LITMIR.BIZ

Figure 4. Renunciation peaks before 2007 and 2012 Bahamian general elections.

      When you are close to the election, it [the number of renunciations] rose. After the election, here, the number is almost close to zero a month. And when you go getting close to the election, there’s a peak. There’s a peak. In this formulation of 2002, 2007, and 2012 you can see that. So each government … before the election, they issue a lot of citizenships.

      The politicized nature of Bahamian citizenship bestowal is not merely reflected in data held at the Haitian Embassy or in Bahamian newspaper articles, however. As the study participants make clear, obtaining Bahamian citizenship is often predicated on knowing someone in the Department of Immigration or elsewhere in government who can do you the “favor” of granting you citizenship. Formal politics and informal personal connections thus have an equally significant influence on citizenship decisions in The Bahamas.

       Bureaucratic Failures

      Describing the reality of Latin American politics, Taylor states that “the only way to get anything done is to ‘pay an extra fee’ or ask a ‘friend’ to cut through the red tape on your behalf” (Taylor 2004, 213). Taylor may as well have been writing about the Bahamian case as her quote aptly captures one of the problems associated with bureaucratic failure in The Bahamas: going through official channels, and following the rules to acquire the “good” of citizenship does not necessarily translate into the most efficient way to obtain Bahamian citizenship. As artist Bernard Petit-Homme explains, he applied for Bahamian citizenship when he turned eighteen, but it took him three years to acquire citizenship, despite being born in the country and meeting all the requirements. He thinks it probably would have taken longer to acquire Bahamian citizenship if he had not run into a former high-ranking government official who had a friend in the Department of Immigration who was able to act on Petit-Homme’s application. “They called me the following week to say it is ready. So that’s how I got it,” he says.²¹

      Desmangles similarly observes that “It’s all about networking and who knows who in some instances.” He adds that in his case, “it came to a point where I had to think for myself, ‘Who do I know out there? Who can assist me? Who can make this possible?’”²² Bianca Zaiem, born of noncitizen parents in The Bahamas, also remarks that “a lot of people get citizenship by doing favors for other people. And I feel like that’s hurt us over the years. So normal people like me who want to do it the right way are pushed aside for somebody who’s getting a favor done by somebody else.”²³ Natacha Jn-Simon, a College of The Bahamas student, adds that sometimes these “favors” take on a more sinister tone:

      You know what they have the Haitian kids subduing to? It’s like okay, I’m a female, right, and you’re in Parliament or [you’re] someone who is connected with government. And let’s say you see me on the road or something, and you see that I look nice. And people have to realize that just as they say poverty is like a state of mind, you feel encapsulated, wherever you see a way out, it’s what you’re gonna do. So when these young ladies see these men [who say], “Oh, I’m gonna help you. I’m gonna do this for you. I’m gonna help you do this.” That’s how a lot of them get their citizenship you know. This guy said, “Okay, well, just be my friend.” You understand? “I have friends, I know people in immigration. I could get your stuff out.” It’s sad.²⁴

Table 2: Participants Born to Noncitizens in The Bahamas