The Tribune

THE issue of shanty towns is one that has featured regularly in this column – and we don’t see a solution any time soon.

In today’s Tribune, you can read two different viewpoints on shanty towns. Minister of Works Desmond Bannister, the Deputy Prime Minister, is pledging “relentless” and “decisive” action over an Abaco shanty town before the end of the month. Meanwhile, attorney Martin Lundy II is filing an appeal to extend an injunction barring the government from evicting shanty town residents and disconnecting services.

Let us be clear – shanty towns where people live in unsafe conditions and build on land without planning approval should not exist.

Let us also be clear about another fact – these shanty towns would not exist if there was not a demand for the skills of the people who live there.

The people living in The Farm shanty town in Abaco didn’t appear there as if by magic – indeed, without the workers living there, the progress of rebuilding Abaco after Hurricane Dorian would have been a lot slower.

Construction workers did not want to come to Abaco to help rebuild houses destroyed after Hurricane Dorian rampaged through. Why? There was nowhere to live. Nowhere to stay. And perhaps because the pay being offered – which shanty town residents accepted – wasn’t enough to encourage people away from New Providence.

In the absence of those workers, others came and started reconstruction – while putting up a roof over their own head on any bit of land they could find where they wouldn’t get tossed out right away.

Add to that those who were in Abaco already and were displaced by the storm, but were left largely to their own devices, and it’s no surprise people found a way to build some form of shelter.

The question now is if the government goes in and demolishes all these buildings, what is the plan to deal with a population being displaced all over again?

Where will these people go? Is there a plan to accommodate them in a safer environment, or does the government think they will magically go away and not just find another piece of land and put up a building?

Many of these residents have helped Abaco to rebuild when others would not – so do we try to toss out people who have skills we need and who are willing and able to work? If so, where does that leave those still trying to restore their damaged properties?

Absolutely, there should be efforts made to protect our borders and prevent illegal migration and catch people as they come in. But a solution that is simply to knock down the shanty homes and not think about where those people will go is no real solution. There has to be consideration of what happens next.

Otherwise, we’ll be writing another article in a few months’ time about another shanty town that has sprung up, and another pledge of strong action by the government.

Simply knocking the buildings down is not enough – we need to ask why those people are there in the first place, and what happens to them after the buildings are gone. Not just for the shanty town residents, but for the people who employ them and who might be left short as they try to recover from the storm.

Cruises return

Cruise ships are returning – and better yet, we are going to be the home port.

Crystal Cruises aims to start sailings in July, sailing from Nassau or Bimini. That’s not just good news for the cruise ships, that’s good news for the country.

That will mean people flying in for their cruise. Some will stay in hotels before or after their sailings. Some will extend their stay to take in more of The Bahamas. It should be a win for everyone.

Safety measures are being put in place, but as vaccinations continue to roll out around the world, this will become a good money earner for the country for years to come.

It is disappointing therefore to see some of the reaction from some sectors of the tourism community to such news.

There are some who are turning their noses up at such visitors as the wrong kind for their business.

This is an opportunity that can benefit individuals, businesses and the country at large. If anyone can’t see that, then they might just miss the boat.