VZCZCXYZ0007
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHKG #0761/01 3482019
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 142019Z DEC 09
FM AMEMBASSY KINGSTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 0394
INFO EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE IMMEDIATE
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC IMMEDIATE
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON IMMEDIATE 0120
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA IMMEDIATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L KINGSTON 000761 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR WHA/CAR (J.MACK-WILSON, V.DEPIRRO, W.SMITH) 
L/LEI (C.HOLLAND, A.KLUESNER) 
INR/IAA (G.BOHIGIAN) 
JUSTICE FOR OIA (P.PETTY) 
TREASUTY FOR ERIN NEPHEW 
INR/RES (R.WARNER) 
AMEMBASSY BRIDGETOWN PASS TO AMEMBASSY GRENADA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/12/14 
TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON EFIN SOCI CVIS SNAR PINR ASEC CJAN
KCOR, AID, IMF, JM, XL 
SUBJECT: JAMAICA: PRIME MINISTER'S WIFE SEES "NEFARIOUS INFLUENCES" 
ON SECRETARY CLINTON 
 
REF: A. KINGSTON 753; B. KINGSTON 1050; C. KINGSON 759 
¶D. KINGSTON 1070 
 
CLASSIFIED BY: Isiah Parnell, CDA; REASON: 1.4(B), (D) 
 
Summary and Analysis: 
 
------------------------------ 
 
 
 
¶1. (C) Lorna Golding, the wife of Prime Minister (PM) Bruce 
Golding, told Post's Public Affairs Officer (PAO) Patricia 
Attkisson that she believes Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is 
under the "pernicious influence" of U.S. Representative Charles 
Rangel regarding the contentious U.S. extradition request for 
Christopher "Dudus" Coke.  In an often surreal and disjointed 
conversation, Mrs. Golding alleged that Congressman Rangel is a 
"sympathizer" of the opposition People's National Party (PNP) who 
is "manipulated" by PNP elements in the Jamaican diaspora in the 
U.S.  and is "whispering in Secretary Clinton's ear" in order to 
"downgrade" the governing Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the 
Government of Jamaica (GOJ).  Mrs. Golding also blamed this cabal 
for the White House's delay in naming a new ambassador and the 
GOJ's difficulties in finalizing a Standby Agreement with the 
International Monetary Fund (IMF).  Although it appears unlikely 
that Mrs. Golding was delivering a message on behalf of the PM, 
Mrs. Golding's rambling comments and penchant for sharing 
conspiracy theories with a key member of the U.S. Embassy community 
is consistent with a growing sense among many of indecisiveness and 
a lack of direction on the part of the PM and the JLP.  End Summary 
and Analysis. 
 
 
 
"Pernicious Influence" 
 
---------------------------- 
 
 
 
¶2. (C) The invitation to the PAO to meet for afternoon tea on 
December 11 at the PM's residence had been unexpected; there were 
no other guests in attendance and no tea was actually served, 
although the PAO was offered some salad that Mrs. Golding said the 
Prime Minister had prepared the previous evening.  Mrs. Golding 
didn't seem to be using any talking points, although the PM was 
aware of the PAO's presence and in fact dropped in for some small 
talk later in the meeting.  (NOTE: This suggests that Mrs. 
Golding's opinions were not necessarily intended as an effort on 
the part of the PM's office to establish some sort of backchannel 
communication or to present any informal messages or official GOJ 
policy.  End Note). 
 
 
 
3.(C) The PAO's conversation with Mrs. Golding covered a wide array 
of topics, from salads and manicures to the Coke extradition 
request (Ref A) and Jamaica's pending  negotiations with the 
International Monetary Fund (Ref B).  Mrs. Golding expressed her 
belief that Secretary Clinton's failure to mention the GOJ in the 
Department's traditional Independence Day congratulatory message to 
the Jamaican people in August 2009 had been an intentional slight, 
instigated by the PNP through its "nefarious influence" on 
Secretary Clinton.  Similarly, Mrs. Golding attributed the Coke 
extradition request to Congressman Rangel's "whispering in 
Secretary Clinton's ear" and the PNP's "pernicious influence" 
within the Jamaican diaspora, and insisted that the extradition 
request had been orchestrated as a means of embarrassing her 
husband politically. 
 
 
 
PM Needs "Bigging Up" 
 
 
------------------------------ 
 
 
 
¶4. (C) Despite assurances to the contrary, Mrs. Golding remained 
convinced, as do many Jamaicans, that the White House's delay in 
naming a new U.S. ambassador is because Jamaica has been 
"downgraded" as a result of the extradition request delay (NOTE: 
Mrs. Golding was apparently unaware that, earlier in the week, the 
Office of the Prime Minister had released a statement to the press 
indicating that the delay in naming an ambassador was due to the 
White House's "preoccupation with other matters" and was unrelated 
to the extradition request.  Ref A.  End Note) .  Mrs. Golding 
alluded to the JLP's historical ties to the U.S.'s Republican party 
and the close ties between former JLP PM Edward Seaga and President 
Reagan, then requested that President Obama "reach out" to the 
Prime Minister as a means of "bigging him up" (i.e., raising his 
stature).  Nevertheless, Mrs. Golding had nothing but praise for 
USAID's activities in the country and referred to the USAID 
Director as a "true friend" of Jamaica. 
 
 
 
¶5. (C) The PAO inquired as to how new revenues would be spent if, 
as now appears likely (Ref C), the GOJ enters into a new IMF 
Standby Agreement.  Mrs. Golding downplayed the likelihood of new 
spending on infrastructure or social welfare programs and insisted 
that all new revenues would be allocated toward paying down 
Jamaica's debt.  The PM "feels strongly that the Government of 
Jamaica has to pay its bills," Mrs. Golding stated, a belief she 
says he inherited from his mother. 
 
 
 
Conclusion and Analysis 
 
------------------------------- 
 
¶6. (C) Mrs. Golding insisted that she had invited the PAO to have 
tea on her own initiative and that the PM, although aware of the 
meeting, hadn't put her up to it.  This is likely true, given that 
Mrs. Golding appeared completely unprepared, could not stay on 
message, and had no apparent talking points or agenda.  If the PM 
had hoped to establish a backchannel for discussions with Post or 
to convey some informal messages to the USG regarding the Coke 
extradition request, the status of IMF negotiations, or some other 
matter of mutual concern, it would appear that the opportunity was 
lost.  This is consistent with past practice, however, as the PM 
and the JLP GOJ have missed a number of opportunities in recent 
months to signal their willingness to make difficult decisions or 
to address the myriad economic and social crises the nation faces 
(Ref D).  End Conclusion and Analysis. 
Parnell