Why penalise us for helping the poor?
Published:Saturday | January 18, 2014 | 12:00 AM
THE EDITOR, Sir:
The title of Michael Manley's book, Up the Down Escalator, aptly describes the dilemma we currently encounter as we attempt to give back to our people in Jamaica.
Though we have lived overseas for a long time, the plight of our people has been at the forefront of our minds.
As we try to help, it can be compared to climbing a downward-moving escalator. I have outlined below the difficulties we have encountered and the unfortunate decision that we will make because of the climate of idiocy that we have encountered.
For the last 15 years, the words of the ancient prophet Isaiah - "Learn to do good. Work for justice. Help the down-and-out. Stand up for the homeless. Go to bat for the defenceless. (1:17)" - have been the mission statement that defined our commitment to an inner-city community in Kingston and, more recently, another neighbourhood in rural Manchester.
We have partnered with two local churches to provide hope to the desperate and downtrodden, doing whatever is in our power to assist instead of pointing out the inadequacies of Government.
The primary area of assistance has been in the shipment of school supplies and clothing to these churches. The supplies are distributed not only within the churches, but to the broader community.
Unfortunately, these churches do not have the resources to pay the custom duties that have been charged. As a result, over the years, we have had to foot the entire bill - supplies, cost of shipping, and custom fees, etc. We do not have any agency underwriting our expenses - we do what we can because we love our people. It should also be noted that we do not even know the people in these communities - we just want to help the poor, especially kids, to attend school.
GIVEN THE RUNAROUND
Prior to shipping two barrels recently - one to each church - I contacted a member of parliament about the process of obtaining a waiver for the custom fees and was provided with the process that should be followed. After innumerable attempts and the resulting failure to secure such a waiver, I contacted the Ministry of Finance and Planning and was given another set of directions to follow. We diligently followed the prescribed process, but again ended up without the necessary waiver.
The items shipped included 40 pencil cases (each containing pencils, crayons, erasers, toothpaste, sharpeners); 90 wire-bound notebooks; 50 packs of folder paper (150 sheets each); 12 geometry sets; 120 exercise books; 20 dozen pencils; rulers; pens; 40 gift bags for kids (each containing toothpaste, toothbrush, pen, pencil, eraser, marker, drawing pad, balloons, and one item of clothing); 36 kids' T-shirts; first-aid kits (containing bandages, Band-Aids, etc); and an assortment of women's and men's clothing.
Duties were assessed in excess of $40,000 on items which are being given away to the poor and underprivileged. When the churches protested, they were told by the 'morons' at Customs that if the barrels were shipped to individuals, the fees would be significantly less, but churches attract maximum duties because they are classified as companies.
The fees were reluctantly paid, BUT unless things change, we will cease to continue our work in these communities and instead shift our mission to other countries where we will not be penalised for helping the poor.
As an aside, we were in discussion with a Manchester community regarding the establishment of a library in the neighbourhood and have secured more than 1,000 children's books. We also committed to providing two computers for the establishment of a homework centre there, but that appears to be out of the question unless waivers are granted. Also, we were in consultation with another community in St Ann to expand the mission, but that now appears unlikely.
I am calling on the powers that be to think about the poor and make things easier for those of us living overseas, but who still bleed the 'black, green and gold', to assist them in whatever tangible ways possible.
We are not looking for recognition, just the opportunity to serve those who need a helping hand.
EARL THOMAS
Jamaica Lifeline
Toronto, Canada