowing the country to become a Haven for drug traffickers and organized the Case against Pindling has been investigated by a team of reporters from the sunday times their report shows that drug Trad ing and High level which has caused the worlds first epidemic of cocaine left few Bahamas families Paradise lost the times found that today the islands Are a Paradise it re Veals How corruption involving drug particularly co has pervaded All strata of society including some of the men closest to on the the plight of the cocaine addicts has led to a crime rate among fhe hug Hesrich Tuffe the extent to which the islands have become a drug distribution Centre for North and the scandals surrounding the involvement of senior government figures with drug is cer Tain to overshadow the Confer which runs in Nassau and will be attended by 40 Heads of including prime minister the opposition plans a Demon stration against Pindling and his ministers in a Nassau Park Dur ing the and will also have its supporters on the Street shut chg the slogan the a thief whenever the Queen or one of the Heads of government makes an to broadcast the Pindling administration has been under siege Ever since a television broadcast two years ago revealed that Bahamas officials and members of the government were in drug some of Pindling col leagues persuaded him that an Independent commission of inquiry was needed to Clear their Pindling while insisting the inquiry stuck to drug related the evidence that emerged Dur ing the and the subsequent proved so the Queen will hear foes of prime minister sir Lynden chanting the chiefs a ing that Pindling has kept Public appearances to a minimum Ever in june he suspended parliamentary without a until after the Commonwealth con Pindling was Quick to respond to the times report hours after it was published pin doing said the report was inspired 1 by he said it was intended to have an effect on the Commonwealth Heads of government he said the conference was rightly expected to have a major Impact in South in not surprised by this newest act of child cynic i am Only surprised to learn the people of the Bahamas for their own private Are pre pared to assist the cause of the South african Pindling also said the report was a rehash of the Royal commission report that revealed h a drug Timothy the commission that on one occasion he saw the fugitive american financier Robert wanted in the for loot ing about million from the old investors overseas services personally handing to Pindling outside the prime ministers the he was part of a million fee he was paying ensure could operate unhampered in the his testimony to the commission was fiercely challenged by pin slings Lee and in the end the commission rejected Minnig claimed he was allowed to witness the transaction after refusing to hand Over the bulk of the Money until he was sure it was going to the right Minnig is now in jail in the on drug interviewed by the times he repeated his Allega d Between 1977 and 1983 Pindling received million in gifts and Loans from businessmen who depended on the governments and a further for which he had no two Cabinet both close associates and friends of were accused by the commission of one was said to have been fronting for a leading Mem Ber of the american and laundering drug he was alleged to have taken bribes from cocaine smugglers in return for promising although both were forced to resign after the neither has been brought to d the commission also levelled charges of corruption against to customs and immigration and officials of the d it heard evidence from a dozen big time traffickers who claim to have paid vast bribes for protect from their testimony a repeated theme emerges Traffick ers paid bribes in the belief that or of the Money would find its Way to the top is the Only drug smuggler who claims to have personally witnessed Pindling accepting a bribe an event said to have taken place in Minnig is now to be the key prosecution witness in a number of drug trials in the United the Justice department will not comment on his testimony to the but about his Tes Timony in other cases it has few Richard the attorney dealing with said we have been Able to corroborate independently almost every thing of what he has we have not found any evidence of any Type of in Everette a Nassau was charged with having committed perjury at the in the past 15 years he has taken millions of dollars from organized drug traffickers and legitimate businessmen with out a Good Deal of Miami Ltd Infra Abaco Bahama n Crand 7urk 200 Miles Atlantic Ocean Angada o san Juan Pon Sun m puerto dominican Rico rep buc i that Fortune has gone to the individual members of the party and the prime the commission revealed that in two years Bannister gave pin doing in various gifts and overdue Bannister said the commission believed him that this Money came from several business deals in which he and Pindling were in he denied to the commis that he had received from a Cuba american drug trafficker in return for issuing him a forged entry the drug Luis Kojak is now expected to give evidence against Nassau lawyer Bahamas critics of the govern ment Are also watching with in Terest the affairs of Nassau Law yer Nigel two grand juries in the have issued indictments against him and his extradition has been the charges relate to a co Caine trafficker called Jack who in 1982 went to see Pindling to Geek his help in obtaining licences to operate airline routes Between the Bahamas and Pindling told him that if he was having trouble Over the licences he should change his a week out of the Devoe was contacted by Bowe took him to meet two of the biggest colombian drug tray and business drug agents in Florida have obtained two Che ques made out to Bowe by Devons Money laundering company in the which the lawyer depo sited in his own Bank prosecutors have also obtained sworn testimony from Devoes for Mer financial who says he flew to the Bahamas four times to pay Bowe a total of for his help in drugs Bowe denies the accusations and will not discuss his possible extra a senior member of the pop said if he is sent to he will sing like a Canary and this Guy knows where the bodies Are yet to russian no Campaign David Hatton the sunday London Moscow a drunk was in for a