12/12/2007 10:47:00 AM Bullet a symbol of ugly election Dirty tricks hit a new low; reaction ranges from disgust to deep scepticism as security is beefed up around Dr. Brown
n photo by Nigel Regan
Security: Ewart Brown talks to Public Safety Minister David Burch outside the advance polling station yesterday. His driver and bodyguard (left) were with the Prmier at all times.
Meredith Ebbin
The mailing of a bullet to Premier Dr. Ewart Brown signals a new low in an election campaign already marred by open hostility, lies and dirty tricks, observers say.
Reaction to the incident is predictably polarized - with Brown supporters reeling in disgust and sceptics daring to suggest the whole thing was a stunt to buy sympathy for an under-fire Premier.
Whatever the origins of the bullet might be, police are taking the matter seriously and security has been beefed up around the Premier. The jury is out on how it might play out
politically.
Outgoing PLP MP Renee Webb said the incident typified the tone of the current political climate - but that it would garner sympathy for Dr. Brown.
"Politics is at a new low," she said, "in terms of the campaign, the name-calling. The issues aren't being addressed."
She described it as a pity, but not surprising and said the people in charge had set the tone. She called on voters to hold politicians accountable at the ballot box.
Former PLP Cabinet Minister Årthur Hodgson said such threats are not new to Bermuda. He said it happened to former PLP leader Lois Browne-Evans in the 1960s.
Mr. Hodgson said: "It's always of concern when the leaders of a country are threatened. It's an unfortunate reflection of our society when people do such things.
"Our society should be guided by love, even love for our enemies. For people to treat people like this is most unfortunate. This has happened before. I thought people had progressed beyond that level of hatred."
Mr. Hodgson could not predict how it would play out with voters.
He said: "I would hope that at the polls, people will rebuff that kind of behaviour."
Bermuda Sun columnist Tom Vesey was unable to predict how voters would view the incident. He questioned the wisdom of Dr. Brown and the police making it public. He said it merely added to pre-election tension.
He said the sender of the package could have been anybody - a lunatic UBP supporter, Dr. Brown fan, a PLP supporter who wanted to make the UBP look suspect, even a practical joker.
But if he were Premier, he would have said nothing about it and asked the police to do the same until after the election.
He said: "Holding a press conference to announce the threat and the increased security is giving the sender exactly what he wants, no matter who he is."
He added: "Think how much more we'd think of Dr. Brown if he had done that.You can be sure it wasn't sent by Michael Dunkley or anyone directly connected with the UBP campaign, or anyone directly connected with the PLP campaign.
"In that sense, it's not information the voters need to get before they vote. The bullet contributes nothing to the election except tension."
One veteran politician who wanted to remain anonymous speculated that the whole episode had been orchestrated to build sympathy for Dr. Brown among disillusioned PLP voters on the eve of the election. "People think it's a joke," the politician said.
He said people needed to ask themselves what was the intended purpose of sending a bullet, adding that it posed no threat to Dr. Brown's life.
He wondered why, with the volume of mail that goes through the post office and the fact that it's not scanned, that a postal worker would just happen to come across a package containing a bullet.
He said political stunts of this kind are not unheard of in the U.S. but news about bullets in the mail is very unsettling to Bermudians.
He said of Dr. Brown: "He lived in a part of LA where people get shot. To the average Bermudian bullets and guns are alien. Bullets in the mail don't kill you. "
Last night, the PLP said in a release: "Today's threat is just another political dirty trick. Dame Lois Browne-Evans and Ottiwell Simmons were subjected to exactly the same kind of attempted intimidation by our political opponents.
"It will take more than a threatening package to distract Premier EwartBrown from his mission of managing Bermuda's resources to do the greatest good for the greatest number of Bermudians.
"That's why the PLP is committed to improving education, increasing opportunity for all and turning the dream of home ownership into a reality for more Bermudians.
"Our FutureCare programme will make sure that our seniors have thehealth care they need as they grow older. Our day care programme will provide hard working mothers with the assistance they need. And, our interest free home loans will make the dream of home ownership a reality for more Bermudians. These are the kind of programmes that will improve people's lives and we must not let political dirty tricks silence our voice."
The Opposition UBP said in a release: "The United Bermuda Party condemns unequivocally any threat made against any politician.
"We are confident the Bermuda Police Service will fully investigate this matter and we look forward to hearing the outcome of the investigation.
We have been deluged by calls from people questioning the timing of this incident one week before the election and branding it a political stunt, particularly by people who did not notice any increased security around the Premier shortly after the press conference announcing the threat. However, we respect the Police Commissioner's assessment of the situation."
Reader Comments
Posted: Friday, December 14, 2007
Comment by:
Newyorker
Dirty tricks are everywhere with this election. Let's not automatically assume that the bullet letter originated from some anti-PLP type. It could just have easily been sent from a supporter in the hope that it would achieve sympathy for Dr. Brown.
