By now, many of us have seen the photographs of Prime Minister Perry Christie and Haitian President Michel Martelly's tender moments with background players V. Alfred Gray and Fred Mitchell. Ah boy, yes we have.
I won't use this opportunity to discuss whether or not the Haitian people are justified in their attempts to flee their country in search of a better life in ours, or if we wouldn't do the same if roles were reversed. That's a lengthier discussion for another day.
I don't want to debate which nationality of people make the best or worst group of illegal immigrants to have in our country, or how many nationalities and varieties there are, or how many different languages we should learn so we can communicate with them.
I don't want to address (yet) the reported $232 million comment allegedly made by Martelly, wherein he is said to have specifically suggested that we take money in that amount, sort used-to-purchase defense force vessels for our border patrol, and invest the sum instead in Haiti's economy, because I have not seen the video clip of him actually saying that.
However, I am more particularly interested in taking a closer look at the behavior of our prime minister (and other ministers of government) at the House of Assembly love-fest during the Haitian president's recent visit to The Bahamas, considering the prevailing reason for his visit.
It would seem to me, notwithstanding the wide and bright smiles and camaraderie of the day between all involved, that such a clowning session constitutes inappropriate conduct for leaders meeting on our country's most vexing, debilitating issue of illegal immigration, which contributes directly to our other plaguing issues of outstanding crime levels and the overburdening and degradation of our health, education and social welfare systems.
Yes, pleasantries and cordiality are expected in the world of politics, even welcome. Amicability of political figures is an important trait, especially for the occasions of diplomacy and state visits in and by all countries. But, in the seriousness of our times, are the jokes and the love-fests warranted?
One 'true, true' Bahamian asked, "Why black folk gatta skin teet so?" Is there anything we don't feel inclined to 'tun up'? Isn't this boyish behavior exhibited by Christie to Martelly misrepresentative and unbecoming of a prime minister sitting on the illegal immigration hot seat?
Does it not send the wrong, maybe worst possible, message to Bahamian citizens, in the midst of a social crisis that seems to have no end or abatement in sight?
These big, grown men engage in hilarity when we have an epic crisis on our hands, with one of them representing the source of the crisis; somehow there is ample opportunity for the biggest, sweetest jokes to be told.
Switching the lens
Do other world leaders conduct themselves in this manner when they meet to discuss their potentially destructive policies and practices on one another's country? When was the last time we saw President Barack Obama and President Enrique Pena Nieto shucking and jiving and balling, in the wake of talks centered on Mexican immigrants' nonstop infiltration of America?
Did Australia bust out laughing with the Indian leaders, when they delivered their 'Do not arrive illegally (by boat) or you will not be allowed to stay' message, in fulfillment of their mandate to properly manage the protection of their borders? Oh, that's right. They didn't. And therefore they don't have the vastly disproportionate illegal immigration problem that we do; they actually reinforce their words with their actions.
So, it's just us, then, with our perpetual 'limin' and 'tun up' sessions, who don't get that the real joke is not realizing that this situation cannot be a laughing matter - at any time.
Digging a little further into the performance, the reported reason for Martelly's visit was, in part, to sign a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that would permit trade in produce from Haiti to The Bahamas. Well, in a word, why? What was BAMSI for, again? Was it not created to begin, in earnest, a means of supplying The Bahamas with its own produce, leading the nation to greater self-sufficiency? And isn't BAMSI the crowning achievement of Christie's work? What am I missing? Does this agreement with Haiti mean that BAMSI is already going down the toilet?
President Martelly gave four particular and provoking comments when interviewed in Parliament Square.
Firstly, he told us that Haitians are looking for "a better place to live". We've heard this; even though we continue to hear also that Haiti is not as poor and destitute as most believe it is, and therefore their people should have no real reason for wanting to leave and choose instead to stay and build their country.
Not surprisingly, we want a better place to live, too, starting with our own country, and we're trying to do what we can to make it better before we immigrate to another. But, the thing is, we usually get qualified first before infiltrating a nation and we tend not to squat illegally on other people's land, en mass - at least not illegally anyway - to have a better place to live. Come see us rolling up into Florida and just setting up house and shop with no kind of papers for anything. Say what now? Oh yes - deportation.
Another statement Martelly made was "We (the Haitian government) feel like we're responsible for not doing enough". (But, wait, you are. No?) He elaborated further by telling viewers and listeners how the Haitian government has drastically reduced the numbers of people living in tents since the catastrophic earthquake four and one half years ago, as if it were a special favor. But, sir, removing your people from tents and having nowhere for them to go still points them in the direction of the nearest exit from Haiti. What about that blockade we really need more than produce from Haiti, situated at the northern point of Haiti and other hot spots of sloop departure, to arrest the problem at the source before it becomes someone else's, namely The Bahamas'? Goodness knows, President Martelly, you have enough people to create such a barrier and more still to rigidly enforce it.
The Haitian president also suggested that The Bahamas should invest in Haiti, "creating wealth among Haitians". But it is unclear why he is so convinced that we should, or could; how is the creation of wealth amongst citizens of another country our responsibility or priority above our own? And does the converse of this statement suggest further that, should we not decide to invest in Haiti, then the Haitian government will make no attempts to interrupt the illegal migration of its people to our country?
Listen
Our own Bahamian government is barely helping Bahamians to create wealth, real wealth, real ownership, long-term prosperity, for Bahamians. Why should The Bahamas government do it for anyone else first, when their own nation, economy, society is crumbling? This backward approach is precisely the reason for our country's retarded development.
We need our own investors. It's nice to trade when it's mutually beneficial for countries to do so, but we have yet to create avenues within our own country's borders to facilitate industry that is beneficial to our own people, and our own government and wealthy Bahamians don't naturally see fit to invest in us. So, perhaps, let us first put on our own life vests and oxygen masks, then we can help the passengers next to us.
Finally, President Martelly lamented "what is the right formula to prevent" Haitians from risking their lives to emigrate illegally to The Bahamas? But is it really as scientifically difficult as he makes it seem? Is there a special formula, only one formula? If we never take decisive action to stem the scourge, will it ever be prevented?
Flashback to the pirate inhabitants of our Bahamas, who, without the aid of modern technology and with distinctly fewer people to do the job, had effective systems to monitor who landed on the island(s), and stopped such landings before they occurred, albeit by cannon or other fire from fort to sea, or they met their 'visitors' at the shoreline.
With all the intelligence and contemporary tools at our disposal, this issue appears more and more to be an issue not primarily of illegal immigrants' unwillingness to remain in their home country, but rather an issue of a severe and disturbing lack of will on the part of both the Haitian and Bahamian governments to stop this influx which continues unabated after many decades.
Whether or not you sympathize with the plight of illegal immigrants, if you've ever studied some amount of history on any country, step back for a minute and use that bit of knowledge as your looking glass. And even with this knowledge it is difficult to see what's happening as it is happening, unless you observe every moment it develops in historic sequence.
Do you think any of the many peoples of the world who were about to be conquered, outnumbered or wiped out (physically decimated or forcibly relocated) over the span of decades or centuries, ever really saw it coming?
Some might say it's alarmist to think this way, but I say it's historic. It is the story of the Arawaks and the colonizers all over again, except our infiltrators aren't bringing royal gifts from the king or queen to 'trade' with us; they're now asking us to pay for our own demise.
o Facebook.com/NicoleBurrows.

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