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He was there on Michael Manley's orders and he was there for 40 years.
How come the PNP allowed the owners to evict this squatter?
Socialism gone mad?
Court destroys Portland farmer's 40-year-old plantain walk
Published: Saturday | February 15, 2014 0 Comments
George 'Bongo G' Sterling's 40-year-old plantain walk in Boston, Portland, was destroyed by court orders on Monday. - Photo by Paul Williams
Paul H. Williams, Gleaner Writer
Boston, Portland:
George 'Bongo G' Sterling, of Boston, Portland, leaned on his bicycle and looked painfully at some youngsters walking away with hands of young plantains and stems of sugar cane, the fruits of his labour. They were not thieves, they were only salvaging what was left of his crop after it was destroyed on court orders.
The destruction of more than 5,000 banana and plantain trees is the culmination of a legal case that was brought against Sterling by Errol Flynn's family, who is said to be the legal owner of the piece of land Sterling has been cultivating for more than 40 years.
It was in the 1970s when the Manley government was espousing socialism. According to Sterling, Manley said people should put idle lands to use. And that's exactly what he said he did. For four decades, he has been earning a living from selling his bananas, plantains, and other crops to feed himself and his family. He also rears cattle and pigs.
But last year, a representative of the Flynn family advised him to give up the piece of land on which his farm was located. He was taken to court, where an order was made for him to vacate the land. The matter was brought to the attention of the media, and there was a big demonstration by citizens in the area.
The issue disappeared off the radar, and Sterling continued to produce. When Rural Xpress spoke with him last Saturday about the hardships that small farmers faced, he told us of the legal matter brought against him, but he didn't mention that the field would be destroyed anytime soon.
So it came as a big shock to him when he heard, while he was on his way to work, that men were in his field chopping down the trees. Upon his arrival, he saw a representative from the court, some police officers, and the men who were carrying out the destruction. He also noticed that people had been removing some of the plantains before his arrival.
When Rural Xpress was alerted to what was taking place, we rushed to the scene, only to find Sterling sitting on one side of the road, waiting for a vehicle to remove the plantains that he had salvaged. On the other side of the road, his plantain field looked like it had been struck by a hurricane. Even though he told Rural Xpress he was fine, the look on his face said he wasn't. "But wha mi a go duh? A di law a di country. Di law is for rich people; a nuh fi like mi," he said.
Angry dismissal
Four youth, who, apparently heard about the debacle, turned up. One jokingly asked if he could get some plantain suckers, and Sterling angrily dismissed him. The youth then went on to the property to 'tour'. The same one who asked for the suckers could not contain his anger. "Anybody mi know who do this, The Bible is against them right now. Dem shoulda neva do dis," he stated. He asked God to intervene in the matter as cutting down fruit trees was a sin. He was referencing The Bible, and helping himself at the same time.
When Rural Xpress was about to leave the scene, a red pick-up arrived to remove the heap of plantains that Sterling had salvaged.
But what will become of the thousands of suckers left in the field?
rural@gleanerjm.com
How come the PNP allowed the owners to evict this squatter?
Socialism gone mad?
Court destroys Portland farmer's 40-year-old plantain walk
Published: Saturday | February 15, 2014 0 Comments
George 'Bongo G' Sterling's 40-year-old plantain walk in Boston, Portland, was destroyed by court orders on Monday. - Photo by Paul Williams
Paul H. Williams, Gleaner Writer
Boston, Portland:
George 'Bongo G' Sterling, of Boston, Portland, leaned on his bicycle and looked painfully at some youngsters walking away with hands of young plantains and stems of sugar cane, the fruits of his labour. They were not thieves, they were only salvaging what was left of his crop after it was destroyed on court orders.
The destruction of more than 5,000 banana and plantain trees is the culmination of a legal case that was brought against Sterling by Errol Flynn's family, who is said to be the legal owner of the piece of land Sterling has been cultivating for more than 40 years.
It was in the 1970s when the Manley government was espousing socialism. According to Sterling, Manley said people should put idle lands to use. And that's exactly what he said he did. For four decades, he has been earning a living from selling his bananas, plantains, and other crops to feed himself and his family. He also rears cattle and pigs.
But last year, a representative of the Flynn family advised him to give up the piece of land on which his farm was located. He was taken to court, where an order was made for him to vacate the land. The matter was brought to the attention of the media, and there was a big demonstration by citizens in the area.
The issue disappeared off the radar, and Sterling continued to produce. When Rural Xpress spoke with him last Saturday about the hardships that small farmers faced, he told us of the legal matter brought against him, but he didn't mention that the field would be destroyed anytime soon.
So it came as a big shock to him when he heard, while he was on his way to work, that men were in his field chopping down the trees. Upon his arrival, he saw a representative from the court, some police officers, and the men who were carrying out the destruction. He also noticed that people had been removing some of the plantains before his arrival.
When Rural Xpress was alerted to what was taking place, we rushed to the scene, only to find Sterling sitting on one side of the road, waiting for a vehicle to remove the plantains that he had salvaged. On the other side of the road, his plantain field looked like it had been struck by a hurricane. Even though he told Rural Xpress he was fine, the look on his face said he wasn't. "But wha mi a go duh? A di law a di country. Di law is for rich people; a nuh fi like mi," he said.
Angry dismissal
Four youth, who, apparently heard about the debacle, turned up. One jokingly asked if he could get some plantain suckers, and Sterling angrily dismissed him. The youth then went on to the property to 'tour'. The same one who asked for the suckers could not contain his anger. "Anybody mi know who do this, The Bible is against them right now. Dem shoulda neva do dis," he stated. He asked God to intervene in the matter as cutting down fruit trees was a sin. He was referencing The Bible, and helping himself at the same time.
When Rural Xpress was about to leave the scene, a red pick-up arrived to remove the heap of plantains that Sterling had salvaged.
But what will become of the thousands of suckers left in the field?
rural@gleanerjm.com
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