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Something Is Happening Barbados, What Are We Going To Do About It?

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Credit:Nation Newspaper

In the wake of a recent revelation regarding the growing number of gangs, Barbadians have reacted as a deer would facing the headlights of an oncoming vehicle. The current media coverage of the Christopher ‘Dudus’ Coke matter in Jamaica has exposed to Barbadians how gangs can take root to destroy a community. The jury is out on whether it will destroy Jamaica. Tivoli Gardens in West Kingston Jamaica has now attained the reputation as the most famous garrison community in the world. The Jamaicans appear to be crowding the news of late or so it seems.

It was with deep concern BU read the back page of a local newspaper today (03 June 2010).  The story highlighted the arrest of four suspected robbers, the fact three were Jamaicans should cause our liberal thumpers to sit up and take note. Should Barbadians be concerned? Are Barbadians reaping the result of the unmanaged immigration practices of the past decade?

At the risk of being accused  of being xenophobic Barbadians need to question the role we want to play in a CSME. It is clear if we continue on the current path, the stable society which Barbadians have enjoyed for decades will be no more.

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61 responses to “Something Is Happening Barbados, What Are We Going To Do About It?”

  1. J Avatar
    J

    I doubt that the fact that these men are here has anything to do with a liberal immigration policy. Liberal immigration policy or not, Barbados because it depends on tourism for its living has pretty open borders. These men could therefore come here as ‘tourists’ regardless of how strict out immigration policy is.

    And they are innocent until proven guilty. The law says so.

  2. J Avatar
    J

    And lemme ask a question, because I was one asked this question myself.

    Lets say a juvenile commits murder in Englind. Serves his term of imprisonment. Is given a new name and passport by the British government. Wants to come to Barbados as a tourist. Can he?

  3. J Avatar
    J

    And another question. A Canadian man who drinks and has a bad temper kills his wife. He is convicted of manslaughter and serves 7 years in prison. He is released, but is on lifelong parole, with restrictions on his travel, but he wants to come to Barbabdos for a holiday. Can he?

  4. David Avatar
    David

    The problem with Bajans unless we have facts we close an eye to what is obvious.

  5. J Avatar
    J

    Dear David:

    People who have been convicted of crimes come to Barabdos as tourists (all the time). There in NOTHING in our Immigration law that can stop them. The truth is we do not have the capacity to require police certificates of character of ALL our short term visitors, so as long as their country grants them a passport they can travel to Barbados, and I know of no country that refuses to grant ex-cons passports.

    Thats the truth we must not be blind to.

  6. mash up & buy back Avatar
    mash up & buy back

    J fully demonstrates the saying:’a little learning is a bad thing’.

    She always manages to come up with some convuleted crap.

    Many have been saying this csme freedom of movement and the liberal interepration of the policy under the arthur administration will soon manifest itself in some nasty ways.

    Well I believe this is the tip of the icebergs,the immigration and police if they really want to could raid the strip clubs around the city and in christ church and discover a large numeber of illegal jamican prostitutes giving this country a bad image especially to tourists.

    More enforcement immigration officers needed.

  7. J Avatar
    J

    The Jamaican accused no doubt came to Barbados as tourists. And no doubt other people (including some from Jamaica) wil come here and be accused and convicted of crimes.

    But what is the solution? Can we or sjould we require police checks and or visas of our Jamican visitors? And can we do that under our current Caricom arrangements? And if we can’t should we withdraw from such arrrangements? Those are the hard questions David.

    And no Dave. I am not blind. Not blind at all.

  8. David Avatar
    David

    Yesterday Senator Durant was heard in the news to be expressing great concern about the matter of deportees and illegals. We need to get up from our asses and realise the world is changing around us. With the crap happening in Jamaica here is another big island where the outflows will increase. There is a word in the vocab called initiative, let us use it.

  9. Yardbroom Avatar
    Yardbroom

    @ J June 4, 2010 @ 6:18am

    …”and I know of no country that refuses to grant ex-cons passports.

