A friend emailed me an article recently and asked for my comments. It claims to be written by one Ebenezer Mensah. He is hardly a known expert on Anguilla. Indeed, there is every indication that he is an AI bot.
A Google search reveals Mr Mensah self-described variously as a “distinguished correspondent with a fervor for journalism that sparks transformation”, whatever that means, and as a “seasoned Process Engineer In Training with a robust background in carbon capture process unit operations”, whatever that means: https://bnnbreaking.com/author/ebenezer-mensah. There is nothing else you can find out about him online. It is fair to conclude that he does not exist.
The article is published on the “BNN Network”. This was founded by a Mr Gurbaksh Chalal, an Indian/American tech entrepreneur with a suspect past: https://www.businessinsider.com/twitter-bans-bnn-accounts-founded-by-former-tech-ceo-gurbaksh-chahal-2022-6. BNN Network appears to be no more than a form of elementary aggregator that uses AI to trawl the internet and write articles on any subject Mr Chalal poses to it. The original article is here: https://bnnbreaking.com/politics/anguillas-autonomy-in-question-elected-officials-growing-dependence-on-ukg.
Nothing you can find online inspires confidence in any of Mr Mensah, Mr Chalal, or BNN’s articles. But I admit I may be mistaken in my conclusions. So, if you are Anguillian, you give them the benefit of the doubt and you read the article. It reads in its entirety as follows:
“Anguilla's Autonomy in Question: Elected Officials' Growing Dependence on UKG
Delve into the shifting landscape of Anguilla's autonomy debate as elected officials increasingly rely on the UK Government for key fiscal decisions. What does this mean for the future of national governance in Anguilla?
The enduring debate over Anguilla's autonomy has taken a new turn as current developments reveal a growing reliance of elected officials on the United Kingdom Government (UKG) for key fiscal decisions, marking a significant shift from the island's historical stance on self-governance. This evolving dynamic raises critical questions about the future of Anguilla's autonomy and its implications for national governance.
Historical Context and Present Concerns
Historically, Anguilla enjoyed a reputation for self-governance, with elected representatives operating with a sense of autonomy from the UKG. However, recent actions and statements from government officials indicate a departure from this tradition. The frequent invocation of the need for UKG approval for financial decisions, despite Anguilla's significant revenue collection, underscores a changing relationship between Anguilla and its colonial overseer. This shift is not merely administrative but symbolic, reflecting a broader change in the perception of Anguilla's governance capabilities.
Impact on National Interest and Governance
National interests, traditionally the purview of local governance, are increasingly being deferred to the Governor's authority, particularly in areas of security and social security. The repositioning of the Anguilla Commercial Registry under the Governor-controlled Financial Services Commission exemplifies this trend, further blurring the lines of autonomy. The implications of this shift are profound, touching on aspects of national identity, governance, and the future direction of Anguilla's political landscape.
Reevaluating Anguilla's Path Forward
The current trajectory raises important considerations for Anguilla's approach to governance and its relationship with the UKG. The distinction between past and present governance styles highlights an urgent need for a reevaluation of how elected officials engage with external authorities. The essence of self-governance lies not only in the capacity to make independent decisions but also in the ability to assert and maintain autonomy in the face of external influences. As Anguilla navigates this complex terrain, the choices made today will undoubtedly shape its governance model for years to come.”
I would dispute the claim that there is growing dependence of Anguilla on UKG. As Anguilla’s fiscal landscape has improved significantly over the past 12 months, since the introduction of GST, and as the sale of “.ai” domain names begins to produce significant unexpected revenue, Anguilla in practice has a decreasing dependence on the UKG.
Anguilla’s financial dependence on the UK is constitutionally total since Anguilla is a “British Overseas Territory”. Anguilla was until recently officially described as a “British Dependent Territory”. This was true but embarrassing to everybody, and so the designation was changed. The fact is that Anguilla is a colony of the UK and has and never had any autonomy of significance. Because of our very recent, and increasing locally generated revenue, our practical dependence on the UK Treasury will significantly reduce in the future.
At the United Nations, it is an embarrassment for the UK to admit that it holds colonies. Purely for cosmetic reasons, therefore, the UK has in recent decades begun to insist that it has no colonies. Some years ago, first the Colonial Office was abolished, and its staff and functions merged into the Commonwealth Office, becoming the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). When Montserrat officials and businesspersons conspired with officers of the London based Department of International Development (DfID) to criminally divert volcano-relief funds into their own pockets, the British abolished the Department and merged its function with the FCO, which became the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO).
However, because Britain remains contingently liable for any damage we may do internationally, she has always insisted on retaining ultimate control of our affairs. When a colonial government becomes totally corrupt, as happened in the Turks and Caicos Islands in 2009, the Constitution could by a simple executive order of the Privy Council, known as an “Order in Council”, be suspended, amended, or revoked. Similarly, in the Virgin Islands recently where the administration was overwhelmed by corruption, the British appeared on the verge of suspending the Constitution. But a new administration is resisting such a development. As is well-known, the BVI Premier is in prison in Miami convicted for money laundering and drugs trafficking offences.
