NASSAU, BAHAMAS — While acknowledging that there are no “easy or immediate solutions” to the country’s persistent immigration challenges, Free National Movement deputy leader Shanendon Cartwright described “illegal Haitian migration” as a national crisis that is forcing Bahamians to “fend for themselves.”
He also pushed back against critics who dismiss concerns about the subject as “xenophobia or hatred”.
“What is clear to any objective observer is that illegal Haitian migration continues to escalate due to the deteriorating conditions in Haiti, and the current administration does not have a clear plan to address it,” Cartwright said.
“For decades we have been severely challenged to address the illegal immigration crises in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas including the related issue of land access and land occupation.
“This is not a question of xenophobia as we all recognize that legal immigrants, particularly those from our sister Caribbean countries, have played a vital role in helping to build our nation. This is a question of ensuring a longterm sustainable future for the Bahamian people.”
Cartwright, who is the opposition’s shadow minister of National Security, appeared to reference recent remarks to a local daily by Central and South Abaco MP John Pinder, who lamented the steady proliferation of unregulated communities on the island.
Cartwright continued: “For many people, there is a basic sense of unfair competition in The Bahamas for those who play by the rules.”
“That a government MP can pinpoint an entire community of illegal migrants that the government has left undisturbed is scandalous. That the Department of Immigration has not yet been compelled to act is baffling.”
Cartwright implored the government to get “serious” about enforcing labor laws, contending that existing court injunctions cannot be used as a scapegoat for government inaction.
“We are all aware that the shantytown issue on Abaco is before the courts, but there are apparently many other laws being violated that do not pertain to the buildings in those communities. I also want to note that there is clearly Bahamian complicity in employing and housing illegal migrants.
“If illegal migrants were not so easily able to find work with Bahamian employers, the flow of illegal migration would slow,” Cartwright suggested.
He reiterated that his remarks are not intended to diminish the contributions people of Haitian descent have made to the country.
