By Dennis Dames:
Facebook is
free for all, but it doesn’t mean that we are liberated to slander others with
impunity - or to make vile threats against brothers and sisters without
consequences. Facebook was not designed to override the justice system, or to be
a place where public trials and inquiries are conducted by citizens - in the
name of justice.
I have
noticed recently, that some of our Bahamian brothers and sisters are using
Facebook to exercise their so called rights, while they infringe on the rights
of others. This cannot be right. I have witnessed so called trials and inquiries
being conducted by compatriots who apparently feel that they are now magistrates
and judges in the Bahamian court system.
I have
noticed that some of us are now being picked-up, questioned and charged for our
Facebook indiscretions. It appears to be getting worse, rather than better. We
all have been warned by the Commissioner of Police about our irresponsible
Facebook maneuvers; some of us believe that the COP’s warning is a joke, so we
continue to be out-of-control in the distorted interests of freedom and justice
– on Facebook.
Well, like
the saying goes: for every action – there is a reaction. We all have equal
rights, and we are all equally free. The law exists to protect every citizen. It
is a shame therefore, that some of us feel that we have exclusive rights, so we
continue to be the self-appointed judge of the land, the violator of personal
privacy, or the shameless slanderer on Facebook.
Okay! Carry
on, until the law knocks on your door - to take you to the lawful place, where
you must answer accordingly - for your potentially criminal Facebook
behavior.
May 05, 2013
Caribbean Blog International
A political blog about Bahamian politics in The Bahamas, Bahamian Politicans - and the entire Bahamas political lot. Bahamian Blogger Dennis Dames keeps you updated on the political news and views throughout the islands of The Bahamas without fear or favor. Bahamian Politicians and the Bahamian Political Arena: Updates one Post at a time on Bahamas Politics and Bahamas Politicans; and their local, regional and international policies and perspectives.
Showing posts with label Bahamian rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bahamian rights. Show all posts
Sunday, May 5, 2013
Friday, October 12, 2012
Constitutional reform, pt. 8: ... ...The right of a citizen to good health and a clean environment
Constitutional reform, pt. 8
By ALFRED SEARS
Sir Lynden Pindling, one of the founding fathers of our Constitution, in an address at the Colloquium on Political Reform, Constitutional Change and National Development at The College of The Bahamas on June 23, 1998, advocated that we expand the fundamental rights protected under the Bill of Rights of the Bahamian Constitution to include: “The right of a citizen to good health and a clean environment.”
Protection of the environment
The Bahamian Constitution, as a living document, should be amended, like the United States Constitution which itself has been amended 27 times, to reflect the shared expectations of and experiences of succeeding generations of Bahamians.
Today, due to the lack of a rational development strategy, we are faced with the rapid loss of aspects of the natural environment and cultural heritage of The Bahamas. The current national development strategy of development, based on attracting large foreign direct investments in resort tourism, has transformed the physical landscape and way of life of communities throughout the archipelago of The Bahamas.
There needs to be a firm balance between development and preservation of physical and cultural environment. While the current development strategy has created jobs for Bahamians, it is having an adverse impact on the environment, the quality of life of future generations of Bahamians, who will have to live pollution filled lives, without easy access to the beaches, historical and cultural sites, damped waste in our waters from cruise ships and others in the Bahamian territorial waters, the destruction of marine life and the coral reefs.
The patrimony of future generations of Bahamians will be destroyed, unless we treat the right to good health and a clean environment as fundamental rights protected by the Constitution.
The right of every Bahamian community to preserve its quality of life and be consulted before any public decision is taken to approve the construction and operation of projects that may adversely affect a Bahamian community was affirmed by the Court of Appeal of The Bahamas in the case of Responsible Development of Abaco (RDA) Ltd v. The Right Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham and Others SCCivApp. No. 138 of 2010.
The issue related to a decision of BEC to construct a power plant at Wilson City, Abaco, and the right of the community to be adequately consulted before the decision was taken. In a judgment by the Justice Allen, president of the Court of Appeal, in which Justices of Appeal Blackman and John both concurred, she observed, at paragraph 15, that, “It cannot be doubted that the exercise of that power was subject to the rights or legitimate expectations of residents of The Bahamas generally, and in this case to the rights and legitimate expectations of residents of Wilson City, in particular, not to have their quality of life adversely affected by the construction and operation of the power plant in their neighborhood.”
