St. George's is the capital of Grenada with 7500 residents
Grenada is the 2nd smallest country in the western hemisphere
The USA invaded Grenada is 1983 under President Regan
About 80% of the population are descendents of African slaves brought by the Europeans
More info from Wikipedia on the USA in Grenada:
The island was invaded by forces from the United States purportedly at the behest of
Dame
Eugenia Charles, of Dominica. Five other Caribbean nations participated with Dominica and the USA in the campaign, called
Operation
Urgent Fury. Although the
Governor-General,
Sir Paul Scoon later
stated that he had requested the invasion, the governments of the United Kingdom and
Trinidad and Tobago expressed anger at having not been consulted.
The forces quickly captured the ringleaders and hundreds of Cuban
advisors (most of whom were labourers working on the construction of a major
airport for the island).
Grenada is more than 1,000 miles further away from the US mainland compared to
Cuba, but was felt to be a substantial threat to the US. A publicised tactical concern of the United States was
the safe recovery of U.S. nationals
enrolled at St.
George's University. In addition, the island of Grenada could have become a corner of a triangle
comprised also of Cuba and Nicaragua, both also declared enemies of US interests at that time. Some claim these
three countries could have militarily controlled the deep water passages, thereby controlling the movement of
oil fromVenezuela and
Trinidad and Tobago
(supplies then considered vital by US military planners). But this rationale was not
asserted as a justification of armed invasion.
After the invasion, United States gave $48.4 million in
economic assistance to Grenada in 1984, and the CIA secretly spent $650,000 to aid a pro-American candidate
in that year's election.
Seventeen members of the PRG and the PRA (army) were convicted via
a Court set up and financed by the USA. Fourteen were sentenced to death, eventually commuted to life
imprisonment after an international campaign. Another 3 were sentenced to 45 years in prison.
These 17 have become known as the
Grenada
17, and are the subject of an ongoing international campaign for their release. In October
2003
Amnesty International issued a Report which stated that their arrest and trial had been a miscarriage of
justice. The 17 have protested their innocence consistently since 1983. The campaign for "justice" for
the 17 is the subject of a 60 minute documentary "Prisoners of the
Cold War" (UK,
2006, www.silvercityfilms.co.uk), which explores the idea that the continued confinement
of the 17 reflects the post-traumatic state of the island as a whole. Hence the 17 remain frozen as
"prisoners" of the Cold War.
