St lucia minister expands legal threat to media

1.
St
Lucia
Minister
Expands
Legal
Threat
To
Media
By
Caribbean
News
Now
contributor
CASTRIES,
St
Lucia
-­‐-­‐
Expanding
on
a
press
statement
released
on
Friday,
in
which
he
announced
that
he
was
commencing
legal
action
against
a
local
journalist,
Saint
Lucia’s
minister
for
legal
affairs,
home
affairs
and
national
security,
Phillip
La
Corbiniere,
told
reporters
that
“a
number
of
ministers
have
also
instructed
their
attorneys
to
begin
to
take
legal
action
of
various
kinds.”
Ironically,
the
foundation
for
the
threatened
action
by
La
Corbinere
and
others
for
alleged
damage
to
their
reputation
appears
in
turn
to
relate
to
allegations
that
so
far
unnamed
members
of
the
St
Lucia
Labour
Party
(SLP)
tarnished
the
reputation
of
former
housing
minister
Richard
Frederick
by
supplying
false
information
to
US
embassy
officials.
In
his
formal
statement
on
Friday,
the
minister
did
not
elaborate
on
what
that
legal
action
was;
what
conduct
or
comment
he
found
objectionable;
or
what
others
are
going
to
be
included
in
the
threatened
action.
However,
he
now
claims
that
he
will
“not
have
his
reputation
destroyed
by
Caribbean
News
Now,”
which
he
described
as
“a
ragtag
called
Caribbean
news

2. because
it’s
nothing
more
than
a
ragtag.”
In
saying
this,
La
Corbiniere
seems
to
be
ignorant
of
the
fact
that
Caribbean
News
Now,
along
with
its
predecessor
publication,
has
been
publishing
regional
news
for
over
ten
years
and
outranks
any
other
regional
website
in
every
measure,
usually
by
several
orders
of
magnitude,
with
website
visitors
and
page
views
measured
in
the
millions
annually.
In
the
words
of
one
regional
commentator,
“The
irony
and
hypocrisy
of
La
Corbiniere
complaining
about
having
his
professionalism
besmirched
while
besmirching
that
of
Caribbean
News
Now
is
completely
lost
on
him.”
According
to
La
Corbiniere,
lawsuits
will
be
filed
by
individuals
referenced
by
Caribbean
News
Now,
again
without
elaborating
on
which
individuals
have
apparently
been
offended
or
what
they
found
offensive.
Responding
to
La
Corbiniere’s
announcement,
Richard
Frederick
referred
to
a
passage
in
Lord
of
the
Flies
by
George
Orwell:
"All
animals
are
equal,
but
some
animals
are
more
equal
than
others,"
the
lesson
in
which,
he
said,
resonated
loudly
in
his
mind
as
he
(La
Corbiniere)
threatens
to
sue
to
safeguard
his
own
reputation.
“But
what
about
the
reputations
of
those
like
me
who
others
(they
know
themselves)
have
deliberately,
calculatedly
and
persistently
dragged
in
the
mud?
What
about
the
concocted
stories
hatched
by
men
with
no
conscience
and
who
are
pregnant
with
a
hunger
to
rule
by
any
means
necessary?
How
many
cases
will
we,
their
victims,
have
to
file;
and
in
which
court
will
we
receive
justice?
While
some
men
hurry
to
court
to
shelter
their
names,
justice
simply
passes
others
by.
Still,
there
are
those
who
have
suffered
damage
so
great
it
is
beyond
undoing
by
any
court.
Indeed,
in
my
case
I
have
been
forced
to
rely
on
the
fact
that
we
are
all
temporal
beings
and,
like
us,
the
wicked
deeds
that
we
dish
out
to
others
will
last
only
for
a
time,”
he
said.
Frederick
added
that
he
is
reminded
every
day
of
a
quote
from
Ephesians
6:12:
"For
we
wrestle
not
against
flesh
and
blood,
but
against
principalities,
against
powers,
against
the
rulers
of
the
darkness
of
this
world,
against
spiritual
wickedness
in
high
places!"
La
Corbiniere
failed
to
deal
with
the
issue
of
the
lack
of
responsiveness
by
the
Saint
Lucia
government
to
a
request
for
comment
and
clarification
prior
to
the
publication
of
the
Caribbean
News
Now
article
to
which
he
and
his
colleagues
apparently
take
offence.
Last
Thursday,
while
claiming
to
be
on
vacation,
the
prime
minister’s
press
secretary
Jadia
Jn.
Pierre
responded
belatedly
by
way
of
an
online
public
comment
that
“You
were
informed
via
email
that
I
am
on
leave
until
September
27,
2013.
Yet,
you
feel
comfortable
stating
that
the
press
secretary
had
two
days
to
reply
to
your

