Beach access dispute to be decided in court

Attorney-at-law Lalu Hanuman has filed a defamation suit against Sandals Barbados Resort and Spa arising from a three-year-old matter.

However, Hanuman said his main reason for filing the suit was to ensure Barbadians were allowed total access to all beaches on the island.

In 2018, Hanuman, a resident of Dover, Christ Church, got into a confrontation with the hotel’s security guard while walking his dogs on the beach.

He claimed the security guard had attempted to stop him from walking on a particular section of the beach.

In a subsequent interview with Barbados TODAY, the attorney and then Sandals’ general manager Ferry Zievinger gave conflicting reports, with Zievinger claiming that Hanuman had spoken “a lot of untruths”.

Hanuman filed the defamation suit after repeated calls for a written apology from Sandals and for the Barbados Marine Trust – of which he was the chairman – to be compensated $6000 were ignored.

In the suit which was filed in the Supreme Court today, Hanuman alleges that Zievinger’s comments caused harm to his reputation and exposed him to public ridicule and or contempt.

Hanuman is claiming damages and costs and is asking for a declaratory judgment that despite part of Maxwell Beach up to the high-water mark being under the legal control of the defendant, that the claimant and or the general public have a right of way over that part.

Hanuman told Barbados TODAY Barbadians should not be prevented from venturing on any part of a beach.

“My sole motivation is to ensure total beach access for all the Barbadian public. Although only Sandals is named, if the Declaratory Court Action is successful it would be a precedent applicable to all beachfront property in Barbados.

“Under the Barbadian Constitution the protection of private property is enshrined as a fundamental right, so changing the law on the private ownership of the beaches up to the high water mark, would be problematical and lead to constitutional challenges. Whereas, a court ruling allowing for public access would avoid constitutional challenges,” Hanuman explained.

“Unlike other places that have numerous public parks and commons, in Barbados beaches are not just about having access to the sea, but rather they are essential recreational spaces. Exercise is a prerequisite for mental and physical health including reducing NCDs and even in combatting COVID as obesity is the cause of much of the mortality.” (RB)