Ascension Island JOINT RESIGNATION STATEMENT

News travels fast on Ascension Island and as a result you are all now probably aware that the majority of Island Councillors have resigned following a visit by the FCO on the 14th and 15th of March.  We feel very strongly that you as the tax paying electorate should be made aware of the circumstances leading to a decision that for all of us was not only difficult to make but disappointing in the extreme.

For three years Islanders were encouraged to believe that the ‘work camp’ mentality that governed all aspects of Ascension Island was to be a thing of the past.  The very fact that the fiscal regime was changed with the introduction of tax, that an electoral roll was established and that people were given a vote led us all to certain expectations. 

There is no doubt that the blow of the U-turn announcement in November 2005 caused all of us to take a step back and it was difficult to see how any sort of democratic system could continue without the introduction of basic rights.  However, we had undertaken to represent the public and felt that we should at least try to achieve some headway within the constraints placed upon us by HMG. 

During the FCO visit we were left in no doubt that not only were our hopes misplaced but that we had all been misled and misinformed at every step of the way.

Discussions with the head of the Overseas Territories Department confirmed that:

•The decision not to allow Right of Abode, Land Tenure, Fiscal Development or Social Development had been taken prior to our last election.  In fact it was pretty much off the table as early as the beginning of 2005.

•Economic diversification and expansion will not be allowed which means that all increasing costs will have to be met by the taxpayer.  As a UK Dependant Territory, Ascension Island will have to comply with various international obligations, the majority of which will have financial implications.  FCO have stated no financial help will be forthcoming from the UK.  Taxes would     have to be raised to meet these obligations.

•Despite Lord Triesman’s claims to the contrary there is no other OT that operates under a similar  model to Ascension Island.  In fact when pushed the FCO could not name anywhere else in the world that purports to have this anomalous system.

•The Administrator acting alone will have the decision on housing allocation, business licence entry permits and work permits.

The majority of the above points were known by the Administrator and Governor prior to the election in 2005.  Despite almost every manifesto containing aspirations contrary to this standpoint they let the election go ahead.  It would have been much kinder and far more honest to have informed the island pre-election of this change in attitude and let the electorate and the candidates make much more informed choices as to where their votes should go or, if indeed, the election should go ahead.

Even the FCO realised that with the introduction of taxation the need for representation had to be addressed.  However it is impossible to achieve any effective representation that does more than simply pay lip service to the term without changing the fundamental basis upon which the island is governed and run.  Unfortunately for us the FCO failed to understand this basic point and have tried to force together two totally incompatible systems.  The situation should not, and indeed must not, continue.  Without a commitment to real change and forward movement then they should do the honorable thing and abolish the tax regime and return to ‘per capita’ charging or a similar employment contract based system.  At least then no one could have any illusions as to their rights or stake in the future.

Over the last sixteen months the Council has in turn been insulted and ignored by FCO officials.  Locally, it has proved impossible to move forward on many issues due to the isolationist attitude of the local FCO official.  The one person who should have been facilitating dialogue between elected representatives and FCO/HMG has simply failed to even attempt to do so.  The recent press release regarding the FCO visit sums the situation up more eloquently than we ever could.  This release was made to the public even though the majority of Island Council had already resigned.  This head in the sand mentality is exactly the sort of attitude that has led to the frustration felt by all Councillors. 

In conclusion, your elected representatives have been used as pawns by HMG to legitimise a regime that is questionable, discriminatory, dishonest and unfavourable to the taxpayers of this island and we are no longer prepared to continue this exercise in futility.

Paul Bennett
Chris Cochran
Lawson Henry
Geoff Jones
Caroline Yon

March 2007