MINISTER of Foreign Affairs and Immigration Fred Mitchell in the House of Assembly.
By AVA TURNQUEST
Tribune Chief Reporter
aturnquest@tribunemedia.net
FOX Hill MP Fred Mitchell declared yesterday that the country was not a theocracy as he castigated religious leaders for their role in the failure of the gender equality referendum.
Notwithstanding the vote’s “disappointing” outcome, Mr Mitchell expressed concern over the lingering hate sparked by debate over the constitutional amendments.
Pointing to recent attacks in the United States and the United Kingdom, he underscored the link between hate speech and destructive behaviour among mentally ill and ignorant people.
He reiterated his call for clergymen to publicly separate themselves from violence and hate during his contribution to the 2016/2017 budget debate.
“I am very disappointed in the results,” he said, “in the way our people allowed phobias to complicate the issue. The inequalities on the transmission of citizenship are astonishing, and as a country, we are not in good company in this regard when compared to other countries around the world.
“I fear that we as a country and a people still may not have matured enough to make decisions in isolation for the betterment of the country, to reduce discrimination in The Bahamas.”
“This was a matter of citizenship, nothing else,” he said.
The minister of foreign affairs and immigration announced that he will dedicate his 2017 election campaign to the fight for women’s rights.
The constitutional referendum’s amendments were overwhelmingly rejected by Bahamians on June 7, with ‘no’ votes getting more than double the number of ‘yes’ votes in most constituencies.
“The government was blamed for missteps in the process,” Mr Mitchell said.
“I reject that. There can be no remedy for deceit other than truth. The truth was plain to see but instead of the work of God being done, it appears the work of the devil has for the moment succeeded.”
He added: “While they crow from the rafters from stopping some shadowy hidden agenda, the people who have suffered are women and children, and the people of the Bahamas. They have set us back a generation.”
“The extent of the deceit goes further than the errant clergymen,” he said.
“Here was Bran McCartney who claims that he voted because Dame Joan Sawyer said so. With respect, everyone who is in the know, knows that Dame Joan Sawyer has been overturned by the Privy Council more times than the garbage can outside my yard.”
He was referring to Democratic National Alliance Leader Branville McCartney who said he voted “no” to all four questions on the ballot after being swayed by comments from the former Court of Appeal president.
Yesterday, East Grand Bahama MP K Peter Turnquest challenged that it was misleading to paint opponents of the referendum as sexist or hateful.
“I think it’s unfair to characterise them as teaching hate,” Mr Turnquest said. “I believe they had some specific concerns and they raised them, I think the Bahamian people made a decision. I think it’s wrong to come to this place (and prescribe) a hate motive to them rather than a philosophical one.”
However, Mr Mitchell countered that the referendum’s purpose was indisputable.
“What in my respectful view happened in the Bahamas is that a minority was demonised and dehumanised in this country to frighten people into voting against the rights of women,” he said.
“I say again, that is not something to be proud about because the only ones who will suffer are women and their spouses, their children and men and their spouses.”
Mr Mitchell said: “The bills were simply about giving men and women the same rights in the Constitution.”
Comments
TigerB 8 years, 5 months ago
I wonder how he voted in 2002?
sheeprunner12 8 years, 5 months ago
He voted NO ......... because he did not KNOW ......... right??????
EnoughIsEnough 8 years, 5 months ago
never in my life did I think i would agree with this man but here I am....agreeing. The religious leaders who continue to speak of hate and intolerance on a weekly basis and do nothing to unite us as a people and a nation but instead continue to create great divides are at fault. Branville was a disappointment but I don't think anyone cared how he voted. Dr. Minnis showed weakness by not standing up for this referendum and instead saying his vote was private and personal - are you kidding me?? Without the fear mongering and hate and intolerance that continues to be preached and lived in our "christian" country this bill could have and should have passed. We will never move forward as a nation as long as this backward, exclusive thinking is allowed to control the everyday Bahamian as well as those in power.
