Protesters denounce immigration reforms
A crowd of hundreds demonstrating against One Bermuda Alliance immigration initiatives came out to pack Parliament Street outside the Government Administration Building.
However, Michael Fahy, the Minister of Home Affairs, insisted that yesterday’s protesters had been mistaken about the policy’s intent, saying: “I would march myself, if the campaign was accurate.”
The protest was called for noon on a Facebook site urging the public to voice their displeasure at the Pathways to Status programme aimed at giving permanent residency and Bermuda status to certain long-term residents.
It was the largest and most vocal demonstration on the topic since crowds invaded the Senate in March 2015 demanding bipartisan dialogue on immigration reform.
In both cases, Walton Brown of the Progressive Labour Party used social media to call for civil disobedience. Yesterday, Mr Brown said the public anger arose from “a real and genuine concern that what the Government is trying to do is to score votes for the next election”.
Crowds ranged from a maximum of 350 to 400, with some civil servants complaining they had been ordered to refrain from attending at all. As police looked on, chanting ranged from “Listen to the people”, “Fahy must go”, “Listen now or suffer later” and “It’s time to fight back” to “Shut the country down”.
Many protesters also came forward to address the crowd.
While some called for industrial action or more disruptive protests such as blocking roads, many told this newspaper they were incensed by preferential treatment of foreigners while Bermudians felt the brunt of unemployment. “I’ve got a daughter that has left with five children and three family members who have picked up and gone to the UK because of jobs,” said one protester, Pattie Moore.
Russell Richardson, a 69-year-old retired civil servant, said his sister, brother and three nieces had all been driven by employment to emigrate to Britain. “These are qualified Bermudians, with Master’s degrees and all,” Mr Richardson added.
Jason Hayward, the president and treasurer of the Bermuda Public Services Union, was cheered as he told the crowd that “we have people fleeing the island like refugees because there is no hope in this country”.
Telling the audience that the Government had promised collaboration on immigration but failed to deliver, Mr Hayward said: “If you don’t listen to the people, the people will rise up. Brothers and sisters, this is just the genesis. It’s not just about this issue. It’s a slew of issues.”
Lynne Winfield of the anti-racism group Curb said that for every single protester present, more had been afraid to show up out of fear for their jobs.
While the crowd was predominantly black, white Bermudians joined to speak out, with one woman saying she was there because “I care about racial equality. If it’s not about votes, prove it — wait until after the election.”
The OBA was loudly denounced from other quarters, with senator Fahy, who is Bermudian, decried by several as non-Bermudian or a “paper Bermudian”.
The protest, which lasted two hours, was the culmination of several sparked by the Pathways to Status plan announced by Mr Fahy on February 5. The initiative would allow people who have lived in Bermuda for 15 years to apply for permanent residency, and those who have PRC and have lived on the island for 20 years to seek Bermudian status.
Mr Fahy later told The Royal Gazette that neither he nor the Government believed the protests represented the majority of people. “I believe the concerns are not reflective of reality. Giving permanent residents certificates or status does not take away jobs from Bermudians. It just simply does not. It’s sad that misinformation is being fed to a lot of people who are protesting.
“I have debunked all of Mr Brown’s ‘no’ points, and if people are marching based on misinformation then there’s a real problem.” Mr Fahy added: “I believe, in my heart of hearts, that we are doing the best for the future of this country and for the future of Bermudians. Our population is not being displaced.”
He said the island’s biggest emigration had occurred shortly after British citizenship was given to Bermudians.
Among the immigration protesters who spoke yesterday on Parliament Street was Rick Woolridge, a prominent defence lawyer, who said he was “tired of seeing my people lined up in debt court”.
Bermuda needed to be more protective of its limited resources, Mr Woolridge subsequently told this newspaper.
“We have more people unemployed or under employed than at any other time in our history, yet we have a Government saying that we need more people,” he said.
“What we really need is to employ more Bermudians. Our social welfare is also more taxed than at any time in Bermuda’s history. It has come to a point now.”
Asked if he felt demonstrations would intensify, Mr Woolridge said: “I’m sure it will. People are finally truly tired. You have people trying to choose between putting the lights on and putting food on the table.”
He added: “I don’t want to see violence. I am all about economic protest.”
Mr Woolridge said that Bermudians were “running to England like refugees”, while the dire economy at home was resulting in clients unable to pay their legal bills.
“I know of three lawyers who are driving taxis, not because they can’t get work; they can’t get paid.”
Mr Woolridge added that he had never hesitated to protest for a cause he believed in, going back to the civil rights demonstrations of the 1960s.
“Right now we have both political parties in a shambles, so what’s the viable option? It’s scary.”
