By Kennedy Earle Clarke — 11 June 2022
Dear reader, on Friday 9th July 1967, according to the book “Anguilla’s Battle For Freedom 1967–1969,” a group of 14 Anguillans plus three USA mercenaries boarded a schooner named The Rambler, bound for St. Kitts. Onboard were two machine guns, two submachine guns, four M1 rifles, four carbines, about six .25 pistols, three .32 pistols, six .303 rifles, tear gas, tear gas guns, masks, a pretty fair amount of dynamite and detonators. In preparation for the overthrow of Bradshaw’s Labour Government, detailed plans were worked out both in Anguilla and St. Kitts and discussed in St. Thomas, USVI, with Anguillans residing there. Young Anguillans began shooting practice at Junk Hole Bay, where some PAMites went down to teach them how to shoot.
The schooner RAMBLER was not equipped with a compass and so they were forced to sail by the stars, hence mistaking Saba for Statia and Statia for St. Kitts — a grave error which saved the day for everyone on St. Kitts but was much to the disappointment of the PAMites, including sugar estate managers, overseers and big businessmen who awaited the Rambler’s arrival at 2am on Saturday 10th June at Half Way Tree to begin the OVERTHROW of the lawfully elected Labour Government. After discovering their blunder they gave The Rambler full throttle and landed at Half Way Tree, and the PAMites who remained assisted them ashore.
The plan agreed upon included: (1) the capture of Premier Bradshaw and his Deputy Paul Southwell, their transfer to Anguilla, and an announcement on ZIZ that a prominent Kittitian Lawyer was now the new Premier; (2) the destruction of the Defence Force Camp at Springfield, the capture of Police Headquarters and the shutting down of the Power Plant; (3) the destruction of the Shell Fuel Depot at Western Ponds Pasture. Fortunately, the person who was to pull the trigger to blow up the Shell Depot refused, saying “Too many of my people would be killed,” and a Kittitian PAM driver assigned to blow up the Defence Force similarly refused. This historical account continues next week.