Dear Editor,

I have heard both Minister Daryl Vaz and Prime Minister Golding making lovely, neighbourly pronouncements about welcoming all Haitians to our shores. Added to this, we are to set up tents or villages to clothe, house and feed them until the situation in Haiti improves to the point where we can return them to their motherland.

That sounds very nice and friendly … but what a load of rubbish! Are these men really aware of the realities both in Haiti and in Jamaica? Wouldn’t it be far better to send aid to Haiti – assuming we could afford it – than to welcome hundreds of thousands of Haitians (no doubt including criminals previously involved in the drugs-for-guns trade) to our shores?

Are we in Jamaica able to handle the malaria and other such diseases that the Haitians could potentially bring to Jamaica? When 50 Haitian men arrive, who will our Immigration Department contact in Haiti to ensure that they are not 50 of the murderers who escaped from the prisons during the earthquake? How will we even know their real names to begin such checks – and checks with whom, seeing that most government departments, records and buidings there have been ravaged? Are these questions our “neighbourly” government has considered before making such irresponsible pronouncements? The mighty USA has said they cannot accept Haitians who arrive at their shores, but little Jamaica can afford – not only monetarily – to do so?

Don’t we have thousands of homeless and hungry who all need housing, clothing, medical attention, food and shelter? If we can supposedly find the money to do it for our neighbours, why do so many of our own citizens suffer every single day?

I suspect I will be accused of being cold, callous and unneighbourly, but someone needs to look realistically at our situation and what we are capable of doing, despite the best of intentions. Simply speaking, in my book, a drowning man who can’t swim can’t help his neighbour in the same situation!

Richard Stewart

stewedpeas@yahoo.com