Speeches

Honorary Consular Corps Luncheon

Remarks by U.S. Ambassador John D. Rood

February 14, 2007, 12:30 p.m.
Graycliff Restaurant

Anders, thank you for your introduction and thank you for your leadership of the Honorary Consular Corps.  I would like to recognize Ambassador Joseph --  thank you for all of your work on behalf of your country and your cooperation with me and my staff during my tenure.  I would like to thank the Consular Corps and the many friends I have made here.  It is an honor to be here today in the midst of so many dear friends.  It has been an honor to serve with each of you over these past few years.  I would like to single out Dorothy Baker for her always tireless work, her superb coordination of the activities of the Honorary Consular Corps, and specifically for her role in putting this wonderful lunch together today.  I would also like to thank Paolo Garzaroli for hosting us today and preparing such a great feast.  Graycliff's cuisine is something I will miss most of all, and I will be sure to come back to when I return. 

Many of you have heard me tell the story that when I first explained to my daughter Holly that I was asked become Ambassador to The Bahamas, she asked why I was interested in the job.  I explained it was an opportunity to serve my country and a chance to really make a difference.  And besides, I said, they'll call me “Mr. Ambassador” -- that is just too cool to pass up.  “Dad,” she said, "Couldn't we just stay in Jacksonville, and I'll call you ‘Mr. Ambassador’?" 

Once the job was offered, though, I really couldn’t turn it down.  I have been a regular traveler to the beautiful Bahama Islands since I was a young boy.  But there was one day and one summer that I will never forget!  I was at West End, Grand Bahama Island, in the summer of 1973 when The Bahamas gained its independence from the United Kingdom.

The joy, the excitement and the look on the faces, and in the eyes of the Bahamians, the pride that they expressed in becoming an independent nation!  That summer, that day, are etched in my memory forever.

Indeed, the United States and The Bahamas share a love for democracy.  We share values, the values of freedom, security, and prosperity for our people.  We also share dreams, a future of promise for our children our families.  On any given day in Nassau, you will find an average of six cruise ships and twelve thousand American visitors.

What an opportunity to be Ambassador to such a nation! 

President Bush rightly states that the United States is a caring and compassionate nation.  Having decided to take the job as Ambassador, it was important to me to show that care and compassion.  And as I began my tenure, I remember a conversation I had with the Governor General, Dame Ivy Dumont, when I first called on her.  I promised to listen and learn from Bahamians and then act to act to build our relationship.

I hope I have been successful in that.  I have tried hard to build relationships with Bahamians and to establish The Embassy as a willing listener and community contributor.  I have sought to reach out to the educational community and to the many civic minded groups dealing with HIV/AIDS.  We provided disaster relief when Hurricanes struck.  Within the Embassy, I tried to encourage a sense of volunteerism, a respect for Bahamian concerns and culture, and sincere friendship with the Bahamian people. 

And as I look back on my tenure, I think back on the relationships that I made and the partnerships built.  I am most proud of the time I spent with Bahamian schoolchildren through the Embassy's reading program.  I think of the good work we have done with the Rhode Island State Partnership program, connecting our nations in a series of cooperative projects including university level education, disaster preparedness, training for prison officers and firefighters, and tourism promotion. 

I think of the millions of dollars in training and equipment provided to support the outstanding collaboration we enjoy through OPBAT with Bahamian law enforcement and the Defense Force.   I think of my efforts to ensure the continuation of the U.S. Customs Pre-clearance facility in Grand Bahama to help support that storm-ravaged economy.  Also in Grand Bahama, I think of the new security programs we established at the port -- Megaports and the Container Security Initiative -- that will protect our borders and make Freeport a more attractive port for international shipping..  I also think fondly of the new relationships forged by Secretary Rice’s and Governor Bush's visits to The Bahamas.

Through these initiatives and others, I hope that I have left the US-Bahamas relationship even closer than it was when I came.  And any Ambassador who can do that must be happy with his tenure.

I think our strong bilateral cooperation, built on personal relationships and mutual respect, has also led to better international cooperation on key issues like human rights and democracy.  In fact, last year The Bahamas stood out at the 2006 Non-Aligned Meeting for its vocal support of democratic rule and human rights.  Minister Mitchell’s speech – and if you haven’t read it, you should – was a testament to Bahamian values and the courage to stand up for those values internationally.  The Bahamas also stood alone among its Caribbean peers in its support for key human rights resolutions in the UN in late 2006.  The Bahamas should rightly be proud of its international leadership. 

Moving forward, there are still issues that require work.  Where would we be as diplomats if there was no work to be done?  But it is wonderful to know that strong relationships built on respectful dialogue will resolve these issues.

