Gordon Robinson | It’s a vote begging contest

The critical concern from the recent Coopers Pen debacle is the rule of law is endangered by politics.

Illegal squatters were forcefully evicted in an August 11 pre-dawn operation seemingly on the landowner’s instructions. As is customary in such matters, bailiffs and police reportedly assisted. On August 15, a letter to Gleaner editor written by Robert Dalley, expressed popular outrage:

“The pre-dawn demolition of homes in Coopers Pen, Trelawny, should trouble every right-thinking Jamaican. No claim of legal ownership, however valid, justifies such a callous approach. Due process demands notice, dialogue and dignity, yet none of these were extended to these citizens.”

Ya don’t say! So let’s chronicle reality. Squatters moved on to privately owned lands without notice, dialogue or dignity afforded the landowner and built concrete structures without the owner’s permission. As time went by the squatter community grew into numbers constituting a significant voter block. By 2007 at least 99 squatter families occupied the land. After years of dialogue trying to encourage squatters to leave, the landowner sued for possession. “Dialogue” included attempts to get squatters to purchase the land which failed despite government agency HAJ’s intervention and help to form a Provident Society.

The land capture became institutionalized.

In 2010, Supreme Court ordered the squatters to demolish any structures built on the land and deliver possession to the owner.

Political interference which began years before escalated to the point where, in 2012, after squatters failed to obtain a stay of execution, Government stepped in, declaring the area an “improvement area” under the Housing Act and asked Supreme Court for a Declaration that this was lawful. The request was refused and, in 2016, the Appeal Court dismissed Government’s appeal. Government’s attempt to use back-door politics to defeat a landowner’s constitutional right to property was invalidated by the only real check and balance to arbitrary executive action in Jamaican governance – the court. Despite a change of Government in 2016 the Appeal Court’s decision wasn’t appealed to JLP’s beloved Privy Council.

That’s two decades of dialogue, notice and due process. Injunctions may expire. Property rights don’t. What we loosely call “Adverse Possession” doesn’t apply if landowners dispute squatters’ right to possession. Possession doesn’t have to be “adverse” but it must be undisturbed and exclusive. The lawsuits and the purchase attempts put an end to that distraction.

So what we have here is a bald-faced unlawful land capture by persons who were given every opportunity to leave peacefully but elected (no pun intended) to remain; to further “develop” illegally occupied land; and invite friends to the party.

If YOU were landowner what would YOU do to protect your and your family’s property rights?

This landowner turned to bailiffs and police to enforce its legal rights against squatters whose illegal occupation was stubbornly entrenched. They used pre-dawn raid tactics for effectiveness.

Immediately politicians were out in full cry. PNP was first from the blocks in the vote begging race. Mark Golding arrived in Coopers Pen on August 12. Surrounded by a crowd of potential voters he said:

“I’m visiting Coopers Pen today at the invitation of Mr. Dennis Meadows and the team in North Trelawny. You know this particular piece of land has….a complicated legal history…..”

No, Mark, NOTHING complicated about its legal history. Squatters and the then Government were repeatedly on the losing end of every legal action.

“My role here is not to get to the bottom of that today.”

Mark, there’s no bottom or top. The crowd of voters to whom you were pandering contained either illegal land capturers or their supporters. That’s the beginning, middle, end, top and bottom of it. Today; yesterday; tomorrow!

“….but what has happened here is a calamity – a humanitarian calamity. And the first priority must be to restore the lives of the households who have had their homes destroyed yesterday.

“Government has brought some tents and provided some very interim forms of assistance. And it’s a start. But the permanent relocation of those who have been displaced in consultation with them [my emphasis] on lands where they can be permanently settled in a decent living condition is critical.”

Let’s see if I understand Markie G correctly. If I and my friends are landless we need only illegally capture private lands; get evicted (preferably forcefully); then Government is duty bound to give me free land and housing of my choosing? Really? Seriously?

You know what’s coming next – the compulsory dig at Andrew Holness:

“The matter of lands falls directly under the Prime Minister’s portfolio. All of the land agencies of Government fall under him. So he’s in a position to expedite a solution to this crisis and I’m calling on him to do so.”

Try again Mark. Not one Government land agency has anything to do with privately owned lands except National Land Agency that keeps a private land ownership registry. Only Government owned lands fall under any portfolio. The only reason for government to “expedite a solution” of a private war brewing for two decades would be to beg votes just as Mark did on August 12.

Also on August 12, North Trelawny MP, Tova Hamilton, who won the seat by only 381 votes, hustled to match strides with Mark. She posted a You-Tube Video in which she stated:

“I want to make something absolutely clear. What happened yesterday here in Coopers Pen wasn’t a Government operation. It was private sector led and, at no time before the operation was commenced was I as MP informed that an eviction order/demolition exercise was going to take place…”

C’mon Tova! You can’t have your cake and eat it. If it was a private sector operation why complain “MP wasn’t informed”? You’ve no right to any heads-up or opportunity to polytrick the operation.

Tova spent time presenting the Shaggy Defence:

“the dispute over these lands…..predates my tenure as MP”

Kmt. There has been no valid dispute since 2012. As Tova herself said in her video “Based on the Certificate of Title….the property is registered to New Falmouth Resorts Limited. It’s therefore understood that yesterday’s operation was undertaken on behalf of that private landowner.”

So, where’s the dispute? Tova continued:

“I also want to be very responsible in what I say. I don’t condone informal occupation of land. I’ve never done so…. I believe communities must be developed in an orderly and lawful manner. Land ownership matters. Property rights matter. And the rule of law matters.”

You know what’s coming! Rule of law, land ownership and property rights matter but not where they intersect with politics. That’s where abuts abound.

“ But [there ya go] here’s where I draw the line.”

What line Tova? Where do you come off drawing any line in or around rule of law?

“The Rule of Law and basic humanity aren’t enemies. You can respect property rights and still respect people…”

Yes you can. But what happened to “respect begets respect”? What if squatters don’t respect landowners’ rights?

“You can recover possession of land without stripping another human being of their dignity.”

Yes, sometimes you can. But what do you do when, over decades, people from whom you must recover possession have treated you and your property without dignity and built garrisons to obstruct recovery? Until you’ve walked a mile in the shoes of a private landowner stripped of his property rights for two decades and treated without humanity or dignity, I strongly suggest you stop telling private landowners to recover property in dignified ways.

And, of course, Andrew Holness anxiously grabbed the bait attached to Markie G’s hook. On August 14, he described the situation as “a humanitarian crisis”. WHAT? Like Gaza? Like Westmoreland/St. Elizabeth after Mellissa? This MUST be the Guy Lombardo Show! He gratuitously denied prior knowledge; called the images “disturbing”; promised to provide assistance; and mobilized ODPEM’s and Social Security Ministry’s resources.

So, the same Government that, in 2022, bulldozed illegal structures and forcefully evicted squatters in Clifton, a PNP MP’s constituency, now pledges taxpayers’ resources to assist the unlawful and disorderly who, in a JLP MP’s Constituency, captured land they knew wasn’t theirs and resisted recovery by any means necessary until evicted by the registered landowner.

In a vote begging contest, rule of law is a mere inconvenience.

Peace and Love.

Gordon Robinson is an attorney-at-law. Send feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com