By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRESS secretary Clint Watson said while the government refuses to respond to criticism from the United States, it is working to reduce the backlog of people seeking a response to their citizenship applications.

In its latest human rights report, the US said The Bahamas has not effectively implemented laws to provide long-term residents the chance to get Bahamian citizenship “in a timely manner and on a non-discriminatory basis.”

“There was little progress in advancing legislation intended to address the issue of statelessness,” the report said.

The US highlighted two cases of people waiting for a decision 19 and 21 years after submitting their applications.

“We don’t respond to the US reports,” Mr Watson said at a recent press conference. “We are a sovereign nation and we are concerned that what we do in The Bahamas is effective for Bahamians and not because a report by our comrades says something means the government is just going to jump and address it because sometimes they don’t get it right.

“What I will say though in regard to what is happening is we are putting in place at the Department of Immigration measures to ensure that that backlog is eliminated. We recognise the permanent residents who are here and the people who have been using the services at immigration, that they deserve a little bit better treatment than they have been getting. They deserve a lot more rapid response than they have had. So that’s under investigation right now, how to efficiently improve the services at immigration that people can get services in a timely fashion. I’ll tell you this, it’s (a) considerable focus.”

The Davis administration plans to use ordinary legislation to correct gender-based inequities with regard to how people can get citizenship. Mr Watson said a bill concerning this will be presented in the House of Assembly this summer.

The Minnis administration has promised to amend the Bahamas Nationality Act to make relevant changes but did not do so.

The US also said the government failed to enforce provision for the Equal Opportunities Act, which prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities. The US highlighted the lack of accessible transportation for people.

Yesterday, Transport and Housing Minister Jobeth Colbey-Davis said she is aware of the issue and is intent on addressing it.

“I have briefly read the 2021 report on human rights for The Bahamas and note the concern expressed in the report on the accessibility of public transportation to disabled persons,” she said in a message to The Tribune.

“Important to note is that the report mentions that the concern is a long-standing issue, however during my tenure as Transport and Housing Minister, I intend to give attention to ensuring that we increase accessibility to public transportation for the disabled community as much as possible.

“I am not certain if you are aware, but I recently concluded a fact-finding trip to the US where officials from the Ministry of Transport and Housing were exposed to the operations of the public transportation system of New York, which included the Access-A-Ride (AAR) Paratransit Service. The AAR service provides public transportation in New York for persons with disabilities or health conditions that prevent them from using public buses and subways.

“While no decision has been made on the approach that ministry will take, we remain resolute in our position that public transportation must be inclusive and accessible to all persons of the community.

“In short order, I intend to meet with the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities to engage in dialogue on the concerns of disabled persons with accessing public transportation and to chart a path forward,” she said.