Foremost among my concerns at present is security at Bahamian airports.  Without better security to close existing gaps, drug traffickers, illegal migrants and, of course, terrorists could use The Bahamas to reach the United States.    After recent incidents with corrupt baggage handlers bypassing security to place drugs aboard planes bound for the U.S. and a less than flattering review by security officials, I am appreciative of the seriousness with which the Bahamian government has initially responded.    I would like to see airport security tightened, and from the government’s initial response, I believe we can accomplish this goal.  But it will require a serious and sustained commitment to raising security standards to internationally required levels. 

I would like to see the U.S.-Bahamas international cooperation continue and grow.   Weak democratic institutions are the root cause of most -- if not all -- of the recurring political crises that have plagued the most troubled countries in the Caribbean region.  Haiti offers the clearest example.  I would like The Bahamas to work with us, individually or as a part of CARICOM, to help build democratic institutions there and reestablish the rule of law.  The Bahamas deserves praise for its support and training of Haitian law enforcement, but more assistance is needed in carrying forward reform and training the police, strengthening the judiciary, implementing anti-corruption programs, promoting economic growth and protecting human rights.


We live in a time of grave threats to the security of our nations—indeed, to our very lives, from terrorists, rogue states, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.  Most frightening is the possibility that terrorists could obtain a weapon of mass destruction from an outlaw regime.  The genie is out of the bottle.  North Korea tested a nuclear weapon this fall.  Iran seems determined to enrich uranium as the first step to acquiring nuclear weapons.  Another significant danger is the proliferation of missile systems.  The traffic in ballistic missile technologies between North Korea and Iran is longstanding. 

The United States had led international efforts against the proliferation of both weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles.  We appreciate the support The Bahamas has provided us in the United Nations when it comes to condemning proliferation.  But we need to do more. 

Through the Proliferation Security Initiative, the United States and a number of global partners have agreed to work together to search planes, ships, trains, and trucks suspected of carrying weapons of mass destruction or WMD components.  All actions taken under this initiative are consistent with existing national and international legal authorities.  Before I leave I would like to see the United States and The Bahamas finalize a PSI agreement.  The Bahamas has the third largest ship registry in the world and is a key player in maritime commerce.  I believe it is critical that The Bahamas be part of the PSI to prevent the transshipment of WMD and WMD-related materials around the world on Bahamian-flagged vessels.


As we move forward in strengthening democracy in the Western Hemisphere, I also hope that we can work closely with The Bahamas to help ensure that the Cuban people can soon enjoy the basic rights to free expression, association, assembly, privacy, movement, and due process of law that the American people and the Bahamian people enjoy and insist on.  We cannot quietly accept that our neighbors -- separated by less than 90 miles of sea -- should be denied those basic rights.  As Cuba moves closer to the ultimate day of transition, I hope that a country such as the Bahamas, which so deeply cherishes free expression, free movement, and due process, would work with us and other countries in the hemisphere to ensure that the Cuban people have the opportunity to select their next leader at the ballot box, just as Bahamians and Americans do and not have another leader imposed on them. 

The world needs a respected Caribbean leader like The Bahamas to become an international advocate for democracy, peace and stability.

As we move forward in addressing these international and regional challenges together, I am confident that The Bahamas and the U.S. will maintain the deepest of friendships.  I hope to see the reading program continue.  I would know that the Rhode Island-Bahamas State Partnership Program will grow and flourish.  I know that support for OPBAT and airport pre-clearance remains strong.   I believe, building on the work I have done and that of my many predecessors, that our countries will continue to have open, direct and respectful dialogue – where the U.S. listens, learns, and acts in the spirit of friendship and mutual interest. 

It was a tough decision to leave The Bahamas – and knowing when to go is a bit of an art form.  But as I told Tom Shannon, the State Department’s head of Western Hemisphere Affairs, better to go out a bit too early at your own choice, than a bit too late when you’ve been asked to go!  But my real reason for leaving is found at the beginning of my remarks, when I mentioned that my daughter Holly had asked me to stay home.  It has been difficult to be away from Holly, and it is time for me to go back to be with her and reengage with my life in Jacksonville.  I will certainly miss my home here, my many friends, including each of you, and the incredible people at the Embassy.  This experience has been wonderful.  I have been blessed to have been given this opportunity and I am grateful to President Bush for the chance.  Perhaps it will help if I ask Holly to do as she originally offered and call me “Mr. Ambassador” around the house.

My favorite project here, my school reading program, started with a reading of a book about Martin Luther King, Jr., so it seems appropriate to refer back to Dr. King as I finish.  Last week, the choir from Morgan State University in Maryland was in Nassau, and they sung a beautiful song.  It was based on Dr. King’s “Drum Major Instinct” sermon about being a good leader.  I don’t know that I met these standards, but I tried and Dr. King’s words were particularly relevant to me as I prepare to leave The Bahamas:

If I can help somebody as I pass along
If I can cheer somebody with a word or song,
If I can show somebody he's traveling wrong,
Then my living will not be in vain.
If I can do my duty as a Christian ought,
If I can bring salvation to a world once wrought,
If I can spread the message as the master taught,
Then my living will not be in vain.

Thank you.