CARICOM high level team arrives in Haiti

A week after Caribbean leaders, the United Nations and the US spent hours discussing the situation in Haiti at their summit in Trinidad, a high level team of former prime ministers arrived in Haiti late Wednesday for a second round of talks with multiple stakeholders including Prime Minister Ariel Henry, the opposition and civil society.

But even as Bruce Golding of Jamaica, Perry Christie of The Bahamas and Kenny Anthony of St. Lucia prepare to begin their meetings various fractious parties, Jamaica which had ironically hosted the first round of the ex- prime ministers eminent person group meetings on the island last month, is apparently getting ready to deport a batch of Haitian boat people who came ashore this week, desperate to start a new life.

The group of 37 who came ashore on the southeastern parish of Portland on Monday seems set to be deported back to their strife-torn homeland where heavily armed gangs are terrorizing ordinary people, the police and even government officials.

Former Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding. Associated Press / Collin Reid, file

Jamaica Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kamina Johnson Smith told reporters on Wednesday that while no final decision has been made about their fate, it is highly likely that the batch will be sent back to Haiti.

“We have not taken a fixed policy position in respect of Haitians arrivals in Jamaica [but] at this point in time we know that we are creatures of international law and we are always guided by that in terms of rules of asylum and refugee status. There has been no claim made in either category by the persons who have arrived and therefore they are being treated as illegal entrants because this is the capacity within which they have arrived,” said Johnson Smith said.

The 37, which includes 24 men, came ashore on a beach in Portland on an 18-foot canoe. Local media speculate that they were trying to reach Florida but might have been pushed by strong currents westward to Jamaica.

“The ministry of health and wellness, I understand, has now completed its health examinations and everyone there is in good health. They are being fed and taken good care of and further decisions and announcements will be made in terms of the ultimate treatment of this body of persons in due course,” said Johnson Smith.

Jamaica, The Bahamas, The Turks and Caicos Island among others have over the decades absorbed hundreds of Haitian boat people fleeing different periods of unrest in their homeland. Bahamian officials earlier this year say the country cannot take care of any more refugees as the economic strain is too much.

And while the group of 37 await their fate, the Guyana-based CARICOM Secretariat said in a statement that the ex-leaders will convene a second round with the more than 50 persons who had attended the first meeting in Jamaica a few weeks ago as well as those who did not make it to Jamaica.

“In the interest of the people of Haiti, the eminent persons group encourages all stakeholders to continue their efforts to engage in meaningful dialogue in order that consensus may be achieved, in a constructive, timely and peaceful manner on the forward. The group was appointed by CARICOM heads of government last May to initiate and oversee the community’s provision of good offices support in designated priority areas, including security, governance, the electoral process, and long-term development planning and advocacy. They will also liaise with key international partners and agencies.”