Haitian father Matny Fren was emotional yesterday, after his home of more than 20 years was demolished at the Area 52 shanty town in the Coral Harbour area. Photo: Moise Amisial
By JADE RUSSELL
Tribune Staff Reporter
jrussell@tribunemedia.net
A HAITIAN father of three said his family must sleep “like a dog” in his truck after bulldozers destroyed his home of more than 20 years in a New Providence shanty town yesterday.
Matny Fren screamed as his house was demolished, one of several people who reacted emotionally.
Many residents were dragging pillowcases filled with clothes, toiletries, cooking supplies, and other necessities when The Tribune visited the area yesterday. One woman sat on the muddy ground while tears swelled in her eyes as she watched her house get torn down.
Buildings Control Officer Craig Delancey told reporters there were over 70 unregulated structures in the Coral Harbour community known as Area 52. Over 100 people were estimated to be living in the homes.
The eviction notices were issued over a month ago and Mr Delancey confirmed they were told to demolish the buildings themselves or have the government do it.
Mr Fren complained that 28 days was not enough time to find another place to live. He said he went to the Ministry of Social Services for help, but was told he needed a Bahamian passport and residency. The Davis administration has said only Bahamians in shanty town communities will be given living accommodations.
“I don’t blame what they doing right now because this ain’t our land,” Mr Fren said as his wife held their six-year-old child. “My point is you have to give a chance. I know PLP and FNM. My daughter is a Bahamian. She got a Bahamian passport, and my son got a Bahamian passport.”
Asked where he and his family would stay, he said: “See that truck with everything on that? My furniture, stove, fridge, everything right there. My wife is right there, so we got to sleep right there.”
He said he wasn’t leasing or renting the property he lived on. He added that there was a lack of support from Haitian leaders in the lead up to the demolition exercises, with no one standing up for shanty town residents.
Pastor Jean Donet Ambrevil said he had no choice but to take in homeless people.
“I can’t leave them there, I have to look and find a place to put them,” he said.
He said he had been visiting the shanty town since 2018 to share Christian teachings, adding that many other pastors haven’t visited because they don’t care about the people.
Another resident, Choubert Louis, said he has been in The Bahamas since he was 15. A construction worker, he said he doesn’t make enough to afford a place to rent.
Comments
bahamianson 2 months, 3 weeks ago
With inflation , this is a pickle. Social services needs to reach out with parenting information. These people need to realize that they cannot afford children and act accordingly, end of story. When I was in the states, I lived a transient life. I knew it was not my home. They need to realize that if you break the law, the law will come down on you. We have a crime problem as a rwsult of too many breaking the law. Stop breaking the law, it is here to keep us civil.
sheeprunner12 2 months, 3 weeks ago
Go and get an apartment and pay rent like ordinary Bahamians ......... stop squatting on our sovereign land.
Why do these suck egg Hyshuns think that everything should be made available for them in 242 to enjoy and that they dont have to pay for it????? What can they get for free in Haiti??????
No tears to shed for them ................. Get straight or GET OUT.
birdiestrachan 2 months, 3 weeks ago
Sheeprunner did he know he was breaking the law for twenty years know that they were doing wrong and they knew other Shanty towns were being demolished sheeprunner we agree how about that
It T
sheeprunner12 2 months, 3 weeks ago
Hyshuns just USE us ........... they use free land, road (car unlicensed), public school (K-12), Govt breakfast & lunch, clinic, power (dropcord), water, parks, NIB, internet, social welfare, community giveaways etc.
Then save up all their money to either go USA or send remittances back home to relatives to come here illegally and repeat the same shit.
We (Bahamians) have to be the dumbest set of people on Earth
TalRussell 2 months, 3 weeks ago
Family of [5] living out their Bahamian dream! --- Not exactly the picturesque images featured in The Colony of Out Islands, Cay's, Towns and Settlements' tourist promotional videos and picture brochures. --- These are the informal settlements --- [Better known locally as Shanty Towns,] where the very poor have resided for decades, left uninterrupted and under illegal, unregulated, unhealthy and unsafe makeshift conditions. --- Definitely not the type of illustrations in which the office of tourism would stand for to be out in circulation. --- I'm thinking, you'd have to possess [a high security license,] just to write this stuff, --- Yes?
jackbnimble 2 months, 3 weeks ago
What's concerning is not that they are FINALLY knocking these illegal structures down, it's that that they appear to be leaving the illegal residents in place. So where are they going to go? The man is practically admitting he's living here illegally and has been for decades with a full family in tow. Doesn't have a home and no papers and is prepared to continue to live - even if it means he lives on his garbage truck.
Something is wrong with this picture. If we are going to get rid of the shanty towns, shouldn't we also be dealing with the illegal persons who dwell there?
I sure do hope this is not just a PR stunt and like Abaco, they simply move to another part of the island and start building again. We have to have some appreciation for how determined these people are and our response should send a stronger message.
joeblow 2 months, 3 weeks ago
“I don’t blame what they doing right now because this ain’t our land,” Mr Fren said as his wife held their six-year-old child. “My point is you have to give a chance. I know PLP and FNM. My daughter is a Bahamian. She got a Bahamian passport, and my son got a Bahamian passport.
Find his children and revoke their passports if neither of their parents is a Bahamian and if those parents came in illegally. We have allowed them to circumvent the law for far too long! I am willing to chip in for a ticket to deport them!
jamaicaproud 2 months, 2 weeks ago
You are one heartless bloke. Revoke their passports. My gosh how does this guys children's citizenship affect your daily life. Also for your information, save yourself the stress of the Jamaican insults blah blah. This is the worldwide web. If they don't want this seen, post it in a private forum. How can someone live and work in a place for 20 years and not have a path to residency? However these matters elicit more emotion than young men killing themselves "Over the hill".
GodSpeed 2 months, 2 weeks ago
There's a path but man of these types are too dumb to walk it. Many of them can't even read English so no surprise.
GodSpeed 2 months, 3 weeks ago
They think they deserve free land 😂 should have thought about it all before breeding.
M0J0 2 months, 2 weeks ago
Its sad, but big man I born here and aint nothing free for me. Do it the right way or suffer the consequences
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