    Thats the truth we must not be blind”

    *************************************

    “Who can apply for British Citizenship and other forms of British Nationality.

    Good character requirement to obtain a British Passport.

    If you have been sentenced to more than 30 months in prison for a single offence, this can never become spent. Your application for citizenship is therefore unlikely to be successful.

    A conviction becomes spent after a certain period of time has passed. ( we call this the rehabilitation period)”.

    Home Office
    UK Border Agency

  10. Kiki ☠ Avatar
    Kiki ☠

    countries like usa and jamaica maybe ahead of the times by about 5-10 years while the rest of the world follow their footsteps

  11. EyeSpy Avatar
    EyeSpy

    @ J // June 3, 2010 at 11:45 PM “And they are innocent until proven guilty.”…

    I think it applies all over the world; doesn’t it?

    @ J // June 3, 2010 at 11:47 PM “… a juvenile commits murder in England. Serves his term of imprisonment. Is given a new name and passport by the British government. Wants to come to Barbados as a tourist. Can he?”

    I don’t see why not. If he should not be traveling, then the British Government should not grant him a passport. On another note, I don’t know England laws but aren’t juvenile records expunged at a certain age? Just asking.

    @ J // June 3, 2010 at 11:50 PM “… A Canadian man who drinks and has a bad temper kills his wife. He is convicted of manslaughter and serves 7 years in prison. He is released, but is on lifelong parole, with restrictions on his travel, but he wants to come to Barbados for a holiday. Can he?”

    I would think that he has to get clearance before he can travel outside of his jurisdiction, unless there is an exception documented in his parole papers.

  12. Adrian Hinds Avatar
    Adrian Hinds

    I am trying to follow J’s responses, but I think I am not having much success due to wanting a conclusion, or an opinion on the concerns highlighted in the lead off article to this thread.

    -J, are you saying there is no need for concern?
    -That we should look at this incident in a pragmatic way?
    – Maybe we should ignore the violence in Jamaica, the disrespect for law and order in Jamaica, and the fact that other jurisdictions much more sophisticated and larger than ourselves, have targeted arrivals from Jamaica for enhance scrutiny.

  13. Negroman Avatar
    Negroman

    I listened to a news extract from Bobby Clarke who eulogized at Norman Faria funeral.He indicated that the late scum Norman Faria along with David Comissiong were relentless in their efforts to get a reversal on the new immigration policy that our government proposed last year.

    I have said over & over again that David Thompson has reversed his position on immigration and there is no apparent urgency in relegating the inflow of immigrants into Barbados.This has been confirmed not only by Bobby Clarke pronouncements at Norman Faria funeral,but also by Guyana immigration officials who also indicated that the Guyana immigration department does not have any records of any more deportations from Barbados in recent times.

    I have been observing over the last few months since the immigration issue has gone dead a steady increase of non-nationals in Barbados.When I visit Bridgetown & take a walk in some stores, I observe some non-nationals working in many of those stores.I also see a steady flow of non-nationals especially the Indo-Guyanese scums in Bridgetown some with families including newly born babies.Non-nationals especially the Indo-Guyanese miscreants are steadily solidifying themselves in Barbados and we are going to find it increasingly difficult to remove those society parasites from Black Barbados.I foresee Barbados in the not too distance future looking similar to Guyana & Trinidad.Two of the larger Caribbean countries now have Indian led leaders & I believe Barbados is they next stop.All the telltale signs are there.

    This present government has done little or nothing to stem the flow of illegal non-nationals coming into Barbados.The amnesty has not been effective,neither the talk bout immigration reforms,and even the town hall meetings have brought about any change.The illegal non-nationals know that Barbadians are only people of talk and little action and as a consequence they will continue to thump up their noses at our people and leaders and they will continue to operate as though Barbados owed them a living.

    We have an ineffective,inept,backward thinking government led by David Thompson who has been blowing hot & cold on the immigration issue.Mix confusing signals have been sent and nothing definitive has been established to effective manage our immigration problems.While our leaders are playing the ass,Barbados is descending into a state similar to Guyana & Jamaica.

