Antiguan amnesty

23.01.2008

The Antiguan government showed some outstanding chutzpah this week in appealing to the United States government, which it has just bested in a bitter World Trade Organisation dispute over Internet gambling, to grant amnesty to operators of online casinos based in the island nation so that they may enter and exit the US.

Most online gaming operators fear travelling to or through the United States after a series of high-profile arrests and the initialisation of Internet gambling prohibitions starting in 2006.

"We believe this matter can be settled in an amicable way because we enjoy an excellent relationship with the United States," said Dr. Errol Cort, Finance Minister for the island government.

One such operator is the high profile founder of BodogLife.com Calvin Ayre who has not travelled to the US for over a year and stated that he is beginning to miss it.

Assuming the US allows operators residing in Antigua to move about the United States freely and without harassment, there are still concerns regarding states such as Louisiana that have filed at least a dozen sealed arrest warrants against online gambling executives. There is also the long standing case of World Sports Exchange owners Steve Shillinger and Hayden Ware, who remain fugitives in Antigua after being indicted for violations of the 1962 Wire Act in 1998.