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Last Updated: Feb 13, 2017 - 1:45:37 AM |
 The following is a public statement by Amnesty International:
Amnesty International sent a communication on 17 March to the Bahamian
authorities requesting detailed information about the current migration
reforms amid allegations that these might be leading to human rights
violations and enhancing discrimination in the country.
Since
September 2014 the government of The Bahamas has announced a series of
new policies and reforms to the immigration system, including new
requirements for migrants residing in the country, such as holding a
residence permit for children to be able to enrol in schools.
The
precise content of these reforms have yet to be made public despite the
fact that the authorities have already been implementing some of them
creating uncertainty about its details and arbitrariness in its
implementation.
On September 2014, for example, the government
announced, that by 1 November everyone living in the Bahamas will be
requested to hold a passport of their nationality. This was done within a
short timeframe and without any published policy nor information
campaign targeting the affected populations. Consequently, according to
the authorities, this resulted at that time in the arrest of 77 people
in the island of New Providence. Other sources estimated the arrests to
be at several hundreds, mainly of which are Haitians or of Bahamians of
Haitian descent.
Transparency should be paramount in order to
prevent human rights to be affected. In a spirit of collaboration with
the Bahamian authorities, Amnesty International therefore requests to
receive clarifications to a number of questions on the migration
reforms, specifically in view of understanding how the government of The
Bahamas is planning to implement the new measures in a manner
compatible with its international human rights obligations.
Background information
On 13 February 2015, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights
(IACHR) requested The Bahamas to adopt precautionary measures in favour
of the persons held in immigration detention at Carmichael Road
Detention Centre, in The Bahamas. The request for precautionary measures
states that the beneficiaries are at risk because they are allegedly in
inhumane conditions of detention, with extreme overcrowding and lack of
appropriate medical attention that could affect their right to life and
physical integrity.
On 20 March 2015, a thematic hearing will be
held at the IACHR about the situation of human rights of migrants in The
Bahamas following repeated allegations of human rights violations and
concerns.
SOURCE
The Bahamas government responds to Amnesty International
© Copyright 2015 by thebahamasweekly.com
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