  14. David Avatar
    David

    It pains the BU household to see the lack of leadership in Barbados. In can be seen in this matter, police, public transport, land use policy and the list goes on.

    Did we not vote for change?

  15. mash up & buy back Avatar
    mash up & buy back

    David

    Reading one of the regional newspapers today I discovered that Grenada had a mini tiovoli gardens scenario where a ‘drug don’ in a particular area of Grenada had his followers in the villagers come out and stone the police who were trying to take him in.
    The police had to fire warning shots before the people dispersed.

    Barbados is a sitting time bomb because there are a lot of illegal jamaicans and other criminals hiding out here in barbados.Remember the 2 jamaicans who were shot and killed near lowers greys in st george 3 years ago with that police shoot out.

  16. David Avatar
    David

    @mash up

    There are several incidents which have occurred in Barbados involving illegals in recent years. In Barbados the media and officials tend to be complicit in sweeping things under the carpet. Back in 2008 a Jamaican man was convicted of cutting up his girl friend who he believed to be unfaithful.

    Like the title implies, something is happening.

  17. J Avatar
    J

    Responding to Adrian HInds

    -J, are you saying there is no need for concern?

    No I am not saying that we should not be concerned

    -That we should look at this incident in a pragmatic way?

    Yes we must be pragmatic, in that we can only catch criminals one at a time, so yes I am in favour of better policing, but pragmatically we cannot punish people before they commit crimes

    – Maybe we should ignore the violence in Jamaica, the disrespect for law and order in Jamaica, and the fact that other jurisdictions much more sophisticated and larger than ourselves, have targeted arrivals from Jamaica for enhance scrutiny.

    No we should not ignore the violence in Jamaica. I am all in favour of good immigration rules, strictly enforced, good policing, justice etc. but pragmatically we can only do what we have the money and manpower to do. Unlike larger places we do not have a multi billion dollar budget and we do not have a police force that is hundreds of thousands strong. So yes we have to be pragmatic, if pragmatic means doing the BEST that money and manpower permits.

    I was not intending to draw conclusions in my submission, I was intending to cause people to think, and to ask hard questions, and to press officials until they come up with the right answers

  18. Adrian Hinds Avatar
    Adrian Hinds

    David: a two party electorial system, resulting in governance via a westminster mixed government centralize system, makes voter change at the polls a symbolic thing only. The difference is the colour of their shirts. Red or Blue you get kerrie simmonds as an example; same thing.

  19. David Avatar
    David

    @J

    Are you saying that if you know your house is termite invested you should limit your response to the problem by a business as usual response?

    Do you know what will eventually happen? Pragmatic indeed!

  20. Yardbroom Avatar
    Yardbroom

    EyeSPY June 4th, 2001 @ 9:37am

    “… on another note, I don’t know England laws but aren’t juvenile records expunged at a certain age? just asking.”
    **********************************
    The individuals in the case highlighted on this thread were not juveniles however for the record

    Relevant Rehabilitation Periods

    Youth custody* for more than 6 months but less than two and a half years (10 years )

    A sentence of Borstal training ( 7 years)*

    Imprisonment or detention in YOI ( Young Offenders Institution ) or youth custody for six months or less (7 years)*

    Young offender detention for over six months but less than two and a half years ( 5 years )

    Probation order or Community order (person under 18 or older ) (Either 5 years or 2 years after order ceases to have effect, whichever is longer)

    * Note these periods are reduced by half if the offender was under eighteen at the date of the conviction.

    Liberty Guide To Human Rights.

  21. EyeSpy Avatar
    EyeSpy

    @ Yardbroom // June 4, 2010 at 12:29 PM “The individuals in the case highlighted on this thread were not juveniles however for the record…”
    ——————————————————————————————————————–
    The part of my comment you are referring to was in response to the following by J // June 3, 2010 at 11:47 PM “… a juvenile commits murder in England. Serves his term of imprisonment. Is given a new name and passport by the British government. Wants to come to Barbados as a tourist. Can he?”

