By AVA TURNQUEST
Tribune Chief Reporter
aturnquest@tribunemedia.net
SOCIAL Services Minister Melanie Griffin yesterday defended Tall Pines MP Leslie Miller against criticism of his “personal view” on one of the Constitutional amendment bills.
The Yamacraw MP said she spoke with Mr Miller about controversial comments he made on a radio talk show last week and was satisfied that he respects the right of women to gender equality in matters of citizenship, an issue to be addressed in one of the four bills to amend the Bahamas’ Constitution.
Mrs Griffin said she was confident that Mr Miller would support the bill.
“I was not on the island (when he made the comments), but when I came home I was able to see a newspaper about his comments and I took the opportunity to speak to my colleague,” she told The Tribune before heading into a Cabinet meeting.
“Mr Miller has assured me that the view he gave was his personal view, and he respects the rights of Bahamian women in the same situation to be able to make that decision. I’m confident that he supports the bill.”
Last week, Mr Miller said that a Bahamian woman who marries a foreigner should be taken to her spouse’s home country and supported by her husband. He spoke as a guest on the Star 106.5 talk show “Jeffrey”.
“If my sister marries a foreigner, I expect for that foreigner to take her home to his country and support her,” Mr Miller said last Thursday.
“What they bringing him here for? Don’t come to my country and take a job from one of my Bahamian brothers. You are responsible for your family. If I get married to a foreigner, she is coming here with me. A man is the head of his house. He is supposed to be responsible for his family.”
Yesterday, Mrs Griffin did not respond to questions on whether she felt Mr Miller’s comments were representative of the current mind-set toward gender equality, or an indication of the need for a comprehensive public education campaign.
PLP Chairman Bradley Roberts told The Tribune on Monday that he was not concerned about Mr Miller’s controversial comments as both the government and the opposition were unified in their support of the bills. He added that all Bahamians of “good will” should support the government’s push to achieve gender equality.
FNM Deputy Leader Loretta Butler-Turner has branded Mr Miller’s comments as “misogynistic” and said the remarks are a testament of his “unenlightened thinking”.
The four bills to amend the Bahamas’ Constitution were tabled in the House of Assembly nearly two weeks ago and if passed will cause a referendum to be held on equality between Bahamian men and women in matters of citizenship.
Mr Miller’s controversial comments referred to the second bill that will enable a Bahamian woman who marries a foreign man to secure for him the same access to Bahamian citizenship that a Bahamian man has always enjoyed under the Constitution in relation to his foreign spouse.
The Bill contains provisions designed to ensure foreigners, male or female, who enter into bogus marriages with Bahamian citizens, will not be assisted by this constitutional change, Prime Minister Perry Christie has said.
Mr Miller has been mired in controversy over several remarks he made this year.
In February, he was accused of making a mockery of domestic abuse after he suggested that he beat his girlfriend during his contribution to the debate in the House of Assembly - comments he later said were in jest.
At the time of his comments on February 20, Mr Miller said he was criticising the FNM for what he described as them not looking out for the best interests of fishermen while they were in government. He likened the previous Ingraham administration’s relationship with fishermen to a woman being abused.
The Bahamas Crisis Centre criticised parliamentarians for reaffirming harmful abuse stereotypes, in the absence of a unanimous rebuke from MPs of Mr Miller’s remarks.
Comments
sheeprunner12 9 years, 8 months ago
Why are the PLP MPs always seem to be defending each other???????? They are all lousy and unethical .................. this is a vicious circle of good-for-nothing
asiseeit 9 years, 8 months ago
See, this is what is wrong with our politrickans, they are so wrapped up in PARTY, they can't do what is right for the COUNTRY! Pitiful.
jackbnimble 9 years, 8 months ago
I agree with Mr. Miller. If you are man enough to take on a wife, then you should be able to take care of her in your native land.
With regard to this so-called gender equality, if you are going to amend the Constitution, then amend it so that the right is taken away from the man and make everyone toe the line - male and female. That way the law is impartial to no one.
justthefactsplease 9 years, 8 months ago
This talk about the removal of discrimination is a bunch of balogne and hogwash as the same government is right now writing a law that discriminates against EVERY Bahamian as it regards to their ability to gamble in this country. If you about the business of removing discrimination then do that across the board ... anything else makes you a hypocrite.
thomas 9 years, 8 months ago
Souls all sold..nothing left to a sell
Publius 9 years, 8 months ago
Melanie is a consistent disgrace in this regard
jlcandu 9 years, 8 months ago
I suppose she also supported Leslie Miller's comment when he said he used to beat his girlfriend because he loved her.
Melanie is a disgrace to all Bahamian females in this country.
realfreethinker 9 years, 8 months ago
It is incredible how dysfunctional this government is. they are a disgrace to the Bahamas. Corrupt to the core and they see nothing wrong with what they are doing. GOD HELP US ALL
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 8 months ago
Will she also defend his ~"I guh deal with her" comment? If so, why the need to even vote in the referendum?
Well_mudda_take_sic 9 years, 8 months ago
Miller is famous for his confession before parliament that he has no compunction whatsoever about slapping around women who like to be slapped around. Griffin, in supporting Miller, seems to be just such a woman and therefore deserves a good slapping of thanks from him.
proudloudandfnm 9 years, 8 months ago
Bout defending Miller. This woman can't be serious.....
birdiestrachan 9 years, 8 months ago
Mr. Munroe a lawyer for whom I have deep respect. said he will be voting no to the changes to the constitution .I am voting no myself. There are a whole lot of Bahamian Women who complain that as soon as their foreign husbands received Bahamian citizen ship, they left them and got married to women from their Countries. The Bahamian women children that is different.
ShirleyGeorgann 9 years, 8 months ago
Mr. Munroe is another Leslie Miller no respect for women. You must be male, Cause a sister would want us to have equal rights as men do. Men can bring their foreign wives here and get citizenship but if my daughter married a foreign man she would have to leave me and go to another country. SAD how our Bahamian sisters want us to stay in the 1800's. Our women ancestors fought hard for women's rights.
John 9 years, 8 months ago
The devil is in the details. The government is using the guise of giving equal rights to women to get their hidden agenda across. For example nott only will the husband of a married Bahamian woman be entitled to citizenship but also others related to him. Even after a divorce the foreign spouse can remarry a foreigner and she and her offdpring will be entitled to citizenship. Bahamian women are prune to marrying Haitians and Jamicans. In a matter of years there can be more "foreign" Bahamians than "natural" Bahamians.
ThisIsOurs 9 years, 8 months ago
"Bahamian women are prone to marrying Haitians and Jamaicans"? What is that? What about saying something like , people male or female are more "likely" to chose spouses from persons that they have regular physical contact with. To the extent that the Bahamas is becoming more and more a mix of cultures, races and nationalities, mixed race, mixed culture, mixed nationality marriages are becoming more common. Now what you do with that statement in terms of immigration policy is another matter. My personal opinion, temporary status should only be granted to married couples who have lived as married couples for a given period of time, permanent status granted after an additional period of time if they remain married (and living as a couple), this would apply to males or females.
Emac 9 years, 8 months ago
Agreed. Because there are already tons of people who are doing this arranged marriage thing for money. OUr system is so slack and corrupted that the immigration policies need to be enforced. Incidentally, Bahamian males really need to get over this me Tarzan, she Jane foolishness. This is 2014 for crying out loud. Whether we want it or not women are opting to NOT take on the roles as the traditional Bahamian women who chose to be housewives that prepared the meal and tend to the kids while the male went out and work.
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