At the hearing of the appeal, the power plant had already been constructed, nevertheless the Court of Appeal ordered BEC to conduct a process of full and proper public consultation with the community of Abaco on the operation of the plant going forward. The court held that “the appellants had a legitimate expectation to be adequately and meaningfully consulted in the decision-making process relative to the location and construction of the power plant at Wilson City, Abaco, which was breached by the respondents.”
United States experience
The United States federal regulation of the environment is based on the National Environmental Policy Act, 1970, under which is established the council on environmental quality, which advises the president. The Environmental Protection Agency was also created in 1970. The Common Sense Initiative Council, comprising representatives of government, business and environmentalists take an industry specific approach to solving environmental problems.
One feature of the United States legislations which is instructive is the “private attorneys general” provision which enables an individual to challenge government’s environmental decisions such as the grant of a permit and generally to demand both government and private sector compliance with the law. For example, the Endangered Species Act contains a provision which states that “any person may commence a civil suit” to enforce the provisions under the act.
In rejecting the secretary of the interior’s position that the petitioner lacked the requisite standing, Justice Scalia, writing for the U.S. Supreme Court in the case Bennet v. Spear 117 S.Ct. 1154 (1997), held: “That the overall subject matter of this legislation is the environment (a matter in which it is common to think all persons have an interest) and that the obvious purpose of the particular provision in question is to encourage enforcement by so-called ‘private attorney general’.”
These private attorney general provisions in environmental laws in the United States have enabled environmentalists to ensure a more equitable balance between development and preservation. For example, environmentalists have been able to influence the United States federal government to protect the habitats of the northern spotted owl, the Mexican spotted owl and the grey wolf by limiting development on nearly 18 million acres of land.
In The Bahamas, the government is often compromised when regulating foreign direct investment, given the practice among the political parties of relying on secret campaign contributions from foreign investors who are proposing or conducting foreign direct investment, with environmental implications. Therefore, the regulation of business should not be left exclusively to the initiative, monitoring and enforcement by the government. I suggest that, like the United States, every Bahamian should be able to act as a “private attorney general” in the preservation and protection of our environmental laws.
Public access to beaches
Access to the beaches for recreation, exercise and leisure is important part of the Bahamian culture and traditional way of life, as island communities. However, due to the lack of a rational development strategy, public access to the beaches on New Providence has been severely restricted over the past 30 years, due to the public policy of unrestricted touristic and other development, primarily by foreign investors.
Due to this pattern of development, we have seen, notwithstanding recent beach restoration projects, restriction to Governor’s Beach, Delaporte Beach, Cabbage Beach, Yamacraw Beach and Montagu Beach.
One social or economic class, foreign or local, should not be allowed to dominate the use of beaches in The Bahamas. We must, in our public policy, strike an equitable balance between the accommodation of economic development and the right of all of our people to have reasonable access to the beach resources of our country. Smart urban planning will protect the natural, historical and cultural patrimony of this country for future generations of Bahamians and visitors.
There is a growing recognition in the Caribbean region generally that the citizens’ right in a healthy and productive natural and social environment should be treated as a fundamental right. The Constitutional Commission of Jamaica in its final report, dated February 1994, recommended that the Jamaican Constitution should be amended to include, amongst other things, “the right to enjoy a healthy and productive environment free from the threat of injury or damage from environmental abuse and degradation of the ecological heritage”.
Similarly, the report of the Constitutional Review Commission of Barbados, dated December 1998, recommended that the Barbadian Constitution be amended to include, amongst other things, the duty and responsibility of every person in Barbados “to value and preserve the rich heritage of Barbadian culture” and to “create and maintain a clean and healthy environment and have compassion for living creatures”.
Further, the Barbadian Commission recommended that the Constitution be amended so that the state shall have the responsibility to “ensure that the beaches and public areas are accessible to all and do not become the exclusive preserve of any one sector of the community” and to “give the highest priority in the planning and execution of government policy to the preservation and protection of the natural environment of Barbados, which it shall hold as a sacred trust for future generations”. The current laissez faire policy of The Bahamas with respect to the Bahamian environment is out of step with the growing regional consensus that we must, through the Constitution, statutes and common law, pronounce a rational policy for the preservation and protection of our natural environment and cultural and historical heritage.
Recommendations
Since our Constitution is the most authoritative statement of the Bahamian community’s aspirations, expectations and policies, I recommend that our Constitution be amended to include the following provisions:
1. Every person shall have the right to enjoy a healthy and productive environment free from the threat of injury or damage from environmental abuse and degradation of the ecological, cultural and historical heritage.
2. Every community should be adequately and meaningfully consulted in the decision-making process before the approval of any project that may adversely affect the quality of life and welfare of any Bahamian community.