licks2 8 years, 5 months ago
Where they speak of hate. . .intolerance. . .and not uniting the people and created a great divide? Or where did Dr. Minnis did not tell you all that he voted yes to all four bills in the house. . .and how did he did not show leadership by not telling the press how he voted. . .or for telling the public to vote their conscience. . .? Right now my first inclination is to call you stupid. . .but I must say that your reasoning is at best disingenuous . . .rather than an outright lie. . .or minimally dumb as rocks! The outcome is the will of the people. . .you want democratic government and refuses to accept democratic outcomes of a referendum. . .without being tolerant yourself. . .you have to be joking dude/dudette! The exclusionists attempted to ram a view point down the bellies of the people. . .even denying public funds to tax paying members of the public(which you likely supported). . . you can just go kick rocks. . .YOU ARE NOT READY FOR AN OPEN, FAIR AND BALANCED DIALOGUE. . .
hallmark 8 years, 5 months ago
WOW! He is blaming EVERYONE!! Except......
Well_mudda_take_sic 8 years, 5 months ago
The relatively small few in our country will always be the loudest squeaky wheel. Their chant and tirade will always be heard in the background because of their unwillingness to accept the right of the vast majority of Bahamians to be governed by fair and democratic processes that are intended to protect and preserve the most basic rights of a civilized society, such as the sacrosanct institution of marriage between a man (designated as male at the time of his birth) and a woman (designated as female at the time of her birth). It is these same democratic processes and sacrosanct rights that the loud few have no respect for and therefore continually seek to tear down to suit their own hideous personal agenda.
Reality_Check 8 years, 5 months ago
The Bahamas is a well established Judeo-Christrian nation whose citizens strongly believe that love of the flesh does not trump all else. There are many in our society who are afflicted from the time of birth with a serious debilitating ailment, illness or impairment, yet they gracefully go about trying to fit into our society as best they can, all the while making the most of what God has given them. The LGBT movement really should count its own blessings in the much more tolerant world we all live in today rather than seek to wage war through its misguided and generally perceived hideous hidden agenda on things like the sacrosanct institution of marriage.
Economist 8 years, 5 months ago
"The Bahamas is a well established Judeo-Christrian nation whose citizens strongly believe that love of the flesh does not trump all else."
Go to the PMH and see all those babies who were created as a result of "the flesh trumping everything else". Emmmm now there is a Reality Check for you.
Reality_Check 8 years, 5 months ago
And most of those babies you refer to are part of our illegal immigrant problem brought to our shores by the likes of Pindling, Ingraham and Christie for their own political self gain. These three power hungry evil politicians and their cohorts could not care less about us Bahamians and what illegal immigration has done to our culture, life style, quality of education and social services, standard of living, and on and on.
concernedcitizen 8 years, 5 months ago
Yeah b/c our own people are not having babies out of wedlock LMAO
concernedcitizen 8 years, 5 months ago
Actually marriage is a legal contract and has nothing to do w/ religion .That's why an atheist can marry etc , That is also the reason both the privy council and the US supreme court had to rule in favour of gay marriage ,it would be against the law and prejudice to let one set of people enjoy the benefits of a legal contract and others not too .That is also the reason you can be married by a justice of the peace or a boat captain .
Economist 8 years, 5 months ago
That is correct. If the priest who marries you is not a "Marriage Officer," under the law, then you are not married.
Reality_Check 8 years, 5 months ago
And we all know that unnatural legal unions are very different from sacrosanct natural marriages that occur with spiritual blessings within a Judeo-Christian society.
concernedcitizen 8 years, 5 months ago
We are a Christian society in name only and have had both gay and lesbian people all the way at the top leadership wise ,..How come the more liberal countries that keep religion out of politics have the lowest crime rates ,,Denmark ,,Norway ,Sweden etc ,,That bronze age books ,,the Bible and Koran have caused more blood shed then both world wars
licks2 8 years, 5 months ago
It is legal in the Bahamas. . .your constitution says so. . .NOW IF YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH THAT. . .TOUGH! The church did not tell you that the four bills are not passed. . .THE CONSTITUTION DID! Then if you have a problem with the result of a democratic vote of no. . .get ya behind up and go partition the court for the change of the law. . .take it to the privy council. . .LET THEM SEND YA BACK HOME WITH THE DECISION THAT THE DISCRIMINATION IS CONSTITUTIONAL RINGING IN YOUR EAR!! Them group of yes vote workers knew all along that article 26(4) of the constitution allows for parliament to discriminate in marriage. . .not the document itself!! The government can change that rule any time they wish!! IT IS NOT THE CHURCH WHO WILL NOT CHANGE THE RULE. . . IT IS THEM SAME DAMN YES VOTE PERSONS. . .THEY KNOW THAT THE GOVERNMENT CAN CHANGE THAT LAW TODAY IF THEY HAD A MIND TO! They don't have the balls to do it. . .THE CHURCH HAS NOT PART IN THE MATTER. . .EXCEPT VOTING THEIR CONSCIENCE IN A DEMOCRATIC EXERCISE. . .NOT YOUR CONSCIENCE. . .THEIRS!