3. questions?
Really?
I
have
a
timeline
by
which
to
work?
Further,
given
what
I
have
seen,
the
option
that
I
request
that
your
article
be
held
off
until
I
respond
is
ridiculous!”
She
continued,
“Of
course,
one
day
you
will
call
it
an
infringement
of
your
freedom
to
broadcast...
anything
you
want...
whenever
you
want.
There
are
other
people
who
may
be
able
to
dictate
when
you
publish
and
what
you
publish,
I
do
not
wish
to
play
that
role.”
However,
another
reader
pointed
out
that
“a
press
secretary
or
press
officer
is
a
senior
advisor
who
provides
advice
on
how
to
deal
with
the
news
media
and,
using
news
management
techniques,
helps
their
employer
to
maintain
a
positive
public
image
and
avoid
negative
media
coverage.”
Certainly,
nothing
was
done
last
week
to
help
“maintain
a
positive
public
image
and
avoid
negative
media
coverage.”
In
response
to
a
request
for
comment,
the
Lucian
Peoples
Movement
(LPM)
said:
“Mrs
Jn.
Pierre's
response
to
your
inquiry
for
a
comment
on
allegations
regarding
the
revocation
of
Richard
Frederick's
visa
is
a
sad
reflection
of
the
kind
of
mindless
arrogance
and
unprofessionalism
that
have
come
to
characterized
Saint
Lucia
Labour
Party
rule
since
returning
to
office
in
2011.
“Apparently,
Jadia
Jn.
Pierre
does
not
seem
to
understand
that
being
the
prime
minister's
press
secretary
is
a
function
supported
by
the
national
purse,
and
that
greater
care
must
be
exercised
so
as
to
not
give
the
impression
of
public
rudeness.
“Moreover,
being
a
press
secretary
to
the
prime
minister
of
Saint
Lucia
requires
not
only
tact,
but
a
deep
understanding
by
the
office
holder
that
your
public
behaviour
is
a
reflection
of
the
government
which
you
serve.”
The
opposition
United
Workers
Party
(UWP)
has
so
far
failed
to
provide
any
comment
on
the
matter
for
publication.
The
LPM
also
remarked
on
this,
saying
that
was
quite
puzzling
that
the
United
Workers
Party,
of
which
Richard
Frederick
is
a
member
and
sitting
MP,
has
not
seen
it
fit
to
offer
an
official
statement
on
the
issue.
“Could
this
be
an
indication
of
an
internal
rift
within
the
UWP?”
the
LPM
asked.
While
it
would
be
helpful
if
the
government
of
Saint
Lucia
could
offer
an
official
clarification
on
the
matter
(in
keeping
with
their
promise
made
while
in
opposition),
the
onus
is
also
on
the
United
Workers
Party
to
help
bolster
their
colleague’s
claim
of
vindication,
the
LPM
added.
In
the
meantime,
despite
La
Corbiniere’s
repeated
denials
that
this
is
not
an
attack

4. on
the
media
generally,
a
number
of
international
press
freedom
organisations
are
alert
to
the
situation
and
are
no
doubt
keeping
a
close
eye
on
it.