3. The state shall ensure that the beaches and public areas are accessible to all and do not become the exclusive preserve of any one sector of the community.
4. The state shall give the highest priority in the planning and execution of government policy to the preservation and protection of the natural environment and cultural heritage of The Bahamas, which it shall hold as a sacred trust for future generations of Bahamians.
Finally, all future environmental legislations presented to the House of Assembly should contain a “private attorney general” provision which will enable any Bahamian citizen to challenge an environmental decision by a public authority to protect the good health of Bahamians and visitors and the ensure a clean environment.
• Alfred Sears is an attorney, a former member of Parliament and a former attorney general of The Bahamas.
Oct 11, 2012
thenassauguardian
Constitutional
reform Pt. 1: ... ...After 39 years of constitutional practice in The Bahamas,
it is now time that we examine our constitution ...to determine if it conforms
to the demands and expectations of contemporary Bahamian society... ...Does the
Bahamian constitution reflect the contemporary shared expectations and
experiences of the Bahamian community today?
By ALFRED SEARS
Sir Lynden Pindling, one of the founding fathers of our Constitution, in an address at the Colloquium on Political Reform, Constitutional Change and National Development at The College of The Bahamas on June 23, 1998, advocated that we expand the fundamental rights protected under the Bill of Rights of the Bahamian Constitution to include: “The right of a citizen to good health and a clean environment.”
Protection of the environment
The Bahamian Constitution, as a living document, should be amended, like the United States Constitution which itself has been amended 27 times, to reflect the shared expectations of and experiences of succeeding generations of Bahamians.
Today, due to the lack of a rational development strategy, we are faced with the rapid loss of aspects of the natural environment and cultural heritage of The Bahamas. The current national development strategy of development, based on attracting large foreign direct investments in resort tourism, has transformed the physical landscape and way of life of communities throughout the archipelago of The Bahamas.
There needs to be a firm balance between development and preservation of physical and cultural environment. While the current development strategy has created jobs for Bahamians, it is having an adverse impact on the environment, the quality of life of future generations of Bahamians, who will have to live pollution filled lives, without easy access to the beaches, historical and cultural sites, damped waste in our waters from cruise ships and others in the Bahamian territorial waters, the destruction of marine life and the coral reefs.
The patrimony of future generations of Bahamians will be destroyed, unless we treat the right to good health and a clean environment as fundamental rights protected by the Constitution.
The right of every Bahamian community to preserve its quality of life and be consulted before any public decision is taken to approve the construction and operation of projects that may adversely affect a Bahamian community was affirmed by the Court of Appeal of The Bahamas in the case of Responsible Development of Abaco (RDA) Ltd v. The Right Hon. Hubert A. Ingraham and Others SCCivApp. No. 138 of 2010.
The issue related to a decision of BEC to construct a power plant at Wilson City, Abaco, and the right of the community to be adequately consulted before the decision was taken. In a judgment by the Justice Allen, president of the Court of Appeal, in which Justices of Appeal Blackman and John both concurred, she observed, at paragraph 15, that, “It cannot be doubted that the exercise of that power was subject to the rights or legitimate expectations of residents of The Bahamas generally, and in this case to the rights and legitimate expectations of residents of Wilson City, in particular, not to have their quality of life adversely affected by the construction and operation of the power plant in their neighborhood.”
At the hearing of the appeal, the power plant had already been constructed, nevertheless the Court of Appeal ordered BEC to conduct a process of full and proper public consultation with the community of Abaco on the operation of the plant going forward. The court held that “the appellants had a legitimate expectation to be adequately and meaningfully consulted in the decision-making process relative to the location and construction of the power plant at Wilson City, Abaco, which was breached by the respondents.”
United States experience
The United States federal regulation of the environment is based on the National Environmental Policy Act, 1970, under which is established the council on environmental quality, which advises the president. The Environmental Protection Agency was also created in 1970. The Common Sense Initiative Council, comprising representatives of government, business and environmentalists take an industry specific approach to solving environmental problems.
One feature of the United States legislations which is instructive is the “private attorneys general” provision which enables an individual to challenge government’s environmental decisions such as the grant of a permit and generally to demand both government and private sector compliance with the law. For example, the Endangered Species Act contains a provision which states that “any person may commence a civil suit” to enforce the provisions under the act.
