Investigations reveal… Busloads of Haitians head to Lethem daily
Aug 04, 2019
https://www.kaieteurnewsonline...ead-to-lethem-daily/
A significant number of the 8,600-plus Haitians who arrived in Guyana during the last seven months would have made their way to Lethem, a Region Nine town that borders neighbouring Brazil, investigations by Kaieteur News have found.
A group on the Linden/Lethem trail recently.
The Haitians at the CJIA earlier last week.
It would make a strong case that a large, well-organised human smuggling ring that has its tentacles stretching from Haiti, to Guyana, Brazil and likely Suriname, was involved.
Facilitating the process in Guyana were Immigrations officers, police, taxi and bus drivers, hotels, airline employees and others.
The scheme fell apart recently when Red Caps and taxi drivers at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) raised questions about the no-show of the Haitians on departing flights.
“We spent money to get to work because we understand that there were flights going out and people were booked on them,” one Red Cap worker explained recently.
However, consistently, barely one Haitian would turn up. That sparked suspicions. It left the Red Caps and drivers out of pocket.
Under the regulations, visitors to Guyana must present a return ticket.
The Haitians were no exception. Never mind that the return tickets to Guyana cost over US$1,300.
The Haitians willingly gave up their return tickets after arriving in Guyana.
A group of Haitians waiting for pickup at a Lethem bus stop.
A group waiting to the processed at the Brazilian border area of Bom Fim.
Haitians in Lethem, on their way to Bom Fim, across the Takutu Brige.
Beginning January, the Haitians started to arrive, more than 50 on average per flight.
At the CJIA, picking them up would be persons who are armed with photos in their phones. Among the coordinators were Haitians and locals.
The Haitians, including women and children, are taken by minibuses to city hotels and private residences.
They would later be picked up by minibuses of the various transportation services, located in the city.
Sometimes five or six minibuses of passengers would leave Georgetown for Lethem.
It appeared no one was paying attention. The Haitians had arrived legally in Guyana.
All along the Lethem trail, pass the Kurupukari checkpoint, it was all smooth sailing.
The sometimes 15-hour drive was no big deal.
For the transportation services that work the Lethem route, the business of fetching Haitians has been a boon.
“There is not much else going now. I want to a piece…if I get it, I will take it,” one bus driver said.
At Lethem, the Haitians are not being stopped by Immigrations or Customs.
“They come here legally so (there is) nothing much we can do,” an Immigration official explained.
For several hours, the Haitians would stay at two well-known locations, including a bar.
Lethem residents and others that do business there told Kaieteur News, last week, that the Haitians would disappear suddenly.
“We can only guess they gone over to Brazil, via Bom Fin and the Takutu Bridge. You would see groups of them gathered at the Federal checkpoint on Brazil side ever so often,” a Lethem businessman said.
Lethem, too, is glad for the business. Scores of Cubans in recent months have been using Guyana to make it to Brazil.
Planes Too
“We are also seeing Haitians using the planes from Ogle Airport to come too. This is in addition to the daily buses.”
The influx of the Haitians has kick-started a debate.
There is sympathy on one side for the Haitians whose country next the Dominican Republic has been ravaged by hurricanes and earthquakes.
Guyana, based on a government order earlier this year, is one of the few Caribbean countries to reach out a hand to Haitians, allowing for professionals and other skilled workers to come.
They would automatically receive a six-month stay.
However, it appeared that the system of vetting who is a professional or skilled worker has been abused at the CJIA. There have been criticisms from a few that the issue of the Haitians is one of racism.
There was little comment on the impact on national security and of the human smuggling side.
Last week, Minister with Responsibilities for Citizenship, Winston Felix, was convinced that Guyana is being used as a stepping stone by the Haitians for greener pastures.
He also said that the situation was being blown out of proportion by the Opposition which is targeting Haitians unfairly.
“(The issue of) Haitians arriving in Guyana is always blown out of proportion by certain elements in the political Opposition.
“In so far as the offence of trafficking in persons is concerned, the APNU/AFC Coalition Government is concerned–that offence is treated with intolerance and anyone found committing it and any suspicion of its occurrence will be investigated with a view to prosecuting those found culpable regardless of their nationality.”
Felix, a former Commissioner of Police, was critical about what he described as the readiness of the Opposition to target Haitians arriving in Guyana.
“…And consequently they seek to mislead the public with broad and generally false allegations that seek to tarnish the good name of the Department of Citizenship. However, they have never been able to unearth one iota of evidence to support their spurious allegations. I suspect that this is another of their acts.”
The Opposition has been insisting that from all indications it is likely there is human smuggling involved and also levels of collusion involved in registering voters using the Haitians.
However, Minister Felix was clear about Government’s position.
“Let me reiterate Government’s firm and settled position on CARICOM nationals arriving In Guyana. Apart from our laws which would restrict entry of anyone to Guyana, all CARICOM nationals arriving in Guyana are granted six months to remain in the country, with the possibility of extension.
“I am checking on the veracity of the statement that three busloads of Haitians have arrived in Guyana.”
According to the Minister, his enquiry has suggested that Haitians arrived in this country regularly.
Elsewhere
“We have found that their intention is to get to relatives in Suriname, Cayenne, Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Venezuela. We have traced legal departures but there are a number we cannot account for, and those we suspect left illegally (backtrack). We have not found evidence of trafficking in Haitians. Venezuelans are the subjects of that offence as the prosecution of current cases suggest.”
Yesterday, despite the public scrutiny, four busloads of Haitians arrived in Lethem. Some 50 more are expected to arrive on a Copa flight this afternoon, from Panama.
The Opposition has asked for an investigation.
Since January, only 13 Haitians have returned home, less than one percent.
In the last three days, 221 arrived but none left.