12654: Sympathy for Haitians BUT Bahamas for Bahamians--Guardian Commentary (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Daniel Schweissing <dan_schweissing@hotmail.com>

Commentary
letter for Phillippa Russell

Released Wednesday, July 24, 2002 at 10:45 am EST by transporter

We sympathise with the Haitian plight, but The Bahamas for Bahamians first

The Editor, The Guardian,

Dear Sir,

I write in response to the lead story in your paper of Saturday, July 20,
titled, "End discrimination: Hi-Bar fights for Haitians, Bahamians." I would
appreciate your publication of my research on this long-standing unresolved
national issue.

Firstly, we must agree on terms before meaningful discussion may lead us
into the truth. The misleading reference to the word "DISCRIMINATION" in the
headline suggests that The Bahamas' national policy regarding the treatment
of illegal aliens from Haiti is indicative of "PREJUDICE" against these
desperately helpless people. This cleverly constructed fallacious charge
seems designed to elicit sympathy and redirect our thoughts away from the
facts.

Factually, the term Haitian-Bahamian has no basis in Law, since one is
either a Haitian national or a Bahamian citizen; there is no in-between.
Historically, our nation has always had border patrols to prevent
unauthorised entry, and immigration checkpoints at seaports and airports to
inspect the documents of every individual seeking admission into our
country.

An official passport is required and often a proper visa stipulating the
length of time and conditions under which the bearer is permitted to stay.
While our policy and requirements have varied from nation to nation, we have
never had a totally open-border policy allowing free access to Haitians nor
any other nationals who may wish to come in.

The militant and aggressive tone of Mr. Michael Pierre CEO of
"Haitian-Bahamians Against Racism (Hi-BAR)" in his defence against the
repatriation of his "brother" Mr. Wesley Beauchamp, requires repentance on
his part as he humbly apologises to the Bahamian people, who have for
decades graciously provided "cities of refuge" for thousand of Haitian
nationals.

This present potentially nationally destructive issue is a matter that must
be resolved by our Ministry of Foreign Affairs and indeed the Bahamian
people, post haste. Mr. Pierre makes several erroneous references to the
term "BIRTHRIGHT" in his plea for his "brother's" right to become a
naturalised citizen of the Bahamas. However, the definition of a Bahamian
citizen remains, a child born to a Bahamian parent(s) and -not a child born
on Bahamian soil.

Have you observed how many notices of Naturalisation and Citizenship
requests are appearing in our newspapers daily? Is there an annual quota?
Have you counted how many illegal immigrants are apprehended nightly in
their quest to enter into The Bahamas? How many boatloads escape detection
and successfully deliver their unwanted human cargo? At what point in this
immigration influx will we stand and declare: "Enough is enough!"

I too have wept and prayed for drowned Haitian children and their
non-swimming parents, whose failed attempts at reaching our shores have led
me to examine the root causes of this unresolved national issue. I
discovered that from as far back as Toussaint L'Ouverture's revolution
against slavery between 1791 and 1803, the nation of Haiti has battled for
its economic life. The Haitian Revolution was a symbol of inspiration for
millions of slaves and people fighting for their liberty throughout the
world. All countries with slaves feared that the revolution would spread and
so the seeds of hatred against these freedom conscious people were sown over
two hundred years ago.

Through various trade embargoes since 1804, the growth of Haiti's economy
has been stifled by effective systems of discrimination instituted by
America and Haiti's former European masters. How sad! Apart from gaining the
distinction of being the first independent Black Country in the Western
Hemisphere, Haiti has historically acquired the distinction of being the
poorest and most repressive Black Country in our region. Powerful landowning
interests and military might have often combined with external forces to
maintain repressive and rigid control of the Haitian people and the
country's meagre resources.

The tortures, unjust detentions, unexplained disappearances and murders of
persons opposed to the military control of Haiti have continued unabated
since the collapse of the Duvalier regime in 1996. Hopes for a new Haiti
were rekindled when the Aristide government promised to restore democracy to
the people by free and fair elections, however; the Haitian people require
assistance in making this dream a reality. A prominent Haitian Methodist
minister, Allain Rocourt, writer, thus:



"Christian people in (the U.S.) who have visited Haiti and have seen the
suffering under which the majority of the people have lived, who also have
come to admit the extraordinary resilience of those people and their gentle
nature, must have asked themselves the question: Couldn't our government
have intervened in a positive way and early enough to prevent the massacre?
... Is there anything we could and should have done to help the Haitian
people realise their dream of establishing democratic structures, the rule
of Law, equal justice for all, the protection of the legitimate rights of
each citizen?"

While we greatly sympathise with the plight of the Haitian people, our
little nation is not equipped to absorb their refugee influx, as our scarce
resources must be reserved for Bahamian first. Our border patrol personnel
must be tripled in the immediate future, carefully selecting persons whose
loyalty is firstly to the Bahamians.

Until the Referendum Meeting of February 26, 2002 at Christ the King
Auditorium, just one night before voting day, I did not fully appreciate the
irony of Homer's, "Trojan Horse" and its reality in out Bahamian context.
Nor did I, until that night, really appreciate the gift of our former Prime
Minister, Sir Lynden Oscar Pindling, who although himself the son of a
Jamaican born policeman, saw the necessity of creating a system of
Immigration laws that would protect our Bahamas as a sanctuary for Bahamians
first.

In the past, many Haitian families have been welcomed to contribute their
talents to the building of our nation and French surnames are commonplace in
our Bahamas, however, we simply cannot afford to continue a Laissez-faire
immigration policy toward Haiti our efforts to gain control of this mounting
threat must be intensified and assistance from our northern neighbours
sought to share the expenses of the increasing and massive repatriation
exercise.

It would be far better if activists like Mr. Pierre were seeking Bahamian
assistance to defend Haiti's Human Rights Violation issues at the United
Nations level. The men who helped to establish Bahamian Sovereignty are
still alive and mentally astute. Well-versed in the strategies of destroying
systems of bondage and domination, they were the best legal minds this
country had to offer back then and they have remained our noblest sons.



Mr. Pierre's charges against the staff at the detention centre will be
investigated as the humane treatment of refugees in our care is mandated in
scripture and this Christian nation will not be found guilty of permitting
atrocities against detainees, Our people are not compassionless, nor are we
prejudiced, but we shall be guided by our intelligence rather than by our
emotions.

Let us collectively fight against Haiti's enemy, Satan the devil who has
used imperialist agents to destabilise her economy and who has promoted that
hybrid religion (voodoo), practiced by so many of her people which allows
his demonic control to continue. Let us in the spirit of unity, work and
pray together for the deliverance, liberation and prosperity

Copyright (c) 2001 by Nassau Guardian


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