By Kenton X. Chance
ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, Jul 28, CMC – Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister, Gaston Browne, Monday said that the information that resulted in immigration officers making “further inquiries” of former Trinidad and Tobago prime minister, Dr. Keith Rowley, did not originate in St. John’s.
He told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) that immigration officials in Antigua and Barbuda treated Rowley with respect and acted on the information in the same way that they would have had the “notation” been about any other traveller.
On July 21, Rowley, who stepped down from active politics in April, stated that he was detained on July 14 during a stopover in Antigua and Barbuda because his name had been placed on a watch list by the Paris-based International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL).
Rowley, a geologist, said that he was on his way to Montserrat to participate in activities marking the 30th anniversary of the Montserrat Volcano Observatory Scientific Opening when he was stopped at the VC Bird International Airport.
Browne, who is attending the two-day Fourth AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF) taking place here, said that Rowley was not detained in Antigua and Barbuda.
“Well, it was not a detention. My understanding is that there was certain information within our immigration portal that did not emanate from within Antigua that caused immigration officers to, let’s say, do further inquiries,” Browne told CMC.
“But, in any event, he was not detained, and he was treated with full respect as a former prime minister. But I do accept that there was certain information that was in the system, but it did not emanate within our shores.”
Rowley described the incident as a dastardly act of political persecution and accused state entities in Trinidad and Tobago of fabricating and executing a “vicious defamation campaign.
“This is not just a mistake, it is a deliberate, calculated attempt to tarnish my name on an international stage,” Rowley told a news conference, adding “it is state-sponsored slander,” he told reporters in Port of Spain.
Rowley said he was stunned to learn that Trinidad and Tobago authorities may have caused his name to be flagged internationally.
He called on Prime Minister Kamla Persad Bissessar and Police Commissioner Allister Guevarro to indicate what role they played in having his name placed on the INTERPOL watch list.
However, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service said hours after Rowley’s comments that his name had not been placed on an INTERPOL watch list and that it remains “committed to protecting the rights and dignity of all citizens, and will continue to provide clear, factual updates as the matter develops”.
On Monday, Prime Minister Browne told CMC that immigration authorities in Antigua and Barbuda had acted as they would, regardless of the person involved.
“And I think Dr. Rowley says that he was quite pleased with the level of professionalism coming from our immigration officers,” Browne told CMC, adding, “he was treated with the full respect as a former prime minister, and we certainly would not have expected anything less.
“So, in any event, the information has since been removed from the system. So there is no such notation. I understand there was a simple notation. And will not get into the details, I will not speculate where it emanated, but one thing I can say, it did not emanate out of Antigua,” Browne told CMC.
CMC/kc/ir/2025