Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Sep 01, 2025

Give them their rights! O’Neal condemns ‘using’ expats

Give them their rights! O’Neal condemns ‘using’ expats

Territorial At-Large candidate, Allen O’Neal, has said local lawmakers need to create a fair and inclusive immigration and labour policy that is free from victimisation and discrimination.
O’Neal, while speaking at a National Democratic Party (NDP) rally in the Second District last evening, alluded to what he said was a ‘One BVI’ concept the party intended to pursue.

But even within that policy, O’Neal said an examination needs to be done of how migrants are adapted to the society once the come to live in the territory, including instances where persons have lived in the BVI for most of their working lives.

According to O’Neal, one person he spoke with said he lived in Purcell Estate for more than 28 years but is only now able to vote for the first time at the upcoming elections this month.

“How could it happen?” O’Neal asked. “You know, the laws are there. If whatever amount of time that you have to spend in the country in order to get your rights, give the people the rights, once they pass that time.”

The political candidate said he has known too many expatriates who have been “suffering and falling between the cracks” because of what he described as a simple issue which has a simple solution.

“We have to be, not just using people and taking advantage of them as if they’re second and third class citizens,” O’Neal said. “In fact, they’re not citizens at all, because you haven’t given them any citizenship, so we have to correct this.”

O’Neal said he pledged to work tirelessly to see that the issue is addressed once he becomes elected.

O’Neal’s comments come even as lawmakers have embarked on a review of the territory’s policy on residency and Belongership and how it should be implemented after a Commission of Inquiry (COI) report found that the government’s existing policy has flouted that section of the immigration laws for years.

A previous NDP government introduced a policy where persons were only allowed to apply for such immigration status after living in the territory for 20 years, despite the law stipulating that persons can apply after living in the BVI for 10 years.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
×