TCI: Statement – Member of Parliament – Hon. George Lightbourne, Leader (Candidate) of the PNP

#Providenciales, February 17, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – In light of the recent violence and continuous escalating political unrest in our neighboring Haiti, I call on the Premier to stop saying “ I cant stop the Sloops” and actually do something towards stopping the sloops by  reaching out to the Government of our neighbors to the North, the Commonwealth of the Bahamas to liaise with them on becoming a partner in the  establishment of  a temporary detention center in Matthew Town, Inagua.

As neighbors facing the same threat of mass illegal migration to our shores, it is in our best interest to work together combining resources and manpower towards a joint operation similar to that of the OBAT Program in order to actively attempt to stop the sloops.

I call on the Governor, to inform the British Government of the continuous escalating political unrest in our neighboring Haiti and the repercussions the TCI is facing as a result of this. Towards this end, they should be required to immediately station a  British vessel off our waters between Haiti and TCI as a deterrence mechanism to stop the influx of illegals seeking to escape to our shores.

We sympathize with the Haitian people, but we simply are not in a position to house 11 million Haitians in our country and we need to put urgent mechanisms in place to ensure that we protect our land we love.

Hon. George Lightbourne MP, Leader (Candidate) of the PNP