Dear Editor,
I have written twice on the subject of Haitian arrivals in Guyana asking that the Minister of Citizenship, Mr Winston Felix, explain the fact, according to him, that over 8,000 Haitians recently arrived in our country and less than 2,000 are recorded as having departed. I asked a simple question, “Where are the 7,000 odd unaccounted for Haitians?”
I am not the only citizen who has expressed this concern, but instead of providing an answer to the nation, the Minister singled me out for attack and called me “xenophobic.” He also failed to provide any reliable information. Mr Felix, instead of holding a press conference and facing the media on a subject of major public interest and concern, staged an “interview” with the Public Information and Press Services of the Ministry of the Presidency.
Acknowledging that the Haitians cleared customs and immigration into the country, unbelievably, he has to rely on Brazilian immigration records to tell us that just under 7,000 Haitians have arrived in that country but can offer no evidence that they have legally departed Guyana. In other words, the Haitians who arrived, under our immigration laws, are still in Guyana.
Winston Felix should know better than to call me, of all people, “xenophobic.”
Let me remind him that I have served my country longer than he ever will, in and out of the Cabinet under two Presidents; the founder of the party he now represents, Forbes Burnham, and later former President Desmond Hoyte.
When Guyana was beset by the horrors of Jonestown, I was assigned a diplomatic mission by President Burnham, in the USA, to defend our country’s name and reputation, appearing in over 20 television programmes, including NBC and CBS, yet Felix has the gumption to call me “xenophobic.” If anyone needs to apologise, it’s you, Mr Felix. Do your job Mister Minister. Hold a press conference, tell us the truth.
Yours faithfully,
Kit Nascimento