There is a lot of history that the apparently AI-generated article is unaware of. In the late 1970s, the Royal Bank of Abu Dhabi (Anguilla) Ltd was used by a gang of Pakistani fraudsters at the Playboy Casino in London to launder a forged cheque for a large sum of money. The infamous BCCI was incorporated in Anguilla, (among other Overseas Territories). So were some several hundred other paper banks and tens of thousands of shell companies some of which seemed to serve no purpose other than the commission of fraud of one kind or another. And, so, at the height of the BCCI scandal in the early 1980s, the international financial services industry, or as it was called at the time, the “Offshore Banking Industry”, was taken away from the local Minister of Finance and placed under the direct control of a London-appointed regulator.
By 1984, offshore banking in Anguilla was dead. Rodney Gallagher was sent in to shut down the offshore banks. This he did swiftly and efficiently. According to the late Fitzroy Bryant, Gallagher was an MI5 operative provided with cover as a chartered accountant by Coopers and Lybrand’s branch in Barbados. (Gallagher was such a senior intelligence officer that, as Fitzroy Briant, one time Minister of Education of St Kitts, joked at the height of Gallagher’s slaughter of offshore banks, if he were a KGB agent instead of MI5, he would already have been a Field Marshal. When he issued an order to jump to a governor of a colony, the only possible question was how high?)
The FSC was not created until 2004 some 20 years later. The FSC is the technical arm of the Governor in the oversight of the island’s international financial services. In Anguilla, there is no income tax, capital gains tax, or inheritance tax. Anguilla is thus a convenient location for some international businesspersons to headquarter their trusts and companies. These, and their local agents, are now regulated by the FSC.
Since at least 2017 the EU has included Anguilla on its blacklist of tax havens. The FSC strives to have Anguilla removed from this and other similar lists. Anguillians hope the FSC will succeed. This can only happen if the service is not brought under local political control. Elected Anguillian government officials have cousins, ex-schoolmates, and friends in every corner of the island. They all have needs that must be satisfied if one is to be re-elected.
There is no increasing reliance on the UK government for key fiscal decisions as claimed. Anyone familiar with Anguilla’s recent political history knows that in the recent past (ie, within the last 40 years) Anguilla has persisted in living beyond her means. Anguillians are traditionally averse to paying taxes, and governments are averse for political reasons to collecting existing taxes by enforcing the law. Until property tax was abolished for households earlier in 2024, only some forty percent of Anguillians paid it. None of the evaders was ever prosecuted.
Anguillians are opposed to any kind of regulation, whether by local administrators or by the British. That is why there is no effective Planning Code or Building Code. A combination of recent violent Hurricanes and international financial crises has conspired (for reasons of political survival) to force different administrations to spend more than the Anguillian Treasury could afford. Britain was (for her own protection) obliged reluctantly to insist on enforcing more of its reserve power over the colony to take steps to bring Anguilla’s public spending into balance with income. This effort largely failed until within the past 12 months revenue began to grow exponentially from a combination of unpopular new taxes and the sale of international services.
Anguilla in 2024 is now less reliant on the UK government for key fiscal decisions than it has ever been. It has merely become politically useful for out-of-power, local, would-be politicians to claim that Anguilla is being oppressed. The opposite is the truth. In the five years since Hurricane Irma devastated the local economy and infrastructure, the UK sank several hundred million pounds sterling (that it could hardly afford) into rebuilding this tiny Overseas Territory with a population of under 15,000 souls. That the UK wishes to have its own accountants and administrators positioned in Anguilla to oversee how these funds are being spent is hardly an unreasonable imposition. As the funds are exhausted, the need for such oversight will go and they can be expected to be called home.
Anguillians will have no “autonomy” until they are ready for it. The British are not standing in the way of our independence. Their officials regularly remind us that they are anxious for us to get off their backs. It has been said that we can apply for independence by email. We have no need to fight for it. We have only to demonstrate that independence is the wish of the majority of the people, and we will get it.
The problem for the politicians who are lobbying for Anguillian independence from Britain now is that the people, for good reason, do not trust them with their lives or property. Two recent administrations have blocked constitutional reforms demanded by the people. Anguillians have long called for the introduction of institutions of good governance such as an Ombudsman and an Integrity Commission. These pleadings have fallen on the deaf ears of our leaders. By contrast, the British are too far away from Anguilla to do us much harm.
Contrary to the position taken by the likely AI-authored article, there is widespread opposition to independence for Anguilla now. This will no doubt change in the coming years, but it is the present position of most Anguillians. We are not stupid. We can see through our would-be leaders’ claims of being concerned only for our welfare when they call for us to go into independence now. They want to be free of what little oversight the presence of British officials brings to restrain their self-serving dealing. That is what independence means to them.
