CONTRIBUTION BY C.V. HOPE STRACHAN, MINISTER OF STATE TRANSPORT AND AVIATION M.P. FOR THE SEABREEZE CONSTITUENCY ON THE DEBATE ON THE COMPENDIUM OF BILLS TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION OF THE BAHAMAS
MR SPEAKER The journey continues. Our history as a nation is replete with periods where our people suffered from tyranny, injustice and a myriad of inequities. Slavery was a shameful period in our existence. When that was abolished we proclaimed FREEDOM and correctly so. But the nature of mankind and the ingrained desire to dominate other human beings has always led us to seek dominance over others. No sooner had we gained freedom from slavery the rich and powerful, disenfranchised and marginalized the masses on the basis of color, creed, absence of wealth and gender. Women
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were less than second class and had no voice or vote. It led to the physical and psychological repression of the Bahamian masses for decades and Bahamian women were singled out as having less rights than all. Thus in 1951 Women were not considered equal under the Law. The burning issue for them was disenfranchisement from the political process. The idea was that if they were able to obtain the right to vote, equality under the law would follow. Mr. Speaker, Boldly , my grandmother and a handful of luminaries ignored the status quo, defied the odds and boldly stepped into the unknown. Mary Ingraham, Georgiana Symonette, Mable Walker and Eugenia Lockhart and Doris Johnson worked tirelessly garnered the support of Thousands of right thinking Bahamians and through peaceful means and the power of the pen obtained
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for us majority rule in 1967. What a time. Another traunch of freedom so desperately needed for our people. Again we proclaimed FREEDOM and rightly so. But Mr. Speaker less than Ten (10) years after attaining majority rule we achieved independence. We then wrote a constitution and enshrined in that constitution provisions which are, in hindsight, regressive. Seemingly the provisions negated much of the hard won freedoms that the suffragettes had achieved. Mr. Speaker, Today just as the suffragettes did we face the fact that a large segment of our population have been marginalized and are not being afforded equal treatment under the law because of entrenched provisions in our constitution. Today we have the opportunity and we must take a stand to change this. To wipe out
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all forms of discrimination from our constitution based on “sex”. We have four Bills before us. These Bills are intended to repeal certain articles of our Constitution and to amend others to remove all forms of discrimination which exist under the law on the basis of sex. The constitution as it presently stands discriminates against Bahamian women. Women, who are citizens of this country, who raise families, who toil, fight and work for their families and for the development of the country as a whole. Specifically, Article 26, sets out all the grounds upon which discrimination is prohibited. However it failed to prohibit discrimination on the grounds of “sex.” It speaks to discrimination on the grounds of race, place of origin, political opinions, color or creed. The
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absence of the word sex is glaring and was either a grave mistake or a deliberate omission. Our Supreme Law, our Constitution, closed the door to gender equality and women were thus condemned to a status as unequal to men in our Commonwealth. Article 26 is all encompassing. It creates the fundamental concept of discrimination while articles 8, 10 and 14 create specific instances of discrimination. ARTICLE 8 One of the most egregious prohibitions for women is found in Article 8. It is her inability to transmit citizenship to her children born overseas if her husband is foreign. This discriminatory provision has caused much heartache for many Bahamian women their spouses and children. There are many horror stories. It’s hard to rationalize the inclusion of these
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provisions in our Constitution even in 1973. Aside from the obvious wrong done to married Bahamian women and their children it operates as an obvious disincentive to marriage. Article 10 To add insult to injury Article 10 dictates to her that she connot transmit citizenship if she marries a foreign man. Of course a Bahamian man could go and marry whomever he wished even if she comes from Timbuktu. The constitution is on his side and his wife could apply for citizenship immediately. Mr. Speaker the men in this country have taken full advantage of this right and privilege over the last Forty years. Since 1973 the Bahamas Government has conferred citizenship on many women. Literally there are Thousands of foreign women, spouses of Bahamian men who have benefitted from these provisions . Bahamian men are taking full advantage of their
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constitutional rights. Do they sometimes make fools of themselves and get caught up in marriages of convenience? Unquestionably. But this is ABSOLUTELY NO reason to take away their constitutional right and it certainly does not qualify as a rational reason to deny women the ability to make the same choice for themselves. Mr. Speaker, It is obvious that the rank discrimination in Articles 8, 10, and 26 of our Constitution is wrong. There are serious ramifications. In a report on gender equality by the Group “Equality Now” The Article called Campaign to End Sex Discrimination in Nationality and Citizenship Laws opines that: “Women and men should have equal rights to transfer their nationality to their children and their spouse, but too often the laws governing citizenship are based on – and so reinforce –
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stereotypical roles for women and men. This not only denies equality to women and men, it also causes unnecessary suffering, vulnerability and harm to all affected by the discrimination.� This extract indicates that gender discrimination has a negative impact on society in general. In addition The United Nations, Human Rights Organizations, International Conventions like CEDAW all espouse the concept of gender equality. This is nothing new or earth shattering as many alarmists have opined. It is the normal accepted standards of enlightened societies which have been made law in most countries. While the previous articles discussed were clearly drafted to restrict the rights of women as it relates to citizenship and equality the constitution also created discrimination against single men.
