Diaspora, remittances and illegals in foreign countries

Oct 23, 2014 Letters

DEAR EDITOR,
Guianese and later Guyanese started to leave the country before independence. They left in droves
for the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada, and during the racial clashes in the mid-sixties more and more started to leave for all parts of the world for a better way of life.
However, the consolation is that most of them are doing extremely well in their professions and businesses. Some excelled and made Guyana proud. What is more important is that a large number of members of the diaspora assist their friends and relatives back home, and hundreds send remittances on a fairly regular basis.
While most of them are in overseas countries legally, there are tens of thousands who are illegal in several countries – mainly the United States, Canada and a few Caribbean territories.
The latest report from Port of Spain is that a total of 110,012 illegals are in that oil-rich country. Incidentally, the illegals comprise one-tenth of the total population and as a result, the Ministry of National Security is taking drastic action to deport and even to prosecute some of them.
Guyana has the largest number – 25,884, followed by Jamaica with 19,500.
The illegals in Trinidad and Tobago are from 16 countries, mainly from six Caricom countries as well as from Venezuela 10,570, and nearly 10,000 from St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Colombia 6,388 and as far as Nigeria and Bangladesh. It might be surprising to the readers that as many as 7,169 illegals are from Barbados and 4,391 from St. Lucia.
Although Guyana topped the list of illegals in Trinidad, there are several thousand illegals including Brazilians, Chinese, Colombians, and Caribbean nationals who are in the Co-operative Republic. It is believed that the immigration authorities in Guyana are not as vigilant and harsh as their counterparts in other countries, especially the United States, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados.
The Treaty of Chaguaramas makes provision for freedom of movement in the Caribbean Community, but the Treaty is not always being adhered to by a few countries, in particular Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago and Antigua and Barbuda. Jamaica has recently been criticized for deporting Abu Bakr, a Muslim from Port of Spain, who went to Kingston to attend the 19th anniversary celebration of the Million Man March, which was attended by Louis Farrakhan and other black leaders.
The Jamaican immigration authorities said that Bakr was sent back to Port of Spain in a chartered jet in the interest of public safety. Bakr plotted and tried to overthrow the Trinidad and Tobago government in a coup in the Parliament Chamber more than two decades ago. Gerald Pereira, chairperson of the Black Consciousness Movement in Guyana, was also denied entry to Jamaica. Pereira lived in Libya for many years and served in the Green March, an International Batalion for the defence of the Libyan Revolution.
People tend to move from country to country to seek a better way of life for their families
Oscar Ramjeet

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