The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

RELIEVED residents of an Abaco shanty town have vowed not to let outsiders construct new structures in The Farm following this week’s favourable Supreme Court judgement.

Justice Cheryl Grant-Thompson on Monday ordered that a standing injunction prohibiting the government from evicting shanty town residents and disconnecting services to their communities be extended to include all unregulated communities in Abaco.

She ordered the government cease and desist further interference with those communities until the judicial review of the matter is completed. Officials must now get approval from the court before demolishing any further structures.

Although Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Works Desmond Bannister has criticised the ruling – which the Office of the Attorney General intends to appeal – The Farm residents are ecstatic, according to a community leader.

“The situation in Abaco is such that even if you have money, you can’t find a place to rent,” said the man, who asked to be identified as Jonathan Pierre.

“Where these folks are staying, they are out of the way, they are not in anybody’s way. The monies they got from the Red Cross, that’s what they used to stay in Abaco. We have a housing problem here. A one bedroom place is like $800.”

Before Justice Grant-Thompson’s ruling, the Ministry of Works began demolishing occupied structures in The Farm. Mr Bannister insisted only structures built after Hurricane Dorian in 2019 were targeted for demolition.

Hoping to now gain favour with the government after this week’s ruling, residents are eager to ensure no additional structures are built in The Farm, Mr Pierre said.

“People are saying they’re not going to allow anybody else to build any house in The Farm area anymore,” he said. “Right now they don’t have no place to build and they don’t want no one go down and make it worse for them. If they find out people are building they will report those people so we’re just hoping that they don’t build anymore.”

Mr Pierre estimated that about 3,000 people are currently in The Farm. Those whose homes have already been demolished are living with relatives and friends in the community.

“This news of the ruling came at such a good time because folks didn’t know what they were going to do if more homes were destroyed,” he said. “There’s no shelter, the government don’t provide nothing. What do they want people to do? They tell people go to Social Services; Social Services wasn’t doing nothing.”

The government sought to provide temporary shelter for people displaced by Hurricane Dorian by building domes capable of housing up to 1,000 people.

Mr Pierre, however, said most of the people occupying domes are from Spring City where the structures are located.

“The only persons who get those domes are Bahamians and you have to know somebody in the government to get those domes. I don’t think it’s four or five Haitians who get them,” he said.

Mr Pierre said the shanty town residents realise they still have much to fear given that the court case is not finished.

“I was telling them they should come together, get a lawyer, put their monies together and buy private property and do everything by the book and build on that property,” he said. “Just as they can find $12,000, $13,000 to build a house illegally, do it differently.”

In the meantime, he urged the Minnis administration to think of the social consequences of demolishing homes of people who are struggling financially.

“Even if they appeal the ruling, they don’t have a plan,” he said. “When you demolish these houses, where these people gon’ go? We have so much land sitting in Abaco doing nothing. Why not lease the land so money could go into the treasury?

“All of this is a political move. The government knows they did nothing for Abaco so they use the Haitians because they know Bahamians will be happy. That is to sway them for what they aren’t doing. A lot of people are still living in tents, still living in cars. Some people were living in old houses. Now people are returning back home to fix their homes up. It’s hard out there.”