  22. Yardbroom Avatar
    Yardbroom

    Hi, Eye Spy
    Thanks for your clarification.

    My initial comment was directed at the following statement:
    @ J, …”and I know of no country that refuses to grant ex-cons passports..

    That’s the truth we must not be blind to.”
    *********************************************
    Reference to the above, although the commenter might not know it, there are countries that refuse to grant passports to ex-cons – in specific circumstances -…therefore the evidence I produced.

  23. J Avatar
    J

    David asked @J

    Are you saying that if you know your house is termite invested you should limit your response to the problem by a business as usual response?

    Do you know what will eventually happen? Pragmatic indeed!

    No David. I would do what I could with whatever money I have or can borrow. But you know very well that Barbados does not have the capacity to impose visas on the millions of visitors we receve each year. Ideally we should do that, but what would it cost, and where would the money come from? and how much of a humbug would it create for the tourist industry.

    That’s all.

  24. Bosun Avatar
    Bosun

    This is what happens when the people who we put in parliament to make our lives better, sit back and make theirs better instead, without a thought for those who put them there.
    No gangs! Crime down! All is A-OK. Yet as David pointed out we have endless problems of indiscipline all around us.
    Only this week,again we hear the Police making an appeal to those reckless ATV drivers. Motorcycliss are still doing wheelies on the ABC highway and even in Bridgetown. The Ministry of Transport has gone ahead with a programme of providing the much needed sidewalks for pedestrians. Now most of these new side walks are becoming popular as parking spaces for motor vehicles,forcing the pedestrian back into the road. Yesterday the road at Water Street corner became congested due to heavy traffic and some construction work, along came a motor cyclist and without hang nor woe, proceeded to beat the traffic,by riding along the side walk.
    We speak of Tourism, but this country is fast becoming one of the nosiest capitals in the world (I travel widely) .Where else at midnight and beyond,will you be awoken by ear splitting exhaust noises from motor cycles with the baffles in the silencer removed, and screaming engines and exhaust of motor cars owned by wannabe race car drivers. I remember a time when Route 13 to Silver Sands had the newest and best buses the Transport Board owned, because the hotel owners/managers along the South Coast never fail to complain is a bus ,especially at nights cause disturbance to their guest. We the permanent guest of this country is given no such consideration.
    We are going nowhere slowly. As far as I am concerned, we can disband parliament,brush the cobwebs off the legislation that we already have in place, properly and adequately police them, and a lot of our troubles will be decreased.

  25. Christopher Halsall Avatar
    Christopher Halsall

    @Bosun: “The Ministry of Transport has gone ahead with a programme of providing the much needed sidewalks for pedestrians. Now most of these new side walks are becoming popular as parking spaces for motor vehicles,forcing the pedestrian back into the road.

    So the MoT and the police should tow away any illegally parked vehicles at the owners expense, assuming apporpirate signage is in place…

    This seems like a reasonable profit centre, to anyone serious….

  26. Yes, David, you are right! Avatar
    Yes, David, you are right!

    Yes, David, we have to be very careful about this matter when we see Jamaicans involved with crime in Barbados.

    Jamaicans do not generally live in places like Barbados (apart from some professionals) as this is seen in their eyes as “small island).

    Having these people involved in crime in a small island in the remote east, is definitely a cause for concern.

    It has the smell of “organized crime”.

    How coincidental that we have seen some gruesome crimes committed in recent times (remember “Tone”?)

    “J” needs to put off her academic hat; stop trying to impress and smell the roses.

    As the horse voiced Bob Dylan used to sing: “times are a -changing”

    We should be very concerned when we see Jamaicans involved in serious crime in Barbados.

  27. Movie stars? Avatar
    Movie stars?

    I notice that the 3 men above are smiling. Are they movie stars, or being awarded an honour? Did they hear a good joke?

    Can someone tell me what these men are smiling about?

