EIGHT months after the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) ruled that Jamaican Shanique Myrie be awarded damages for an illegal cavity search, detention in a dank room in the Grantley Adams Airport, and subsequent deportation, she is yet to collect a cent.
In October last year, the CCJ ruled that Myrie should be paid US$38,620 in pecuniary and non-pecuniary damages by the Barbadian Government.
Myrie expressed frustration yesterday and said the Barbadian Government was deliberately dragging its feet.
“I am getting impatient. I can’t understand why after eight months I can’t even hear a word about what’s happening about the money. It seems they want to wait until I get grandchildren. It’s just not fair,” Myrie told the Jamaica Observer.
Myrie’s plight came to international light after the Observer chronicled how she was violated by a female immigration official and locked away with another woman in a cold, filthy room before being deported to Jamaica, despite not being found with any contraband or deemed to be in violation of any Barbadian law.
“It was not easy for me to come forward and speak about the treatment. I am encouraging others to speak out for their rights, so this is what I am doing now. I need my money,” she said.
As a party to the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, Barbados has a duty to comply with all the judgements of the court promptly. But based on Myrie’s long wait it seems that Bridgetown is snubbing its nose at the court.
Three months ago, Jamaica’s Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister AJ Nicholson said a five-month wait was by no means long. He added that Jamaica was holding Barbadian Prime Minister Freundel Stuart to his word that his country is committed to complying with the CCJ ruling.
The Myrie case threatened to spark a diplomatic row between both countries and saw a slew of other Jamaicans coming forward to claim mistreatment at the hands of Barbadian officials.
Another Jamaican woman, who was held with illegal drugs and sentenced to prison time, complained that she was raped by a cop and forced to perform oral sex on another.
The woman also accused a female cop of aiding and abetting her male colleagues in carrying out the sexual assault on her.
The woman cop and one of the males have since been charged, while another has fled the country.
Good Morning Metty & JMG family. Afta all shi guh thru now 8 months lata not ah cent?? Come on Barbados duh betta…pay di lady and put dis tuh rest. Wi need dem e-mail address fi flood dem inbox.
Good morning, dem people did say she nah go see a cent..portia needs to get involved
A real Prime Minister would get involve or assign a competent Minister to get a resolution. But noooooo, not Miss Portia cah dis is not on di agenda of di plane hopping ooman wid har foot dem shape like knife. Mi not even know if shi know bout dah case yah….:malu2
Metty, more time when ya deal wid settlements/insurance companies, them tek long fe pay out cause dem want to make interest on the money they have to pay out…that way they double their losses, especially if it is a large amount of money.
She more than likely, will get her settlement, but the company who is insuring this claim, will sit on that money for as long as they can until they’ve recouped the interest in comparison to the big payout..
De Bajan dem fe pay de girl har money. Dem nuh like we, and we nuh like dem. Yawdy4Life, mi like yuh comment.
A tru but Barbados nice na .BL: bajans na. leave Barbados fi. Come Jamaica. Dem say Jamaican a fool fool. Dem money strong still, $1:98 to US$1:00. . Like most people dem like Fe we reggae music, but dem nuh like we. Funny most young Jamaican women like Barbados.
Useless government officials. Dem nah guh get involved because di likkle $32K cyaa bruk inna two fi dem tek piece. Any how it was $32M yu woulda see how faas Portia dispatch Minister TekTrafiguraBribe fi guh kallek an pap aff piece.
The Jamaican government does not care about its citizen until they gain fame and recognition they jump on the bad wagon,Jamaica government need to cut diplomatic ties with Barbados till this woman get paid. It years now they have been treating Jamaicans bad there and discriminating against us though we have a big influence on the culture they try to act like they are also better than us
wi fi start a petition fi cut ties with them star jah know,them depend pon outside for almost everything suh we need to do like how the US operate
Mi ignorant baaad fi da waste government deh :marah Now mi hear seh dem ago tax di likkle money weh yuh have ah bank dung deh. Das why mi ah guh run down an haul it out…eat a fish outta Cosmo’s pon di beach, walk pon di sand likkle bit an jus liv pon di memories….
8 months is nothing waiting for gov’t to pay.