In rejecting the secretary of the interior’s position that the petitioner lacked the requisite standing, Justice Scalia, writing for the U.S. Supreme Court in the case Bennet v. Spear 117 S.Ct. 1154 (1997), held: “That the overall subject matter of this legislation is the environment (a matter in which it is common to think all persons have an interest) and that the obvious purpose of the particular provision in question is to encourage enforcement by so-called ‘private attorney general’.”
These private attorney general provisions in environmental laws in the United States have enabled environmentalists to ensure a more equitable balance between development and preservation. For example, environmentalists have been able to influence the United States federal government to protect the habitats of the northern spotted owl, the Mexican spotted owl and the grey wolf by limiting development on nearly 18 million acres of land.
In The Bahamas, the government is often compromised when regulating foreign direct investment, given the practice among the political parties of relying on secret campaign contributions from foreign investors who are proposing or conducting foreign direct investment, with environmental implications. Therefore, the regulation of business should not be left exclusively to the initiative, monitoring and enforcement by the government. I suggest that, like the United States, every Bahamian should be able to act as a “private attorney general” in the preservation and protection of our environmental laws.
Public access to beaches
Access to the beaches for recreation, exercise and leisure is important part of the Bahamian culture and traditional way of life, as island communities. However, due to the lack of a rational development strategy, public access to the beaches on New Providence has been severely restricted over the past 30 years, due to the public policy of unrestricted touristic and other development, primarily by foreign investors.
Due to this pattern of development, we have seen, notwithstanding recent beach restoration projects, restriction to Governor’s Beach, Delaporte Beach, Cabbage Beach, Yamacraw Beach and Montagu Beach.
One social or economic class, foreign or local, should not be allowed to dominate the use of beaches in The Bahamas. We must, in our public policy, strike an equitable balance between the accommodation of economic development and the right of all of our people to have reasonable access to the beach resources of our country. Smart urban planning will protect the natural, historical and cultural patrimony of this country for future generations of Bahamians and visitors.
There is a growing recognition in the Caribbean region generally that the citizens’ right in a healthy and productive natural and social environment should be treated as a fundamental right. The Constitutional Commission of Jamaica in its final report, dated February 1994, recommended that the Jamaican Constitution should be amended to include, amongst other things, “the right to enjoy a healthy and productive environment free from the threat of injury or damage from environmental abuse and degradation of the ecological heritage”.
Similarly, the report of the Constitutional Review Commission of Barbados, dated December 1998, recommended that the Barbadian Constitution be amended to include, amongst other things, the duty and responsibility of every person in Barbados “to value and preserve the rich heritage of Barbadian culture” and to “create and maintain a clean and healthy environment and have compassion for living creatures”.
Further, the Barbadian Commission recommended that the Constitution be amended so that the state shall have the responsibility to “ensure that the beaches and public areas are accessible to all and do not become the exclusive preserve of any one sector of the community” and to “give the highest priority in the planning and execution of government policy to the preservation and protection of the natural environment of Barbados, which it shall hold as a sacred trust for future generations”. The current laissez faire policy of The Bahamas with respect to the Bahamian environment is out of step with the growing regional consensus that we must, through the Constitution, statutes and common law, pronounce a rational policy for the preservation and protection of our natural environment and cultural and historical heritage.
Recommendations
Since our Constitution is the most authoritative statement of the Bahamian community’s aspirations, expectations and policies, I recommend that our Constitution be amended to include the following provisions:
1. Every person shall have the right to enjoy a healthy and productive environment free from the threat of injury or damage from environmental abuse and degradation of the ecological, cultural and historical heritage.
2. Every community should be adequately and meaningfully consulted in the decision-making process before the approval of any project that may adversely affect the quality of life and welfare of any Bahamian community.
3. The state shall ensure that the beaches and public areas are accessible to all and do not become the exclusive preserve of any one sector of the community.
4. The state shall give the highest priority in the planning and execution of government policy to the preservation and protection of the natural environment and cultural heritage of The Bahamas, which it shall hold as a sacred trust for future generations of Bahamians.
Finally, all future environmental legislations presented to the House of Assembly should contain a “private attorney general” provision which will enable any Bahamian citizen to challenge an environmental decision by a public authority to protect the good health of Bahamians and visitors and the ensure a clean environment.
• Alfred Sears is an attorney, a former member of Parliament and a former attorney general of The Bahamas.