  28. ac Avatar
    ac

    However we must be careful not to stigmatized a whole group of people because of color , race, or creed. but must hold the politicians responsible for not looking out for the best interest of the country as we the people did elect them to do just that. Our country and our people deserve the best and we would sit idlly by and let it be taken over by drug lords and gangs. The only way to stop possible mayhem on this island is to throw out the politicians who are indifferent to the wishes of the people.

  29. Bosun Avatar
    Bosun

    @Movie Stars,these men are smiling, the same as the Minibus driver ,who killed a man ,walked away from the scene of the accident, refused to attend court hearings,and with198 previous convictions,was given a slap on the wrist with a measly $5000 fine.Perhaps these men have mistaken our law courts for a Calypso tent.

  30. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    Movie Stars
    De camera-man probably tell dem ta ‘smile, you’re on Candid Camera”.

    Negro
    My hero, I was wonderin if you went to Faria funeral but I guess not. 🙂
    Ya still got me cryin wid ya names doe. Stay as sweet as you are, don’t let a soul re-arrange you………………

    Mash up
    My dawlinks, ya still swoite.

    Adrian Hinds
    You still would like to know de tree dat J navel string bury unda, dat you could go n pee pun um? Ya suga-stick. Ya hilarious.

  31. Bosun Avatar
    Bosun

    @AC,we Bajans are too damn quiet and are just satisfied to take things lying down.That is why others traipsed into this island and kick our arses from breakfast to dinner.Was it any wonder that when the Barbadian planters with their pockets full of cash decided to relocate and re-colonise South Carolina , just before emancipation,opted to take along their ‘Bajan” slaves as they were considered too docile and tame to attempt making a run for it. We need a little bit of the Jamaican and the Irish spirit (and not Poteen,Guinness or Whiskey) in us to start a-kicking a few arses of our own,starting with some of our very own,who are well practiced in the art of kicking…..down ladders.

  32. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    Bosun
    De man dat he kill probably in got na family. There’s more than one way to string a cat. Dis is what ya call a mockery of de judicial system. I hope he conscience prick he evry day and he end up in de mental or die a slow n painful death.

  33. David Avatar
    David

    Perhaps understanding how others in the Caribbean view Barbados and why we are being taken advantage of some say can be gleaned from Professor Cooper’s article in the Jamaican Gleaner which appeared last month. Very interesting indeed. Bajans wake up!

    Advertising murder
    Published: Sunday | May 9, 2010 Comments 0

     

    I really don’t understand why The Gleaner has started up again to advertise our high murder rate every single day. We’ve been there and done that, to little effect. I suppose the editors have decided that dramatic action must be taken to stop the bloodletting. And this is the best they can manage.

    Quite frankly, all that the screaming numbers do is to scare the living daylights out of innocent citizens. Murderers are not likely to be frightened by Gleaner headlines. It strikes me that they might even be tempted to take the rising numbers as a dare! In a deadly game of chance, criminals may actually try to see how high and fast they can make the numbers climb. And it is only the murderers who win in this lottery.

    On a stop-over in Barbados last week, I was reminded of how different that island’s management of crime statistics is. No national newspaper in Barbados would ever advertise murder figures on the front page in bold face, large-font letters and numbers. Tourism is so vital to the Barbadian economy that the fiction of an unquestionably ‘safe’ Barbados is carefully scripted for international consumption.

    Somewhat cautiously, I asked the receptionist at the hotel if it was safe for me to walk alone at night. It was still relatively early, about 8 p.m., and I was just going ‘couple chains’ down the road and across the street to a restaurant. I was assured that it was, indeed, safe. As soon as I got out on the main road, a suspicious-looking man emerged from the shadows across the street. I ignored him and walked briskly down the road, all the while looking back to see if he was following me.

    When I got to the restaurant, I immediately told the hostess that I was anxious about walking back to the hotel alone and she readily agreed to have their security guard accompany me. I told him that I wondered if, coming from Jamaica, I was overreacting to the man in the shadows. After all, he could have been entirely innocent.

