Antigua to pitch online gambling to visiting US lawmakers

[clevfan]

Antigua to pitch online gambling to visiting US lawmakers

The Associated Press
Wednesday, November 7, 2007

ST. JOHN'S, Antigua: Antiguan authorities plan to raise their tiny nation's long-running trade battle with the United States over Internet gambling as about 10 members of the U.S. Congress gather here for an annual Caribbean business conference.

Antigua's government, which has accused the U.S. of crippling its gambling industry by effectively banning Americans from making online wagers, will raise the issue at the conference that begins Thursday and in private meetings with members of Congress, Finance Minister Errol Cort said.

The government also plans to invite the lawmakers on a tour of the Caribbean nation's Financial Services Regulatory Commission and some Internet gaming companies, Cort said.

Antigua hopes to prove to the visiting politicians that "we do have the capacity to adequately regulate these gaming operations," Cort told The Associated Press.

The U.S. Congress last year barred American banks and credit card companies from processing online gambling payments, denying international gaming businesses access to the lucrative U.S. market.

Antigua, which has a population of about 70,000, filed a complaint with the World Trade Organization and is seeking US$3.4 billion (€2.4 billion) in trade sanctions.

The issue, however, is not expected to be a major focus at the 12th Annual Caribbean Multinational Business Conference, said Donna Christensen, the nonvoting congressional delegate from the U.S. Virgin Islands, who is attending the gathering.

The main purpose of the conference, Nov. 8-11 at the Sandals Grande Antigua, is to promote business investment between the U.S. and the Caribbean, Christensen said. Several hundred people are expected to attend, though the exact agenda and attendance list have not been set.

"It's been a very valuable conference," she said. "The people I know who have attended found it valuable to interact with members of Congress."

Among those expected to attend are about 10 Democratic members of Congress, including Reps. Charles Rangel of New York, Maxine Waters of California and Danny Davis of Illinois, said Christensen.

The conference sponsor, the Carib News Foundation, pays the cost of the trip for the members of Congress, she said.