Archbishop Urges Bahamians To Consider Positives Of Immigration
By KHRISNA VIRGIL
Tribune Staff Reporter
kvirgil@tribunemedia.net
ARCHBISHOP Patrick Pinder has urged Bahamians to consider the positive socio-economic impact of migration as the government continues to battle immigration challenges.
He
said too often, the debate is focused on the perceived negative effect
illegal migrants had on employment and social services along with
cultural differences.
Speaking
during the Red Mass at St Francis Xavier Cathedral, Archbishop Pinder
said it was important for Bahamians to treat illegal migrants as they
would wish to be treated were they in the same position.
“Changing
the narrative requires that Bahamians learn more of our history, about
migrants who came here and made a positive contribution to the
development of our land,” the Catholic archbishop said. “About how
Bahamians too in the past had to go abroad seeking economic
opportunities.”
“Changing
the narrative means bringing to justice those who exploit migrants,
taking advantage of their vulnerable state. In fleeing their homeland,
migrants do not lose their humanity. They continue to need nourishment
both material and spiritual. Their need for justice and protection tends
to increase rather than diminish in a new land.
“Clearly
it must be acknowledged that no country can support increasing influxes
of dependent migrants. We certainly cannot. Ours is not a new problem
or a simple one. It is a problem in aggregate.”
He
said if the government manages the Bahamas’ migration issues properly,
the country stands to benefit from relationships that are beneficial.
Many migrants, he told those gathered at the church, have skills and abilities that can boost the country’s development.
“They
can and do fill gaps in the workforce that are created because
Bahamians turn their backs on certain jobs. The process cannot be
engaged haphazardly, however. The work must be approached and carried
out with strict adherence to best and most productive international
standards.
“It
must protect the human right and dignity of all migrants. It must be
defined by and infused with all the love of neighbour, which the
Christianity we claim requires of us.”
Recently, the Bahamas has been the subject of fierce criticism over its position on illegal immigration.
Last
September, Foreign Affairs and Immigration Minister Fred Mitchell
announced new immigration restrictions in a bid to clamp down on illegal
migration, particularly from Haiti. The restrictions took effect on
November 1. On that day, immigration officials carried out operations in
different pockets of New Providence in which scores of immigrants,
mainly Haitians, were taken into custody.
The
new immigration measures stipulate, among other things, that every
person living in the Bahamas is required by law to have a passport of
the country of their nationality.
Persons
born in the Bahamas to non-Bahamian parents will be granted a special
residence permit that will allow them to work until the status of their
citizenship application has been determined.
The
new policy also states employers who are applying for first-time work
permit holders who are residents of Haiti must come to the Department of
Immigration and pay the $100 processing fee, provide a labour
certificate, cover letter, stamp tax of $30 and the employee information
sheet in Nassau. The Haitian applicants must provide their supporting
documents at the embassy in Haiti.
These new stipulations were seen as discriminatory against Haitian nationals.
It
led human rights group Amnesty International; Florida lawmaker Daphne
Campbell; Haitian Bahamian activist Jetta Baptiste; lawyer Fred Smith,
president of the Grand Bahama Human Rights Association; and Organisation
of American States (OAS) Secretary General Jose Miguel Insulza to
publicly express concern about the new policy.
The archbishop spoke at the annual service, which was held on Sunday, January 11.
January 21, 2015