    Prophets of doom

    But I kept remembering the experience of a female graduate student from Italy who had come to the Reggae Studies Unit at the University of the West Indies, Mona, to do research on Caribbean popular music. When she told family and friends that she was going to Jamaica, everybody’s reaction was the same: Jamaica is so dangerous! Are you sure you really want to go there?

    She simply ignored the prophets of doom. She spent about six weeks in Jamaica and didn’t have even one moment’s panic about crime. In Barbados, she was held up at knifepoint at a bus stop in the middle of the day. She was devastated. The perverse moral of this true story is that being a tourist in ‘the murder capital of the world’ may actually be advantageous.

    Just think of it: when you visit a ‘safe’ island like Barbados, your defences are down. You don’t expect to be attacked. You stand at a bus stop and you look out for a bus – not a knife-wielding robber. When you come to a dangerous country like Jamaica, you are constantly on your guard. So perhaps The Gleaner is right to be advertising murder. It’s good for the tourist industry.

    Tivoli Tourism

    On a macabre note, I also wonder if there’s not an unexplored benefit that comes from having a reputation as a dangerous country. I think there’s an untapped market of risk-taking tourists who would enjoy the challenge of surviving Jamaica. These are the types who tackle perilously steep mountains and dangerously deep seas. I can just see the ads: one love, one heart, come to Jamaica and feel … that adrenalin rush.

    There could be a Tivoli Tour that would allow the super-brave to try to get a glimpse of that elusive, world-famous entrepreneur whose patriotic story of dissing Uncle Sam has been making headlines in the local and international press. A tour to Bob Marley’s Trench Tour – by the most dangerous route possible – would also be extremely popular.

    For the slightly less brave, there could be a pothole derby. This would require contestants to drive at breakneck speed in riverbeds pretending to be city streets. There would also be cross-country excursions in specially fitted minibuses – bald tyres, no brakes – and with a demented driver who hasn’t figured out the basics of overtaking.

    Seriously though, plastering murder statistics across the front page of The Gleaner is just like putting a Band-Aid on a deep puncture wound. The nation is bleeding to death and we need major trauma therapy; not gimmicks. We need to get to the very foundation of our moral catastrophe. Why are we committing so many murders? And who is ‘we’?

    Some of us like to take foolish comfort in the conviction that ‘dem must mix up into something mek dem dead’. Organised crime is the explanation that puts our minds at ease: ‘we not into nothing, so we safe’. But suppose is not so. What if it’s disorganised crime? Just plain arbitrary violence! How do we cope with the prospect of murder for the sheer wickedness of it? Making duppy.

    It’s a basic principle of conventional journalism that bad news sells. But, after a time, sensational headlines have very little impact. Soon, we’re going to stop seeing those murder statistics. If the editors of The Gleaner really want to boost our morale in these dread times, they should consider another strategy: give us more good news, even if it’s bad for business.

    Carolyn Cooper is professor of literary and cultural studies at the University of the West Indies, Mona. Send feedback to: karokupa@gmail.com or columns@gleanerjm.com.

  34. Yardbroom Avatar
    Yardbroom

    Professor Cooper’s article is rather simplistic and “warrants” little attention…but we must.

    A “suspicious-looking man followed her in Barbados” but what happened? it appears nothing did, or else the suspicious Professor would have told us.

    However an Italian student was held up at knife point in the middle of the day in Barbados …and was devastated. May we juxtapose that episode against Jamaica as we are told being the murder capital of the world. She intones us being “a tourist in the murder capital of the world may actual be advantageous”.

    This story is nonsense and the academic qualifications of the author does not alter that.

    In essence we have “evidence” of a supposed knife attack in Barbados being equated with the high murder rate in Jamaica.

    I will leave the last word to the author. …”somewhat cautiously, I asked the receptionist at the hotel if it was safe for me to walk alone at night”. Why all the caution, even in the hotel. She brought her fears to Barbados, I wonder what else
    she brought to her article.

