Politics shroud move to 'formalise' Galleon Beach

Thursday, December 29, 2011

BLACK RIVER, St Elizabeth — The green shirts of the ruling Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) and the orange of the opposition People's National Party (PNP) were few and far between.

Yet tension from the election campaign hung heavy as residents of Galleon Beach in Crawford, South West St Elizabeth turned up at the local basic school in early December to receive or witness the handing over of certificates or "letters of allotment." The certificates were described by officials as a "step" towards "formalisation" of the decades-old Galleon Beach squatter settlement with the eventual provision of registered titles to individuals.

Long before the function - chaired by Velma Wright, a director in the Ministry of Housing - begun, grumblings could be heard. Some residents wondered why only 94 of the 204 families living on the 84.3 -acre beach front property, just west of Black River, were receiving "paper" although many were "late comers".

And with the majority of people at Galleon Beach - which some say has been occupied by squatters for upwards of 40 years - being supporters of the PNP, many were sceptical of the Government's motive in delivering the allotment certificates just over three weeks before today's election.

The circumstances found Mayor of Black River and Chairman of the St Elizabeth Parish Council, Jeremy Palmer (JLP) in combative mood.

He argued that Galleon Beach residents should put the "politics" and the "screw face" aside and be grateful for the moves being made to eventually make them certified land owners.

"There is nothing more important to a family in Jamaica than if you have a piece of land and you have a piece of paper for it," declared Palmer who is a lawyer.

"So people can say all what they want. People can say is election why this is happening but if is election mek you get a piece of paper, election is a good thing," he argued.

But while PNP candidate for South West St Elizabeth Hugh Buchanan - who joined Palmer in bringing greetings and would later also participate in handing out allotment letters - agreed with the Mayor that "paper for land" was important, he noted that an allotment letter "is not a (land) title".

Buchanan also reminded everyone that it was his late father Donald Buchanan, former Member of Parliament for SW St Elizabeth and a Minister of Housing under the PNP who initiated the process of legitimising Galleon Beach residents by supervising Government's purchase of the land from private owners for $53 million in 2006.

Pointing out that the latest survey of the Galleon Beach property was at the time incomplete, that there were many unanswered questions regarding incorrect boundaries and that less than half of the occupying families were receiving allotment letters on that day, Buchanan also questioned motive.

"Citizens are panicking because they believe that the reason for this ceremony today is not really about the people who are down here (loud cheers) but it is more political than anything else (loud cheers)," said a stone-faced Buchanan.

It was then left to the incumbent for SW St Elizabeth and Cabinet Minister Chris Tufton as well as Housing Minister Horace Chang to strive to ease the political tension.

Tufton, argued that when he first visited the strongly pro-PNP Galleon Beach in the run up to the 2007 elections, he made a commitment to complete the process started by Donald Buchanan.

"When I came to this community, the only commitment I gave to you was that whether you vote for me or not, I am going to work to complete the process to give you tenure for the land, because once I became member of parliament, I became member of parliament for everyone," declared Tufton.

Both Tufton and Chang assured residents that partisan political considerations would not come into play as authorities move in 2012 to regularise and formalise Galleon Beach. Chang conceded that a lack of trust in government and governance was a huge problem in the drive towards national development and in successfully implementing projects such as was being attempted at Galleon Beach.

Chang said that the project was part of a wider drive to eliminate "informal" settlements which at "last count" numbered over 700 across Jamaica.

Chang, Tufton and Wright told residents that they would be required to pay $350,000 for phase one of the formalisation process, covering the provision of roads and other infrastructure such as water and light. An initial payment of $35,000 in February should be followed by monthly payments, they said.

"A certificate of allotment is not a registered title but when you buy property you first sign a sale agreement and then you get the registered title afterwards ... This certificate of allotment is saying it's your land," explained Chang.

The Housing Minister pledged that persons now in occupation of the land would all get plots eventually - even if they were forced to vacate the plots they were now on, for one reason or another.

He warned however that residents had to ensure that "others from outside" did not take up residence. That practice, he claimed, had held up progress at Galleon Beach down the years with surveyors having to return time and again because marked boundaries were breached by new settlers.

That, he explained, was the reason two unfinished houses were bulldozed in November, causing extreme disquiet in the community.

Tufton told residents that formalisation of their community would put them in a good position to benefit from planned multi-billion dollar development of the neighbouring 2000-acre Font Hill property as a health and environmental resort.

The entire Black River area was in line for transformation with major housing developments ongoing at Luana and plans for the parish capital to be established as a major heritage tourism site, Tufton said.

At the end of the ceremony, some residents remained unconvinced.

Julet Ebanks, who says her family has lived at Galleon Beach for 40 years complained to the Observer West that the latest survey had shown that her land "run into somebody's house which is a concrete structure... ". She had been told of possible relocation.

"I want to know what is the meaning of relocate ... I keep asking and they are not giving me a straight answer," she complained.

A few residents complained that too much money was being asked of them.

But fisherman Derrick Ebanks who received his certificate of allotment and has lived on the property since the 1970s argued that like it or not residents would have no option but to abide by the rules being laid out. This was so, he said, because "they (authorities) have the handle and we (settlers) have the blade".

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Politics shroud move to 'formalise' Galleon Beach