AP News, January 18th, 2007
Grenada's premier has called on the men convicted of leading a 1983 coup to reveal where they put the remains of slain officials, including former socialist leader Maurice Bishop.
The men who killed Bishop, four Cabinet ministers and six of their supporters have said they do not know the whereabouts of the remains, but Prime Minister Keith Mitchell said Tuesday he believes they could help solve the mystery.
The slain prime minister's mother, Alimenta Bishop, has repeatedly called for the bodies to be located for proper burial.
"They should have a conscience and come forward and release the pain of the families," Mitchell told reporters.
Bishop, whose New Jewel Movement overthrew a corrupt government in 1979 and allied itself with Cuba, was killed on Oct. 19, 1983, in a coup by a radical faction of the leftist government. The United States invaded six days later with support from nearby Caribbean countries.
The 17 men convicted of the killings _ the so-called "Grenada 17" _ have said American soldiers took the bodies, a view held by many on the Caribbean island. But Mitchell said the U.S. government would have had no reason to do that.
"I can't say that I believe that the Americans have anything to do with this," he said.
A spokesman for the U.S. Defense Department also dismissed the theory.
"These allegations have been floating around for some time, decades in fact, without any credible evidence to back the claims," Navy Cmdr. Jeffrey Gordon said.
Last month, Grenadian authorities gave an early release for good behavior to three of the men.