  35. Crusoe Avatar
    Crusoe

    @Yardbroom,

    I think Prof Cooper’s article is somewhat tongue-in-cheek. Yes, maybe she is very wary on crime, even before she came, but I think anyone should be ‘aware’ in visiting other places.

    I agree on her point of the ‘is it safe to walk alone at night’ is irrelevant, ANYWHERE in the world a woman walking at night alone is a target for danger.

    Would she walk alone at night in New York, in Wyoming, in Rio or Delhi or even any town in Mexico?

    A ‘safe’ assessment of a country is a relative term, with ‘probablility rates’ of being attacked or not.

    I would consider her words on the management of crime news however, possibly a valid point. Such news should not be hidden, if one wants accurate perception and action.

  36. mash up & buy back Avatar
    mash up & buy back

    This ‘prof’ cooper woman has been known to make unfounded derrogatory remarks about barbados before back in jamaica.

    These people all hate barbados yet they keep flooding up here with their presence.

    All these jamaican lawyers and other middle management people rushing here under CSME to get jobs in the said barbados they like to talk about so bad.

    Steupes.

  37. David Avatar
    David

    For Cooper to compare crime coverage to Jamaica is illogical. Jamaica is known to be a country with a high kill rate and incidences of gun violence. For example in an election campaign people will die, in Barbados this wouldn’t be the case.

  38. Atman Avatar
    Atman

    While we don’t want undocumented immigrants committing crimes in Barbados, we also have to take a careful look at the increase in crimes committed by Barbadians (especially violence and murders). We have to observe the number of Barbadians being deported from the US for various crimes, and in the influence they are having on the youth when they return.

    A few days ago a woman’s body was found in the Wotton area, and the week before a woman was killed by her man in the Ivy and her body found on the nearby playing field. Murder is becoming a familiar thing to Bajans, and I don’t think that undocumented immigrants are to blame for that.

  39. David Avatar
    David

    Atman

    Of course we have to manage ALL aspects of our society. However given the small size of Barbados the impact of illegal immigrants who originate from societies where murder is a norm makes us very vulnerable. We have to be vigilant and proactive to slam the door shut when we see the early signs. It is as simple as that. Barbados has been a model country through the years as far as social stability and crime is concern. In this regard we have to lead and not be happy to follow Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad can’t teach us anything on this front.

  40. Atman Avatar
    Atman

    @David

    I am not disputing that we need to keep out negative elements and set limits for immigration, but I think that if some among had their own way they would keep all Guyanese, Jamaicans, and Trinidadians out of the island (except for a few select wealthy ones). Let’s face it, most bajans just don’t like to see “foreigners” in Barbados…whether they are well behaved or not. We are notorious for scorning other people of the region without just cause. Xenophobia and classism continues to be a major of the Barbadian psyche.

  41. David Avatar
    David

    Atman

    To understand the Bajan psyche on the immigration matter you have to resort to our history. Barbados throwing back to our colonial past did not change hands like many of our neighbours. Consequently we have built our society on the foundation of a predominantly Black host population. Any threat to this model in the minds of Bajans will provoke a reaction. What we have to do as a nation is to determine what type of society we want to develop going forward and manage accordingly.

  42. PlainTalk Avatar
    PlainTalk

    @Yardbroom // June 5, 2010 at 2:58 AM
    “This story is nonsense and the academic qualifications of the author does not alter that.”

    Yardbroom, With due respect, you allow your fingers to do the talking with lots of liberty and where there seems to be no justification.

    @David // June 5, 2010 at 6:29 AM
    “…in an election campaign people will die, in Barbados this wouldn’t be the case.”

    David, Not yet!

    @Atman // June 5, 2010 at 6:57 AM
    “We have to observe the number of Barbadians being deported from the US for various crimes, and in the influence they are having on the youth when they return.”

    Atman, Youths are influenced daily, they don’t have to see crimes demonstrated by deportees for them to act out. We need to get real and stop pointing fingers at undocumented immigrants for the crimes that are taking place.

