ELSWORTH Johnson in Parliament. Photo: Donovan McIntosh/Tribune Staff
HUMAN Rights Bahamas has criticised what it called “intolerant comments” from Immigration Minister Elsworth Johnson regarding residents of shanty towns.
On Monday, Mr Johnson took issue with the fact that some residents of an Abaco shanty town used their children to get the attention of United Nations representatives who were touring the community on Saturday.
The children were pictured on the side of the road holding signs which read, “We have no place to stay” and “We need help.”
Mr Johnson said it was “deplorable” for the adults involved to use children that way. He also said it was “cowardly” for the adults to hide and put the children out front.
“Clearly, Mr Johnson and his government are upset because a human face is being placed on the tragedy they are causing out in Abaco,” HRB said in response. “They prefer that the public think of these demolition exercises impersonally, in terms of numbers and statistics. Houses and structures. Not in terms of families whose lives are being ruined.
“They do not want the public to see the faces of the traumatised children who are being left without shelter, whose schooling has been interrupted yet again, who live in fear of the next attack on their communities.
“But he cannot deny what is being done to these children. They have every right to force the authorities to look at their faces and then try to live with (the) consequences of their actions. Hopefully, it makes some politicians uncomfortable.”
The advocacy group added: “How dare Mr Johnson refer to people who have lost everything in Hurricane Dorian, who have been left to fend for themselves, whose every effort to re-establish their life has been forcibly undone and who live under the constant threat of official oppression, as cowards? We wonder how Mr Johnson would act if he were in their shoes.
“Who are the real cowards? Is it the people who hide when being terrorised in aggressive and illegal raids and roundups, who are utterly defenceless and afraid they will be forcibly separated from their loved ones? Or is it politicians who from the comfort and safety of their office, play political games with people’s lives for votes?
“Mr Johnson should remember that one day, he will no longer be in politics, but that the record of everything he has said and done will follow him in his future endeavours. The local human rights community will see to it.”
Comments
tribanon 3 years, 5 months ago
Why doesn't The Tribune ever name who these Human Rights Bahamas activists are? Surely readers of The Tribune have a right to know the names of those individuals who stand opposed to the interests of the vast majority of the Bahamian people.
Emilio26 3 years, 5 months ago
Tribanon it seems like Fred Smith wrote this article but the way it is worded only he makes those ridiculous statements.
jamesg30 3 years, 5 months ago
Probably because curious people like you would torment them for their Christian based morals. Hire a private investigator if your so curious. The whole situation stinks and the solutions being implemented are evil and inhumane. Yes, Haitians, shanty towns, crime are all problems. Systemic corruption, backed up courts, fox hill, income disparity, the over fishing of our waters, the influence of big foreign money, the cost of living: food, electricity, rent. All are problems, but let’s pull an evil simplistic, Donald Trump move and take it out on undocumented Haitians. Perfect time to tear their roofs off and leave them sitting in the rain with their children. We are such led by the nose cows.
tribanon 3 years, 5 months ago
I learned a long time ago that those who are quick to tout they're more Christian than you usually aren't the least bit Christian themselves. If you're Bahamian, you should be shedding a few tears for your many fellow Bahamians who are downtrodden and suffering without adequate social benefits in their own country today because our social welfare programs, like our public health and public education systems, have been financially crushed as a result of the invasion of our small nation by overwhelming numbers of Haitian nationals and their many offspring. For decades The Bahamas has been under seige by Haitians fleeing Haiti and entering our country illegally with devastating consequences for the quality of life for many Bahamians.
tribanon 3 years, 5 months ago
So I guess you're one of those in favour of the continued exploitation of the ever growing huge pool of Haitian slave labour by the few wealthier Bahamians while the vast majority of lower income Bahamians and Bahamians leaving school each year simply get added to our public sector payroll or join the long welfare lines. And by the way, there's a strong correlation between the build up of pervasive corruption in our public sector and the build up of the overwhelming numbers of illegal immigrants who have come to our shores and propagated like crazy since getting here.
Our society's limited resources and way of life have been stretched and torn beyond the seams by illegal immigrants to the point where many Bahamians have ended up becoming much more uncivilized in order to just survive. Bahamians were known to be a docile people before the 1970s. Not so today, and these shantytown communities have played a much bigger role than you care to think in the transformation of our society, not for the better, but for the worse.
benniesun 3 years, 5 months ago
@tribanon - I agree with both of your comments. Should circumstances require jamesg30 to try and obtain used clothing from the Salvation Army or other depots, he would get none as the Haitian females sit like vultures at those locations and aggressively take all they can. They then resell the clothing to Bahamians and/or ship them to Haiti to be sold. As a result Bahamians who are down on their luck and needing clothing donated by Bahamians for Bahamians get little or nothing. An Immigration Officer should be stationed at all those used clothing depots.
NewGuy 3 years, 5 months ago
I think it's very interesting that so many Bahamians earnestly believe that most of the country's problems are rooted in Haitian immigrants doing jobs that are freely available to any Bahamian but no Bahamians want to do. Sounds a lot like Americans somehow becoming convinced that all their problems were South American illegal immigrants. It's just a convenient scapegoat that allows people to not have to think too much about major issues.
tribanon 3 years, 5 months ago
Many of the constuction and menial jobs you speak of would be much higher paying jobs for Bahamians were it not for our government's failure to enforce our immigration laws and introduce a realistic minimum wage for a hard day's physical work. And many of these deplorable shantytowns would not exist were it not for the profiteering interests of the wealthier and very greedy few among us who have a vested interest in exploiting slave labourers.
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