Edited 4 April 2020 (2.02PM)
Dear David King:
I would like to signal my intention to take future action that may be construed as an attempt to break the Barbados curfew law on Wednesday 08 April 2020.
I respectfully request that the arresting officers wear protective masks. I do not wish to be infected by them.
My point, is that the officers of the Government of Barbados do not practice social distancing.
Why do I intend to attempt to break the law?
I have no choice. Here is my story.
I am a citizen and resident of Barbados who visited the USA for three weeks in recent times. I returned to Barbados on Tuesday 17 March. I immediately placed myself in social distancing at a local hotel for one week. This was followed by a second week at another hotel.
My intent was to do the recommended 14 days of distancing as I live with my elderly 89 y.o. mother who is prone to severe respiratory conditions. Further, I have several underlying medical conditions that put me at high risk to an unfavourable outcome from the COVID-19 virus.
About two hours after checking into the second hotel, their management sent me an email indicating that there was a recent case of COVID-19 at their hotel. My heart fell.
I subsequently gathered that the incident happened about 5 or 6 days prior to my arrival at the second hotel.
Given that I had booked my stay 24 hours in advance, it means that the hotel knew full well what their recent experience had been, and they did not give me the option to refuse. Even further, the hotel also indicated that the Government of Barbados was fully involved in the matter. They too did not share the information with the general public. In my view, this is a breech of public trust by the Government of Barbados.
Indeed at a later date, the Barbados COVID-19 Czar confirmed in a press meeting that the public does not need to know the places where COVID-19 has been found in Barbados. I strenuously disagree. Believe me, had I known, I would not have checked into the second hotel. I would have found an alternative temporary residence to continue my 14 day sojourn.
Given my experience, I made a decision to extend my period of social distancing for another week. That is, to count 14 days from my check-in to the second hotel.
So here I am in a third temporary accommodation until next Wednesday 08 April 2020. None of this is free for me.
Today, I am faced with the prospect of being arrested for doing the right thing of socially distancing myself after short term international travel to the USA.
Therefore I stand by my request above. I respectfully request that the arresting officers wear personal protective apparatus, and that I be placed in a detention facility that is medically appropriate for someone with my pre-existing conditions. Even further, should the arresting officers choose to release me, I respectfully request police escort to my home so that I will not be arrested again.
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