Abaco father to Immigration: Where are my sons?

Abaco father to Immigration: Where are my sons?
Inel Paul, an Abaco storm victim, pleas with immigration to return his two young sons who were apprehended on Tuesday.

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – An Abaco father-of-two yesterday appealed for the release of his two Bahamas-born children after they were apprehended in an immigration raid.

Inel Paul, 39, said his two sons and their mother were registered evacuees who were staying at a shelter in New Providence in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.

Paul, who has been living in The Bahamas for 18 years, said his family evacuated their home in The Mudd, prior to the storm.

Their home and the entire shantytown community was flattened by the monster Category 5 storm.

Paul said the devastation forced him to send his family to Nassau for safety, while he stayed with his employer aiding with recovery and reconstruction efforts.

“It ain’t no good for kids living there, but I said I could handle that,” he told Eyewitness News Online, as he stood across from the gates of the Carmichael Road Detention Centre.

“If I know water somewhere, I could drive and get my water but my kids can’t do that.

“Since the hurricane my family been in the shelter.”

The Mudd: File Photo

Paul said his sons have already been registered in school in New Providence and were attending school.

He arrived on the island on Tuesday, when he picked up his children and their mother and took them to their cousin’s home in Yellow Elder for a visit.

He said they signed the shelter registration book to note they were leaving and coming back.

But soon after arriving at his cousin’s home, immigration officers came to the door, forced themselves in and requested papers.

Paul said while he holds a work permit, his girlfriend does not have any documentation.

Despite notifying the officers that they were shelter residents, Paul claims the three were still taken.

“I want to know where my kids is,” he said.

“I know my girlfriend don’t have her documents straight, but I have a boy 10-years-old and one six-years-old. I came here from [last night] but they still didn’t bring them there. When I came this morning again, they say they ain’t here. I don’t know where they is.

“My kids born in The Bahamas. Both of them were born in The Bahamas.”

Paul said he was only allowed to speak to his girlfriend on the phone for one minute. In that time, he said she told him that an immigration officer informed her that her name will be placed on the list for deportation.

He maintained his children, who were born in The Bahamas, have rights and should not be deported to a country they don’t know.

“Right now, my problem is I don’t know where they put my family, that concerns me,” Paul added.

“Two boys, they don’t know nothing about in Haiti…I know I’m a Haitian, I’m from Haiti but that country so crazy. Those two kids, they don’t know nothing about that.”

In a plea to authorities, Paul said: “What I want to know is if they could allow me to get my kids or my girlfriend to stay here. It ain’t good sense to send them back home. They kids, how they could handle Haiti?”

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has called on The Bahamas to suspend its immigration enforcement and deportation exercises in the wake of deadly Hurricane Dorian.

Haiti’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Bocchit Edmond also made a direct appeal to The Bahamas government for a moratorium on repatriations for Haitian migrants impacted by the monster storm.

However, the government has repeatedly stated it will enforce the law.

About Sloan Smith

Sloan Smith is a senior digital reporter at Eyewitness News, covering a diverse range of beats, from politics and crime to environment and human interest. In 2018, Sloan received a nomination for the “Leslie Higgs Feature Writer of The Year Award” from The Bahamas Press Club for her work with Eyewitness News.

22 comments

Many immigrants are of the view that if their children are born in the Bahamas, they are automatically Bahamian citizens. His children are Haitian and according to the laws of the Bahamas can apply at the age of 18. I suggest he goes back to Haiti with his family and apply to return with his family.

We must get serious about protecting The Bahamas. Unfortunately these immigrants do not realize that Bahamians also have rights, one of which is to choose who we allow to live in The Bahamas and how many persons we allow here..

God ‘s not sleeping . Bahamian people think they are better than other caribbean nations . They better go learn to clean they houses and bathe them selves properly. Nasty set a people.

Stop blaming Bahamians for your state of affairs. If you choose to visit a foreign country and stay without securing permission from the Government for you and your family, then you can only blame yourself. This is a country of laws, they must be respected.

