Premier On Report Into Dec 2, 2016 Protests
“A regrettable lack of co-operation has deprived the people of Bermuda of the full truth of what led to the events of that terrible day”, said Premier David Burt in response to the Report of the Parliamentary Joint Select Committee Examining the Events of the December 2nd 2016 incident at the House of Assembly.
Premier Burt continued, “It is disturbing to learn that the Police who we rely upon to enforce the laws of the land disregarded the law and failed to appear before the Committee. The Report speaks to serious differences in reported accounts of that day which could only be resolved by the Police giving testimony like so many others did.”
“The shocking sub-text of the Report describes a Government out of touch with the people, deliberately isolated from the advice of senior civil servants and engaged in clandestine discussions which seem to have led to these events. As the Report says: ‘It was the reaction by the decision-makers to the protest which resulted in the disastrous events of the day.’
“This is a bipartisan Report and the Government is considering the recommendations made by the Committee. The Chairman and the Committee Members deserve our thanks for the work they completed in difficult circumstances.”
The report into the events of December 2nd 2016 follows below [PDF here]
Amazingly the report failed to highlight the Premier’s promotion of the illegal House blockade via social media.
So I agree with the Premier that this report is a farce.
Burtcoin is whitewashing for the believers.
The shocking sub text is contrived and disseminated by your hand picked people who did YOUR bidding.
How can he say this: ‘It was the reaction by the decision-makers to the protest which resulted in the disastrous events of the day.’ when he and his party helped to organize the protest in the first place!
Burt was in the middle stoking the crowd for political gain.
And yet this fact was completely omitted from the report.
Amazing inna?
It was all carefully planned and orchestrated and you got exactly what you wanted .
And that includes how you’re going to be milking it , with all of its twisted lies , for everything it’s worth ad infinitum.
Why they bothered wasting more money and time on this BS is amazing. Mr Premeire,your government gave out a few hundred thousand dollars in payments to those law breakers which proves that your opinion was made prior to any report being issued. All you are doing is fanning the fire to get as much smoke as you can to distract people from the problems you are failing to fix and those you have created.
Where are the jobs? What happened to Fintech investments? Why do I have less money in my paycheck each month. Why are more businesses closing. I could go on, but you won’t answer anyway.
what about your part in this Mr Burt?! What about the part played by the unions and the people’s campaign – have you stopped to think that if you had not demonstrated in such a way – illegally blocking the House – none of this would have happened?
All dis hur for an award winning deal… Hahahaha!!
A$$ the report said, BOTH political parties share responsibility. Very, very disappointed in Burt for this. and where was his evidence?
This is a deliberate mischaracterization of the report – it did not mention ‘clandestine’, and of course the conversation were private! where was your evidence Premier????!!!! Didn’t you encourage people to come to the protest? Did you tell them not to block the gates to the House?
You all should’ve got pepper sprayed. If I don’t move when the police ask I get sprayed and arrested and not one dam person gives a sh..!
Your are so right! Stay in London, we don’t need you.
“we don’t need you.”
Bermuda doesn’t need racist &^!t like you.
Take your own advice
Don’t you worry. Citizenship application in progress to get a far away from the likes of you as possible. Enjoy rubber tire shoes and Pedigree for dinner.
Sorry Premier, lots of blame to be shared by all.
The police did give testimony. I read it myself. The victims that day were people like me: ordinary voters who want to live on a peaceful island where democracy is respected.
Since the PLP got in there has not been one single riot, despite their incompetence and constant lies. What does that tell you? Which side respects democracy, and which side doesn’t?
The police exercised restraint and used reasonable non-lethal force. There were no lasting ill-effects…the effects of pepper spray are gone in an hour. Burt is using this to distract from his government’s woefully poor performance.
This Colonial Police System has been an adversary against African Descendants since day one.
