B.V.I. Tuesday, February 17 – Government is continuing to explore ways to curb illegal migration into the Territory.

Premier Honourable Ralph T. O’Neal, OBE, who is also the Minister responsible for Immigration acknowledged that while talks are continuing on ways to reduce the problem, there is no immediate solution in sight.

Questioned about Government initiatives to address the issue at his Ministerial Press Conference on Monday, the Premier affirmed that Government remains steadfast in its efforts to find a solution.

“It is a difficult matter, a really difficult matter because this trafficking in humans apparently is a good source of funds and people will take chances no matter what you do, unless you are able to patrol your waters regularly,” the Premier stated.

However, regular patrols are problematic because as the Premier rightly noted “in the BVI you have a lot more water than land.” He added “you might be patrolling Anegada tonight, they come in at West End; you might go Jost Van Dyke the next morning and they might come into Virgin Gorda.”

The Premier further stated that “it means more expenditure from the government funds in order to reduce or bring this thing to a minimum and we haven’t come up with any immediate solution yet; we are talking but there is no immediate solution in sight.”

Meanwhile, in a recent GIS Radio Report, Chief Immigration Officer Mr. Dennis Jennings also acknowledged how costly it is to deal with the problem of illegal migration but said Government will not change its zero tolerance policy.

“We being a small territory, we want to be able to send a message that we are not going to entertain anyone who is not going to play by the rule. If you are not going to play by the rule, we are going to repatriate you and if it is necessary, names will be entered on the stop list and people will be deported, in which case you will not be able to return,” Mr. Jennings stated.

He noted too that the responsibility of repatriation usually rests on Government since the countries where the illegal immigrants originate from are not usually willing to accept the costs.

“In accordance with immigration procedures and laws, once we find people here and they have not been admitted, they are normally the Government’s responsibility. We wish that we did not have to deal with illegal immigrants but I fear that with the economic situation particularly in this region and the world over, we may have quite a bit of that to deal with.”

Though he re-affirmed Government’s commitment to maintaining vigilance, the Chief Immigration Officer said it is a very difficult task because of the many islands and cays that make up the Virgin Islands (UK).

A total of 34 illegal migrants were found in the Territory in 2008, down from 53 in 2007. Already in 2009, 16 illegal immigrants have been discovered in the BVI. They have all been repatriated.