~ Dept will be headed by Udo Aron ~
PHILIPSBURG--Justice Minister Roland Duncan says he is busy setting up an Immigration Services Department to structure the administration of local Immigration officers and handle Immigration-related matters.
Dutch funding agency USONA head Udo Aron will be appointed head of the department as of October 1, Duncan told The Daily Herald on Wednesday, as he sought to clear the air on his plans for Immigration.
Aron's tasks will include setting up this new department. The administration of the approximately 40-plus Immigration officers at Princess Juliana International Airport (PJIA) and the Harbour will fall under this new department. Other services that the department will handle include permits, protests against permits, visas and certain Immigration controls.
Duncan said the physical separation of Police and Immigration had taken place 13 years ago via a special central government decree in 1998. He said that the current set-up of Immigration was not structured and his vision was to have it streamlined with the set-up of the Immigration Services Department.
His plans include putting the Director of Immigration directly in charge of Immigration officers as opposed to the current situation, in which they are under the supervision of Chief of Police Peter de Witte.
The minister stressed that his plans for Immigration had no bearing on the Police Force and would not affect the work or functioning of the Police Force.
An Implementation Manager Carmelita Smits-Rombley is currently working out the structure of the new department as well as issues such as job descriptions and other tasks as they relate to the setting up of the department.
Duncan said persons were now being hired to work in the new department and he did not have a definitive date as to when the department would be fully operational.
Rumours about the changes to be made to Immigration have irked Immigration officers, who have been complaining that they are being kept in the dark about Duncan's policies. An estimated 40 to 50 Police and Immigration officers converged on the Government Administration Building on Tuesday, demanding answers about the separation of Immigration from Police.
However, Duncan, who met with representatives of the three unions representing Immigration and Police on Wednesday, said he had been perplexed by the action taken by Police and Immigration officers.
"What is so bad about separating Immigration from Police?" the minister asked. "I can only think of positive things from this. What are they [Immigration officers-Ed.] losing if they are part of a new department?"
The minister said that while he had not given the information directly to the Immigration officers about his ideas for change, he had communicated his plans to the unions representing Police and Immigration in at least four meetings, the last one being four weeks ago.
Duncan said he had "repeated himself" in Wednesday's meeting and reiterated things he had mentioned to the unions in previous meetings. "What people don't know is that I've had at least four meetings with the unions on different occasions as recent as four weeks ago, in which all of the subjects were discussed and brought forward."
"I think there are political overtones to it. The unions are out there trying to manage my ministry for me. They are saying that they were trying to find me and send me letters on Friday and Monday. I was in the Police station most of the day on Friday and Monday."
Additionally, he said it appeared as if someone had leaked details of his plans for Immigration prematurely, causing the discontent among officers.
Duncan said he is hoping to plan a meeting with Immigration officers next week.
The minister, who also accused the unions of playing politics, said he had asked the unions to give him time to work and flesh out his policies. "The unions are not giving me a chance to work. I have a plan to execute and set up an Immigration Service. That plan is not ready yet. We don't have the structure quite ready. Just give me a chance to work," said Duncan.
Also at Wednesday's meeting were United People's (UP) Party Member of Parliament Johan "Janchi" Leonard and Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Patrick Illidge.
Businesslike
President of the Windward Islands Civil Servants Union/Private Sector Union (WICSU/PSU) William Reed described Wednesday's meeting as "businesslike.
"It started off heated, but at the end of the day everyone treated everyone cordially, but I wouldn't say it was friendly."
Reed said information that reached the Police and Immigration officers regarding the separation seemed to have been leaked prematurely, resulting in "miscommunication" on the matter. "The documents that were circulating made the workers feel extremely uncomfortable, so they appealed to the union."
Reed said he had been encouraging Duncan for a while to visit the departments under his authority and familiarise himself with the workers. "Coupled with that, the amount of problems he has been having with the Immigration officers is not helping the situation."
Reed said Duncan had been "very annoyed" with the "action" that was taken on Tuesday by the officers and saw it as "a show of force." However, Reed said that the minister had "created uncertainties" among the workers.
"If he has a plan and this plan is not yet finished and the team is working on the plan, do not let the team disseminate any info before you are ready to do so," said Reed.
Reed said the minister had assured the unions that they would get a chance to negotiate Collective Labour Agreements (CLAs) for Immigration officers under the new situation. He said the union remained concerned about security issues.
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