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Article 14 This Article actually discriminates against single men. They are unable to transmit their Bahamian citizenship to their children. Single women can do so. This provision in light of the existing social norms was particularly regressive and downright cruel in some instances because it enshrined the filius nullius rule in the constitution. This rule did not recognize children born out of wedlock as having legal rights. It exacerbated an already tenuous situation created by the existing Legislation which governed familial relationships at the time. The father’s lack of ability to transmit citizenship to his child weakened their approach and attitudes towards responsible parenting. Thus Between 1973 and the passage of The Status of Children Act there were many injustices visited upon single fathers. I can speak to the fact that many were prevented from establishing
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proper relationships with their children. The prohibition fostered hostility in relationships where women used this lacuna in the law against men. Many children in our society suffered as a result. There are many examples where men were not secure in their ability to approach the courts to seek access to their children. In other instances the failure of the constitution to provide them with protection as fathers created apathy in asserting their rights and many ended up carrying the blame for children who really were not their own, supporting them for years at a time only to find out when the child attained 18 that child not theirs. Notwithstanding that The Status of Children Act rectified much of this the absence of the ability to transmit citizenship to their children left a gaping hole in the law stultifying the full realization of what being a father truly means for many men. Society is the worst off for it today. Like the other discriminatory clauses 8, 10 and 26 of our Constitution it
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is time to right the wrongs. To give equality to men and women so that our country can develop and every citizen man, woman, boy and girl can know that they are regarded by their country as no less than any other person. Mr. Speaker, The Amendments foreshadowed here today will create equality of the sexes under The Laws of the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. Article 8 will be amended to allow married Bahamian Women who marry foreign men and have children with that man to pass on her citizenship. This is only right. Under the law They will be entitled as of right to citizenship upon birth. Mr. Speaker
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Under the amendments to Article 10, a Bahamian woman who marries a foreign man will have the same right as a Bahamian man. Her husband will be able to apply to be registered and have his application considered in all the circumstances of the case taking into account the provisos against fraudulent marriages, criminal convictions, national security issues and the Oath of Allegiance. Mr. Speaker, The Amendment to Article 14 will allow single men who have children born inside or outside the Bahamas to foreign women to transmit their citizenship automatically once it is satisfactorily proved that the child is his by blood relation. An amendment to The Status of children Act will provide that such proof must be given by DNA testing or through a trial where other relevant factors would be considered if the father is deceased. Mr.
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Speaker this is consistent with the desire to remove the stigma that is pervasive in this society that children born out of wedlock are less equal than those born within the bonds of marriage. It is consistent with the abolition of the Philius Nullius rule abolished under the Status of Children Act and is consistent with civilized enlightened societies. The Amendments to Article 26 will create a constitution that no longer discriminates because of “sex� thereby enshrining gender equality into our Supreme Law. Finally we will be a country that recognizes that men and women are equal under the law. This is a major step in the course of our development as a people. The rest of the region has left us behind on this issue. We are so far behind when common sense dictates that we should be far ahead of our regional counterparts. These amendments facilitate our compliance with International Human Rights Laws, Treatise and
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Standards. More importantly it creates an environment for the full flowering of our people whatever their race, place of origin, political opinions, color or creed or “sex�. By these amendments we shall restore the full freedoms won by the Suffragettes in 1967 usurped by our well intentioned forefathers in our constitution. I know Mary Naomi Mason Ingraham, Georgiana Symonette, Mable Walker, Eugenia Lockhart, Doris Johnson and all those brave warriors upon whose shoulders we stand are now rejoicing. I implore my brothers and sisters to support this joint effort on the part of the government to bring our country into enlightenment. Now is the time!!!! This is no time for play. No time for politics. No time to pander to less than enlightened male egos. We must disregard the chauvinists. Ignore the naysayers. This is for
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our women! In fact it is for all of us. We can’t let this opportunity pass! We need unity on this issue! Ignore the false accusations about same sex marriage. Marriage is between a man and a woman in this country. That is the law and it cannot and will not be changed by these Bills or the referendum to follow. It’s there big and plain as day in the Matrimonial Causes Act and in the Marriage Act. There is NO intention to change that! If you’re not sure find out when the commission will be coming in your area or call them and set up a meeting for you and your friends. Get on the internet. Research the issues presented in these Bills, you will see why Gender Equality is so essential. Women, It’s time to rid ourselves of these encumbrances to our development. Time has come for the full realization of our
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humanity. The Women of this country have suffered long and hard. Married women, who through the exercise of their human instinct to nurture a family in the most favorable circumstances have suffered untold misery. It’s time to give the women and children some RELIEF!!!!!. IT’S time to deliver another tranche and we can once again proclaim FREEDOM.
C.V. Hope Strachan M.P.