The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Little Inagua is a small remote island in the Bahamas and it is the largest uninhabited island in the Caribbean. It is 50 square miles (as big as New Providence) and only 100 miles from Haiti. 370 miles from Nassau, 553 miles from Miami and 16 miles from Greater Inagua.

The CARICOM Heads of Government convened in Nassau on February 15, 2023, preceded by a special meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Caricom.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of The Bahamas foreshadowed that the deliberations on Haiti in particular would be very intense and that the issue had drawn representatives from the United States, Canada and other countries outside of CARICOM in recognising the gravity of the problem.

Mr Mitchell said that Haiti has been descending into chaos as a result of the collapse of their political system and the countries of the world have been trying to see what can be done to help. The United States, he said, have been forefront front and centre of this and that's one of the reasons they were bringing such a large delegation to the conference, as The Bahamas is located just 90 miles to the north of Haiti and the transit passage for Haitians on the way to the United States.

The Canadian representative said that they had agreed to take the lead in trying to resolve some of these problems and that was why Justin Trudeau was coming to The Bahamas to have discussions with Prime Minister Davis.

The Prime Minister in closing Caricom said: "CARICOM believes it's time for action and not just talk, but I will leave it at that for the moment, but they have committed themselves to support the efforts that we have [made] and at the moment, we are now crafting a plan.

"We will indicate to them what that plan is and we will look to them for support that they have promised and committed to."

I have taken the Prime Minister’s conclusory remarks to CARICOM and have prepared this uninvited proposal that may be useful to their deliberations.

My approach in developing this paper is that The Bahamas is the first and most affected country by this problem which we have been struggling with for the last five generations. The very future of our Bahamas depends on finding a solution.

The leaders of the Caricom at the conclusion of their 2023 Summit called for "the development of a plan to restore security and the rule of law” and further “agreed to build international partnerships in support of efforts to return Haiti to peace and stability as a necessary precursor for free, fair and credible elections".

I propose, therefore, an idea which would require The Bahamas to initiate a novel, bold, and, yes, brave approach to this intractable issue which has bedeviled not only The Bahamas, but also the UN, CARICOM, the US, and CANADA.

Suggestion:

1) Little Inagua be proposed to the UNHCR - The UN Refugee Agency as a site to establish a refugee camp for the thousands of migrants who may be fleeing Haiti on an almost daily basis. This could also have an additional benefit to The Bahamas, and the US in particular as a drop-off point for repatriations to Haiti.

2) Multinational partnership would be established between The Bahamas, The United Nations, Caricom, Canada, and the United States to build and develop the Little Inagua Refugee Camp.

3) Little Inagua Refugee Camp - Little Inagua is the largest uninhabited island in the Caribbean and is just about the same size as New Providence and only 100 miles from Haiti. Little Inagua is 50 square miles and should be easily able to house a large percentage of the undocumented persons awaiting deportation in the Bahamas, the US, and Canada.

4) Little Inagua Paramilitary Training Centre - The Bahamas reiterated [to CARICOM at its Nassau Conference] that the community must play a leadership role in addressing the deteriorating situation in Haiti, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada more specifically laid out that ”As neighbours, and, for Canada …[with a] history of support for the people of Haiti, we need to work on long-lasting solutions that will:

(1) restore order and security,

(2) allow for essential aid to flow to those who urgently need it, and

(3) create the conditions for free and fair elections – so that the Haitian people can live in a stable and democratic society.

These very same sentiments have been repeated by representatives of all the major parties interested in this maelstrom. CARICOM, the United States and Canada under the auspices of the United Nations should create a paramilitary training centre which can recruit able bodied individuals from the refugee camp at Little Inagua, who would be trained to eventually be consigned to Haiti to bolster the national police in working to achieve the objectives expressed in CARICOM.

A number of supporting facilities may be added to Little Inagua (eg, a naval facility to accommodate Bahamian, Canadian, and United States naval deployments to this mission, a Defence Force outpost, and Immigration processing centre).

GEORGE WILSON

New Providence,

March 14, 2024