In case you haven’t noticed the vast majority of the Bermuda Police Service look like you. Pepper spray was introduced by the PLP to provide the police with a less harmful way of handling unlawful protests. The police deserve Bermuda’s thanks for the job they did. Breaking the law has consequences.
Your biggest adversary is your ignorance.
Don’t break the law by having illegal protests and marches and don’t threaten people and you will have no need to deal with the police.
I’m pretty sure when you have a problem you have no problem asking for their system.
By the way what policing system do you suggest! Ideas please, no moke BD
The colonial police system is 85% African/Caribbean decent.
Slavery started in Africa, by Africans.
Oh give it a break. The people of Bermuda understand what was going on that day it was hardly a peaceful demonstration and from the moment the gates were blocked the laws of the land and democracy were being broken. A hostile crowd got what they asked for by the end of the day.
Move on, the economy is tanking.
As usual the PLP are trying to rewrite history, but history will show who was to blame for the regrettable incidents and in particular the organizers and PLP MPs who encouraged the unlawful protesters. Documented at the time with video and sound but not included in the report.
Really Burt, you guys are milking this for all it’s worth. Fix the economy and don’t worry about a report that is one sided anuway.
The Chairman and the Committee Members “deserve our thanks for the work they completed in difficult circumstances.”
I think the Police deserve our support after political figures called for protests and then spent months bemoaning the fact that the Police did their job .
The language in the response to the deliberate use of emotuve language in response to this report speaks volumes. Years later the PLP have still failed to deliver fair immigration reform of any kind. All the while the retirement age increase.
Are we forgetting how we got to this mess as far as a decision to give away our airport for 30 years and losing $30 Million a year for 30 years (and if de $30 Million is not met for that year WE as tax payers have to make it up) sneaking in de House 5:00am in de morning and a contract that was voted on without any clear and open dialogue and only a few got a chance to review.
Reminds me of de days of Apartheid in South Africa and Jim Crow in America, the protests and Civil disorder is vilified but de vilians who started it with their biased and suspect legislated policies are overlooked.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
Same $#!+ ,different day
ITS A DISTRACTION.
Its the old–look over here game–while they are doing something really duplicitous over there!
PLP playbook 101!!!
Still has commented on the business confidence report.
Trying to take the conversation off of our failing system for a while.
if I was the officers I would have pepper sparyed more of you
Well… Interesting read… In addition to the whole thing being a bunch of hogwash.. I wonder who should was the bright person that allowed the of release of Personal Information? Names, addresses, DOB, email addresses.. They even went as far as releasing peoples signatures??
Man where the hell you been the last few months. Done nothing for us Bermudian people. And now u wanna respond the past fix the problem and stop bulls hitting us people. And making more hate. Grow some nuts and run our island like you promised us. Blahhhh blahhhh blahhhhhhhhhh all we ever hear. U won’t get my vote ever again. Duck the past work on our future as a island. And stop disappearing. What about bitcoin where is all this goddamned money we were promised and jobs.
“…engaged in clandestine discussions which seems to have led to these events”
Are we talking about the ‘clarion call’ of the then opposition members, for their supporters to engage in illegal civil disobedience?
Asking for a friend.
the truth shall set you free
“A regrettable lack of co-operation has deprived the people of Bermuda of the full truth of what led to the events of that terrible day”, said Premier David Burt
OK…but Mr. Premier, is it true that you never testified or gave evidence in said committee? If so, it is truly hypocritical to make such a statement. As one of the main organisers of said protest, it is important to know what happened from your perspective. Please advise.
Hey Ronnie give it a rest! You are guilty of playing politics all your life with your charades at the Bank and beyond. This is an open and shut case of the OBA trying to put the working men and women down. We did not need an airport in exchange for 30 years of revenue loss. We probably needed something smaller and more affordable that kept Bermuda income source online in less than 30 years! I will be dead before the airport comes back up my country as an asset! Enough is enough. It was a bad deal for Bermuda and that’s it!