15635: Schweissing: Bahamian Immigration returns 329 illegal Haitians (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: Daniel Schweissing <dan_schweissing@hotmail.com>

Immigration returns 329 illegal Haitians
By KHASHAN POITIERGuardian Staff ReporterTo date, Bahamian taxpayers have
spent $300,000 to repatriate an estimated 1,981 Haitians of the 2,361 caught
this year.


While an exact figure could not be put on the number of Haitian refugees who
entered the Bahamas since Monday, Ministry of Immigration's statistics
showed that 739 were apprehended.


Since May 12, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and United States Coast Guard
recorded at least two seizures per day. Defence Force patrol crafts HMBS
P-121 and HMBS P-42 made the most recent arrests, spotting several Haitian
sloops near Belle Island carrying 191 refugees Wednesday evening.


With refugees being discovered mainly along the Exuma Cays, Inagua and near
the capital during the four-day span, five Defence Force vessels were
dispatched to the southeasterly Bahama Islands Thursday.


In a press release, Immigration and Labour Minister Vincent Peet said 329
Haitian refugees were transported to Haiti on two separate flights, leaving
478 detainees – 408 males, 68 females and two children – at the Detention
Centre on Carmichael Road.


On each flight, six escorts, including two Defence Force, two Police and
Immigration Officers; accompanied the pilots to ensure the security of the
flights and that the individuals were returned safely. On Monday, another
164 Haitian immigrants will be deported.


"There are a very large number of illegal immigrants who have come to our
shores in the past few hours, and there appears to have been some slight
overlapping or duplication," said the minister, revealing that some refugees
may have escaped.


During these past few days, the Department of Immigration have been "working
very quickly" to assemble the immigrants at the Detention Centre and in the
repatriation process from the capital to Haiti.


"From the Defence Force Intelligence's prospective, we are very concern that
the influx that we are experiencing might continue because of the very poor
conditions that exist in the northern part of Haiti," said Mr. Peet.


"It appears that the central government of Haiti has little or no control on
what goes on in the northern part of Haiti, therefore it might appear, at
this stage, that it is not able to assist that much," he added.


These remarks comes three weeks before the Haitian Government signs an
agreement with the International Monetary Fund, who has released some US$50
million in financial aid, despite no apparent move by Haiti to meet
international demands, including planning re-elections.


Next week, Foreign Affairs Minister Fred Mitchell and Minister of National
Security Cynthia Pratt will travel to Haiti to continue negotiations for an
agreement on immigration issues with the government.


Mr. Peet said: "We hope that the Haitian government will become more
proactive in keeping their people at home and we are hopeful that they will
abide by the efforts made by the Bahamian Government and the OAS
(Organizations of American States) and other agencies to find financial
assistance for Haiti. Our resources are limited and they have been
stretched, and it is very important that we find collectively,
internationally a resolution to this problem that has spread to us."


Last year, over 3,000 Haitian migrants were arrested, the highest number in
a decade and nearly 50 percent more compared to 2001.


POSTED FRIDAY MAY 16, 2003

_________________________________________________________________
Protect your PC - get McAfee.com VirusScan Online
http://clinic.mcafee.com/clinic/ibuy/campaign.asp?cid=3963