Squatters taking aim at Darliston

Karrie Williams, Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

An influx of squatters in Darliston, Westmoreland, is now creating much concern in the community, as it is feared that their presence will negatively impact the lives of legitimate homeowners.

Member of Parliament for Eastern Westmoreland and State Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister Luther Buchannan, who resides in the area, told the Western Focus that the community is being invaded by persons from other parishes, who are moving in to occupy government-owned lands in the area.

"As it pertains to squatting in Darliston, it is of a serious concern to the citizens and myself," Buchanan told Western Focus.

He further apprised that the squatters were from other parishes. "The people are from St James, Hanover, lower Westmoreland and all over Jamaica."

According to Buchanan, getting the squatters to move off the 'captured lands' is somewhat problematic, as based on his own assessment, it is an issue in which the police have shown no interest.

"When you refer these instances to the police, the police will say they don't have the authority to remove these people, and citizens can't get up and go burn down a house or remove building blocks," said Buchanan. "The police say they are not so equipped to deal with it. The Government is moving in a way where a unit will be beefed up to deal with the issue."

In speaking specifically to the squatting situation in an area close to the Maxwell Carey Housing Scheme, the member of parliament said he was concerned that the area could become a haven for criminal elements.

"If a community is unplanned, you will have fundamental social issues," noted Buchanan. "There will be a lack of easy access for the police, and so these settlements could become safe hiding places for elements of society that we dread."

When contacted, Jonathan Boyd, the Island Special Constabulary Force commanding officer for Westmoreland, acknowledged that there was a squatting problem in the parish, and noted that it was posing a challenge for the police.

"These unplanned and unstructured settlements do not have access to roads and other proper infrastructure. As a result, they pose a problem to policing efforts," said Boyd. "It is almost a given that these places are frequented by persons of nefarious character, and that is of primary concern to us."

In a 2002 study titled The Squatter Problem in Jamaica, which was done by the University of the West Indies, it was revealed that government policies relating to squatting have been either limited or a complete failure on account of the little or no participation by squatters in programmes geared towards regularisation.

The study revealed that the living conditions of squatters in Jamaica are much worse than the national average. It stated that the majority of the squatters were mostly single women with limited education, who are ill-equipped for gainful employment.

Quizzed as to why there seems to be an apparent lack of effort in curbing the squatting problems in Darliston, Trevor Jamieson, the councillor for the area, said that more support was needed from central government to address the situation.

"We want it to be regularised so that we can curb the practice," said Jamieson. "We don't want it escalating any further. Citizens are saying they are seeing faces that they don't know, and they feel uncomfortable when they see these people around."

"The council cannot regulate without policies from the Government; the council would not be in a position to act except if the land was privately owned," Jamieson added.