SP 8 years, 5 months ago
.... Chinese "Economic Citizenships" would have quadrupled If The Bills Had Passed! .....
FOX Hill MP Fred Mitchell and PM Christie attempt at deceiving the electorate with their biggest secret that giving 500 Chinese citizenships actually translates into 1000's of new Bahamian citizens when these Chinese pass their new Bahamian citizenship onto families!
The electorate obviously are not nearly as stupid and ignorant as these so called crooked aristocratic clowns believes.
TAKE DAT!
The_Oracle 8 years, 5 months ago
Mr. Mitchell and his Government should have made plain from the outset that we committed to the U.N. resolution on Womens Rights, which is indeed what the referendum was about: By hiding that reality you made space for chauvinism, paranoia, homophobia, and every other demon that arose!
Economist 8 years, 5 months ago
Well said.
licks2 8 years, 5 months ago
True. . .including classists. . .elitists. . .corruptions etc. But well said and to the point!
John 8 years, 5 months ago
**
**
** what?
licks2 8 years, 5 months ago
So. . ."in the know" means what? The elite. . .classists. . .rich. . .who? By ya statement we can deduce that you consider yourself "in the know" and the people are not! Child please. . .and yinna wonder why Dr. Minnis have so much pull with the small man and those "in the know" can't convince a bunch of "in the don't know" persons to vote in the best interest of their own children! Can you post how many ground breaking cases she did get her hip handed to her on a platter by the PC? The proof in in the evidence. . .not your word. . .if your statement is any evidence of your propensity to be "truthful". . .show me the beef please!
viewersmatters 8 years, 5 months ago
I do agree that the Bahamas needs to get inline with other nations, the main thing that the Bahamas needs to get inline with is freedom of information and corruptions throughout the Bahamas. Give us agencies to oversea government spending and criminal acts done by high profile individuals who have to answer to no government. Is it fair to give citizenship to person who showed no dedication to the Bahamas and deny those who born,live support and played great contribution to the Bahamas? Is it fair that there are thousands of individuals who been residing in the Bahamas for decades and can't get a citizenship and has to pay thousand of dollars on work permit and what's not, those people who only know the Bahamas to be home and because they aren't Bahamains are being treated unequal? If we want get things right let's get everything right and not be so bias on any situation. We are far behind in technology and modernization, our education system isn't at a standard level and Bahamians aren't seeing the Bahamas to be home any more but yet we want get inline with all nations by focusing on a minor portion of the problems that's keeping us back and not focusing on the major issues that's keeping us back.
hallmark 8 years, 5 months ago
WORD!!
Reality_Check 8 years, 5 months ago
Believe me, today's illegal immigrant problem in the Bahamas is no small problem that our politicians like Pindling, Ingraham and Christie have saddled us with. For decades now our country's resources have been stretched to the limit by illegal immigration. Granting amnesty to those already here illegally will only encourage thousands more to come to our shores illegally and will embolden those already here illegally. Black Bahamians now feel like the minority in our nation today....what was the purpose of achieving majority rule only to have our elected politicians turnaround and give our country away to non-Bahamians?!
ThisIsOurs 8 years, 5 months ago
I just can't....
"The minister of foreign affairs and immigration announced that he will dedicate his 2017 election campaign to the fight for women’s rights."
