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Chef Fitzhugh Bailey prepares lunch at the Refuge of Hope night shelter, operated under the Montego Bay Homeless and Street People Programme. The shelter is open all day on weekends and on public holidays. There are 100 homeless street people in Montego Bay.

Mark Titus, Freelance Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

Yesterday marked eight years since the more than 30 persons were forcibly removed from the streets of Montego Bay and unceremoniously dumped at a mudlake in St. Elizabeth.

While this act was condemned by local and international human rights groups, many homeless persons still roam the streets of western Jamaica, and their presence is cause for concern.

"As the business community, we are very concerned about the increasing number of street persons, and are calling on the authorities to establish a national policy for the treatment and care of these persons who form a part of our society," said Pauline Reid, president of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

There are approximately 100 homeless persons, mostly males, in Montego Bay. Of this number, 26 are located at the Refuge of Hope shelter. Sixty-two frequent the business district, while the others can be found on the outskirts of Montego Bay.

Rights must be observed

Jeremiah Duhaney, inspector of the poor at the parish council, tells The Sunday Gleaner that while his office has received numerous complaints, the rights of those who choose to live on the street must be observed.

"We used to get a lot of complaints from especially the banks, but one must realise that we can't just get rid of them off the streets, they have their legal rights," he explains. "They might have fallen on unfortunate circumstances, but the street people programme is not a government concern, it is everybody's concern."

The St. James Parish Council established a programme in 1999 to address the general welfare of the less fortunate, through which they are fed, clothed, sheltered and offered medical assistance towards their stabilisation and rehabilitation. The Refuge of Hope facility, in Albion, St. James, is the only shelter, and only accom-modate 30 clients nightly.

The migration of street people from other parts of the island has also been of concern to the St. James Parish Council.

The Committee for the Uplift-ment of the Mentally Ill (CUMI), a non-governmental organisation (NGO), and its nursing admin-istrator, Joy Crooks, have been providing assistance to the street people over the years.

This is done through the serving of meals two times daily, the provision of clothing and other essentials for personal care as well as vocational therapeutic rehabilitation programmes.

No support from relatives

"The churches have stood out and must be commended for the support they have given the programme; they have made a tremendous difference," Mr. Duhaney adds. "The sore point of the programme is the lack of support from the relatives of the street people, but despite the challenges we havebeen able to carry out all our functions effectively."

According to the inspector of the poor, 15 victims of the 1999 street people scandal can now be accounted for - four are living in the St. James Infirmary private ward; two are in private nursing homes; two live on the streets; three cannot be located; three have been reunited with their family, and one is living on his own.

Meanwhile, Mayor of Falmouth, Jonathan Bartley, says there are no homeless persons in that town.

"The relatives have been cooperating with the council, so they are in their homes," he says. "An officer is assigned to deal with that specifically, as soon as one is identified, contact is made with their family."