Oct 11, 2012
thenassauguardian
Constitutional
reform Pt. 7: ... ...I, therefore, recommend that we amend our constitution to
provide for the public funding of national elections ...with appropriate
legislation to establish a system of public campaign financing ...to better
secure the right to vote, reduce corruption of the political process and
increase competition by independent candidates and small parties
Friday, July 22, 2011
The Democratic National Alliance (DNA) party says: ...Bahamians are feeling more and more that persons who are in The Bahamas illegally seem to have more rights and privileges than they do
DNA 'furious' about illegal immigration problem
tribune242
THE Democratic National Alliance said it is furious that the illegal immigration problem has been allowed to grow to such an extent that Bahamians feel they are "second, third and even fourth class citizens in their own country".
The newly launched party issued statement yesterday saying it believes Bahamians deserve "better treatment" and called on the government to put its people first - in all things.
The DNA said: "The party, along with scores of Bahamians across the length and breadth of the Bahamas, is increasingly troubled by the government of the Bahamas' attempt to secretly regularise thousands of non-Bahamians during an elections season, while at the same time admittedly following the fashion of the Christie administration and its old 'land give-away' practices."
The party was referring to the announcement that the government is working to regularise 1,300 foreign nationals whose applications have been "gathering dust" for years.
The government also said it would sell the track of land known as Mackey Yard - formerly the site of a shanty town - to Bahamians, but that former Bahamian squatters would get first preference.
This has led to speculation that the government is regularising former Haitian squatters in order to sell them the land, in return for political support.
The FNM had denied this, pointing out that both initiatives follow established procedure and that the former PLP government actually regularised more foreigners during its last term than the present administration.
It was also announced that none of the former squatters have actually applied for the Mackey Yard land.
Nevertheless, according to the DNA, as a result of these initiatives, "Bahamians are feeling more and more that persons who are here illegally seem to have more rights and privileges than they do".
The party claimed the government allows illegals to:
* squat on land illegally
* use electricity illegally
* sell products without the proper business licenses
* set up businesses without permission
* build structures without permission
The DNA also called on the government to identify those who they intend to sell the Mackey Yard land to, state whether these persons are citizens by birth or recently regularised, and if they were regularised, when.
The party also asked the government to reveal how many Bahamians are waiting to buy land from the government, and say how long they have been on the waiting list.
DNA leader, Branville McCartney, said that during his time as minister of state for immigration, he tried to create a unit to humanely remove shanty towns.
"My hands were practically tied and I met stern objection to this initiative," Mr McCartney said. "I was told that I was grandstanding."
Mr McCartney told The Tribune yesterday this one of the reasons he quit the FNM.
July 21, 2011
tribune242
tribune242
THE Democratic National Alliance said it is furious that the illegal immigration problem has been allowed to grow to such an extent that Bahamians feel they are "second, third and even fourth class citizens in their own country".
The newly launched party issued statement yesterday saying it believes Bahamians deserve "better treatment" and called on the government to put its people first - in all things.
The DNA said: "The party, along with scores of Bahamians across the length and breadth of the Bahamas, is increasingly troubled by the government of the Bahamas' attempt to secretly regularise thousands of non-Bahamians during an elections season, while at the same time admittedly following the fashion of the Christie administration and its old 'land give-away' practices."
The party was referring to the announcement that the government is working to regularise 1,300 foreign nationals whose applications have been "gathering dust" for years.
The government also said it would sell the track of land known as Mackey Yard - formerly the site of a shanty town - to Bahamians, but that former Bahamian squatters would get first preference.
This has led to speculation that the government is regularising former Haitian squatters in order to sell them the land, in return for political support.
The FNM had denied this, pointing out that both initiatives follow established procedure and that the former PLP government actually regularised more foreigners during its last term than the present administration.
It was also announced that none of the former squatters have actually applied for the Mackey Yard land.
Nevertheless, according to the DNA, as a result of these initiatives, "Bahamians are feeling more and more that persons who are here illegally seem to have more rights and privileges than they do".
The party claimed the government allows illegals to:
* squat on land illegally
* use electricity illegally
* sell products without the proper business licenses
* set up businesses without permission
* build structures without permission
The DNA also called on the government to identify those who they intend to sell the Mackey Yard land to, state whether these persons are citizens by birth or recently regularised, and if they were regularised, when.
The party also asked the government to reveal how many Bahamians are waiting to buy land from the government, and say how long they have been on the waiting list.
DNA leader, Branville McCartney, said that during his time as minister of state for immigration, he tried to create a unit to humanely remove shanty towns.
"My hands were practically tied and I met stern objection to this initiative," Mr McCartney said. "I was told that I was grandstanding."
Mr McCartney told The Tribune yesterday this one of the reasons he quit the FNM.
July 21, 2011
tribune242
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