Why did he wait till now to fight for women's rights? Wasn't there plenty of time before?
steplight 8 years, 5 months ago
A Karios Moment- Mrs.Grace Ferguson nee Smith fo Burnt Ground,Long Island in accordance to the April 11th 1963 HOA and RBPF Mandate is hereby released from being the scapegoat and mother of the Smoking Gun Calvese Smith aka Calvese Walkes in the grisly murder of Sir Harry Oakes which took place at Westbourne Estates,New Providence Island.On her 81st birthday the light that set gross darkness over the Bahama Islands returns as Ural Farquharson the headteacher at Glinton's All Age School,Long Island as a trusted hired helper at Westbourne Estates,New Providence Island saw absolutely nothing wrong being a pedophile in late March 1948 sending the student into exile and forced motherhood to conceal in plain sight of the RBPF history books his identity as the most wanted man in Bahamian law enforcement history for the revenge killing of Oakes,the breaching of the Night Patrol Act 1795 on July 7th 1943.The burned testicles,eyelids and four holes placed behind the left ear curve on Oakes head represents the four Bahamian women connected to the crime of the century,they are Mrs.Clothilda Smith nee Adderley of Burnt ground,Long Island held in contempt for rebuking Ural for the assault of a minor te beginning of social degradation in the Bahama Islands, Grace he sought to place the reproach of the Affaire de Bizoton trial curse 1864 on,Ismae Bowe the eldest daughter of Clothilda killed in a murder ritual with a suicide label attached which unlocked the murder mystery and Calvese the Smoking Gun who was expected to replace Claircine the underage kidnapped,human sacrifice and cannibalized girl in December 1863 considered to be the goat without horns for power,prestige and privileges.The aura of invincibility and curse are dismantled.The secrets of this murder was a trojan horse inside the police force with intentions of 1805 Haitian Constitution Preliminary Declaration Article 12 being the foundation for a New Republic in Ural's honor that failed on May 7th 2012.The official 42 year arbitrary arrest,detention and exile has been the greatest blessing for the Bahamians forced into exile with a 72 year long cultural war of aggression based upon unmerited taunting,harassment,flouting,scapegoating,ritualistic gender base crimes of aggression as a pastime.Two opposing cultures in a POlicide brings the referendum no vote in view where the representatives in the war a male has destroyed the credibility through misrepresentation and a female is yet to thank the country for 52 years rejection as the ENigma of policing and politics who paid the ultimate price to best represent the best of all racial groups in the country being tri-racial.
sheeprunner12 8 years, 5 months ago
Fweddy will die an ignominious death ........... he has no fear of God or God's messengers ........ he is in bed with the LGBT and religious cartels
licks2 8 years, 5 months ago
I feel MP Fred angst. . .we pretend that we don't know where his orientation is rumored to be. . . if that is the case. . .any discrimination that deny equal rights for his likely orientation. . .obviously he see it as a personal discrimination! I would not go as far and say that he does not fear God. . .but if he is oriented as rumored. . .we should not attack him. . .but understand his dilemma!
ThisIsOurs 8 years, 5 months ago
I'm 2000% confident that his anger comes from years of discrimination due to his sexual orientation. My issue with him is he's allowed his anger to fester and to twist him so badly, his bitterness always overrides his otherwise pleasant appearance. He needs to release the bitterness. Nothing wrong with being angry, especially if you perceive injustice, bitterness destroys you. He needs help (seriously, no joke)
licks2 8 years, 5 months ago
He is a very pleasant man to be around. . .but he will turn into a "beast mouth" in a heart beat. . . if he feels opposition to anything he says or think! Yes. . .I do think also that his "social hurts" makes him vulnerable as an outstanding intellectual!
Well_mudda_take_sic 8 years, 4 months ago
Too many sore losers commenting here who represent the relatively few who never had any idea what was at stake in the recent referendum and who would wish to have their small minority view of the world imposed on the vast majority of the rest of us Bahamians. It's funny how you don't hear the small LGBT community castigating the corrupt Christie-led PLP government for welcoming the mainland Chinese to our shores.....and we all know what these newcomers to our society think about members of LGBT community! The mainland Chinese are the very definition of anti-gay, anti-queer, anti-transgender, anti-not-sure-what-my-sexuality-is-today, anti-not-sure-what-my-sexuality-will-be-tomorrow, etc. etc. Dare to come out of the closet in mainland China and you are sure to quickly meet your maker!
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