Surprise Here two weeks ago when he was staggering and into a Black a russian Paddy and slammed into a sobering up clinic for the before paying a Fine to get out of the he had to face an inter View on television with a Stern looking medical now Why have you spent the night Here the official guess i didst run away fast the drunk whats your name wont Tell Why not because you can find you people can find out he sounded every bit the classic drunk of russian unlike his fictional this drunk was appearing on television not to entertain but As part of a huge Media Campaign launched by the soviet Mikhail Gorba to mobilize the country behind his ant alcohol scheme backfires As if to underline the size of the task Gorbachev the television confrontation instead of seeing the sense of the officials viewers sympathized More with the tragicomic it is three months since a series of ant alcohol measures was enacted that has earned Gorbachev the Nick name lemonade he has raised the Price of closed thousands of drink stores and limited licensing raised the drinking age to 21 and banned the Sale of alcohol to people wearing work economists have blamed wide spread drunkenness at work where Laws make it almost impossible to fire workers for much of the shoddy and erratic production in one expert estimated pro could improve by up to 30 per cent if drinking were Eli min the measures have had a notice Able Impact on everyday queues form hours before the 2 opening time at liquor stores and stretch for hundreds of at official formerly occasions for endless Vodka Only fruit juice and Mineral water Are Many restaurants have stopped serving hospitals Are re ported to be overwhelmed by cases of delirium this month the Central issued a report noting that Vodka sales had fallen while those of food and consumer goods had risen the number of Road Acci and drink related crimes had also but the same report mentioned the discontent that now faces Gorba he recognizes the resistance and is aware that if this Campaign fails his authority and ability to impose social and labor which in turn would stimulate the sluggish will be ques the effectiveness of this Campaign will become clearer during the win when russians have traditionally found Comfort in though the state has called for More youth and sports centres and places of Many bored russians still have Only the Vodka bottle to turn a adherent Calls flocks methods by David Roberts a Korea based group whose activities fre being monitored by has been recruiting in Winnipeg Tor More than two a former member the University Bible Fellowship High pressure recruiting tac can alienate members from their and and uses forts of though control during payer meetings Ai a Sherbrook St Phu Bruce Alexander said he was a Mem Ber i Trie Winnipeg group for about five months after meeting a woman named Rebecca i was in they kind of pulled me in off the they like to pressure they try keep you out of your parents in your Mother listen to me they try to run your Sarah Confounder of the said yesterday it would be unfair to criticize the missionary project because of one persons in Winnipeg to conduct a worship service said the uhf uses traditional Christian methods to interest people in the not a strange cult of any a native of missis we Are an established organization with a Good repute techniques a concern but Gordon spokesman for the Manitoba cult awareness said he is concerned about some techniques used by the the citizens Freedom found a cult awareness coalition in new York has a file on he they certainly exhibit cult like Gillespie they use High pressure i know there was quite a kerfuffle at the University in Chicago after a couple of their members a recent edition of the University of Illinois Chicago Circle Campus newspaper said two uhf members were arrested at the Campus follow ing a physical altercation with a former the Mother of one of the Chicago defectors began a personal Cru Sade against the uhf after past members alleged Corporal punish ment sometimes was used to discipline Gillespie said the groups North american Headquarters Are in Chi the chairman is Samuel although the Chicago student newspaper claims Lees real name is Chang University of Winnipeg students association president Sean Macdon Ald said he was aware uhf Mem Bers have approached u of w Stu we have had complaints that they Are he there really trying to convert i gather Treyve been around for a we have a lot of very legitimate religious groups on but this is the Only one weve had any complaints local uhf spokesman Sarah Lee said in an interview Friday Winni Peg is the sole Canadian opera asked Why Winnipeg was chosen she said it was the will of Barry said the female Mission Aries ended up in Winnipeg because they trained As sewing machine operators in Korea and Manitoba offered Job stories slanted she adamantly denied All allegations against the local and said stories in the Chicago news paper were slanted against the if we were a secular organization we would have she Lee said in alexanders Case it was he who initially expressed an interest in Bible once the group paid for his trip to an Ontario study con Alexander refused to repay them and friction his actions changed from moment to she Lee said there Are 29 uhf missionaries working in Barry said one local University Daniel attended a us sponsored training session Massey s brother Robert said he has mixed feelings about Daniels oneyear involvement in the i dont like their he they come on really we were almost wondering if this was a kind of Moonie one thing i do is it Hast been a bad thing for Alexander said daily scriptural readings and sunday worship ser where some recruits make Large financial donations Are held at the Sherbrook Street he said the missionaries Are highly they really believe there the servants of its just their methods that Are very they turn you against your Parent families just dont they try to turn you into Evange they prey on the weak mind its definitely a form of brain alexanders Mother said she was deeply worried about her sons activity in the uhf and was glad he had Barry said the organization was founded by herself and Samuel Lee when she was a missionary in we would never try to harm anyone or prevent them from Leav she we dont coerce i ;