In a paid broadcast on the privately-owned ZDK radio station on Sunday, the former Prime Minister, who was involved in several initiatives to deepen regional integration, said:

This should be a genuine amnesty meaning an official pardon or reprieve monitored by human rights and religious organisations designed to provide a clean slate on which our country’s immigration policy and practices can go forward in full transparency and without any doubts.

Expanding on his proposal, the Antigua Labour Party leader declared, under this amnesty, persons who have lived here for three years or more should not be expelled from the country. Instead, they should be given the opportunity to achieve legitimate status here once they are gainfully employed and have not been involved in crimes.

Bird, whose amnesty call came as Barbados was getting ready to start its amnesty policy from today for undocumented CARICOM nationals, said his party wants to “see a halt to the unconstitutional practice by the Spencer administration of expelling people without due process of law”, adding:

“Our nation will not be able to compete in the global economy by itself. We need the collective effort of CARICOM as a whole. But, we cannot on the one hand acknowledge the vital importance of solidarity with CARICOM countries, and at the same time deny brotherhood with our Caribbean family, said the Opposition Leader of the Antigua Labour Party.”

In this connection, Bird outlined elements of an immigration policy which he said should, among other factors, adhere to the Revised CARICOM Treaty under which “we should honour our commitment to free movement of identified categories of skilled workers; and also issue temporary work permits, without payment of fees, in sectors like construction and agriculture as the need arises.

Such workers would be registered and would leave at the expiry of their temporary permits.

Bird said that a revised immigration policy should not be devised by the government after consultation with human rights organisations, religious groups, trade unions, all political parties and Caribbean national associations in Antigua.