Many Haitians come to the Bahamas by the hundreds illegally and expect to stay on our island . Bahamas is not a big place and can’t hold all of them , over population is a disaster for any country and will become a serious problem. We could barely take care of our own people . A lot of bad comments where said but know other country has more Haitians than the Bahamas But all of the 11 millions Haitian in Haiti cannot come to our little island and over take it, If everyone comes from Haiti it will no longer be Bahamas it will be Haiti . Because the majority of people will be Haitians.

Bahamians think they are better because they dont want to allow people to break their laws? You are not making any sense. Your country has the same law.

How is it that a child is born in a country and is cast away as being of another nationality? That is wicked! While I don’t support breaking the law, I think leniency should prevail where these children and many more like them are concerned. Where is the compassion! I admonish the Bahamian authorities to be careful with how you treat others, lest something worse should befall your nation! The golden rule still applies: treat people as you would expect to be treated. Should you continue in your arrogant ways you will feel God’s wrath!!. Remember, there will be no mercy for the merciless! You’ve been warned!

I am mindful about the children, and feel bad about it- but WHY as a Father you didn’t get them straight?..WHY, you all take too much things lightly..

Do u know how many Americans live in the Bahamas. That is why the Chinese are taking over the Bahamas and remember this we all HUMANS first and we are Black.

Now why would you say that..he had that right to make it right for his kids and his woman..he did not-dont go calling us wicked-u ungrateful person.

ONE thing has NOTHING to do with the other-did he do what he was suppose to do ?did he ?NO, so he is paying that price.

Every port of entry to a country has desks or booths that sells tickets and welcomes you and i to their country. If you apply the right way at any one of their booths i don’t think they will have a problem with allowing you to enter their country because they are letting you in but if you decide to enter with out them knowing you are as good as a thief entering a home or business or property or country with out permission which is considered by every country on earth a crime, that is punishable by death, imprisonment, or deportation or in some cases all.
In most cases when persons decide to do something that is a law breaker of any sort they would have already thought to them selves these words ( If I get catch they ga send me back home or to jail or what every.) So if they decide to still do the crime then they have also decided to still do the time.

So the problem with this illegal entry in all countries around the world is not having a problem with you being there but having a problem with how you got here.

Chrisamelmal you have the heart to call us NASTY LIKE SERIOUSLY IF YOU ARE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS AND YOU HAVE BABIES YOUR KIDS ARE ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS TOO WHY YALL AFRAID TO GO BACK TO YALL SO CALL HOME HAITI WHY WE NEED TO CANCEL ALL HAITIANS WORK PERMITS

There are more Haitians in the Bahamas then Americans and Chinese .so what you are saying don’t make no sense. When you come to Bahamas illegally you should go and get the proper documents to live here before you start to have 2 children a year .This is a big problem with Haitian women ,Haiti has 11 million people living there why would you have all these children in extreme poverty. And then you talk so bad about the Bahamian people. Dominicans are Haiti next door neighbor and you can’t even go over there . The United States of American gave the Haitians until January 2020 to go back home . So what other country is helping Haiti other then the Bahamas .You cannot expect for us to have more Haitians then Bahamians in our own country. Why don’t you be angry with the world for not helping .

And the Haitians burn the Bahamian flag in the Bahamas . For that they should of being deported back to Haiti so disrespectful.

I can see that you are one of them that hate the hatians but you all would arms of a white man

No I don’t hate any one, just telling the truth about the facts , that you cannot name another country who helps Haitians more then the Bahamians. And being an grateful is not a good thing.

In the Bahamas we are not “black” – we are all races, infact there is a large white population, but if you are so stuck on race – We are all HUMAN.

The Hatain problem is a real danger to the Bahamas see for example Miami been taken over completely by the Cubans u can’t get a job that doesn’t require Spanish u can’t get elected no politician unless your last name isn’t Cuban. The Hatain language an culture is strong it doesn’t coexist it dominates.

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