    Bajans are the same human as a deportee, Jamaican or any other nationality. We need to stop pretending that we are harmless – wouldn’t hurt a fly, we are saints, and everything else that is positive. Steupse. There has been progress in our small island which we are and should be proud of, but there is a price that comes with it that we have started to pay for.

    I agree with Crusoe that “news should not be hidden, if one wants accurate perception and action.”

    Let the truth be told!

    @David // June 5, 2010 at 7:10 AM
    “However given the small size of Barbados the impact of illegal immigrants who originate from societies where murder is a norm makes us very vulnerable.”

    David, The Immigrants are not solely or mostly to blame for the wrong doings that have become so abundant in our island. Whether legal or illegal immigrants from backgrounds of violence or serious crimes, it is not the only criterion that makes us vulnerable. We don’t have to blame outsiders for our sinking shores, we have our own insiders right here on home turf that are helping to take it down.

    Barbados would and has its share of crime like any other country. We cringe to think that Barbados is on its way to be a follower of Jamaica, as much as we don’t want it to be and no matter how we try to ignore reality, but it’s getting there. Make no mistake about that.

  43. Atman Avatar
    Atman

    @David

    But it’s not only Guyanese and Trinidadian indians that bajans have a problem with, and I think you know that. I was born and raised in Barbados until my mid-teens when I emmigrated to North America for a few years, and I have witnessed the scorn and resentment that many bajans show toward other BLACK Caribbean people here in Barbados. How are you going to explain that away?

  44. Atman Avatar
    Atman

    And I forgot to mention that I returned to Barbados 20 years ago and have always been observing things.

  45. David Avatar
    David

    @David

    But it’s not only Guyanese and Trinidadian indians that bajans have a problem with, and I think you know that. I was born and raised in Barbados until my mid-teens when I emmigrated to North America for a few years, and I have witnessed the scorn and resentment that many bajans show toward other BLACK Caribbean people here in Barbados. How are you going to explain that away?

    Insularity among the islands can’t be refuted. It will manifest itself when discussions about the West Indies cricket team is topical. What can be denied is that it is a peculiar characteristic to Barbados.

  46. David Avatar
    David

    2010/06/05 at 7:10 AM

    Atman

    Of course we have to manage ALL aspects of our society. However given the small size of Barbados the impact of illegal immigrants who originate from societies where murder is a norm makes us very vulnerable. We have to be vigilant and proactive to slam the door shut when we see the early signs. It is as simple as that. Barbados has been a model country through the years as far as social stability and crime is concern. In this regard we have to lead and not be happy to follow Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad can’t teach us anything on this front.

    @Plain Talk

    You should have noticed the first sentence in the above…ALL.

  47. Atman Avatar
    Atman

    @PlainTalk

    You obviouly missed my point. I never said that the youths need to see deportees commit crime in order to learn and do crime, I’m saying that when criminal deportees are returned to the Barbadian society, the potential is there for things to get alot worst. I’m sure you can remember the old adage “adding fuel to the fire”. Criminal deportees need to be carefully monitored.

    Did you read the Nation News article: http://tinyurl.com/36n5f4w

  48. Atman Avatar
    Atman

    @David

    Some of our neighbours have learnt (or decided) to treat us the same way we treat them. But from all the accounts I from speaking with people who have visited and lived in other caribbean countries, the degree of insularity and nasty attitude towards other Caribbean people cannot rival what obtains here in Barbados. But somehow we seem more appreciative of rich folks from other parts of the world who take up residence here.

  49. David Avatar
    David

    Again Atman there is an arrogance which can lead to insularity because of the relative success of how small Barbados has manage its affairs over the years. You need to view feedback against this background.

  50. PlainTalk Avatar
    PlainTalk

    @ Atman // June 5, 2010 at 10:16 AM

    Criminal deportees or not, things will get a lot worse from time to time and we need to brace ourselves. The whole country needs to be monitored in every each way from top to bottom.

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