By Emmanuel Joseph
As Prime Minister Mia Mottley called on parliamentary representatives to help “bring down the temperature” rising between the proprietor of the popular Flash Zone Bar and neighbours complaining about loud music from the establishment, Attorney General Dale Marshall revealed that police have no legal backing to get involved in disputes of this nature.
The issue emerged as a talking point on Monday night during the Parish Speaks forum for St Michael when Free Hill, Black Rock resident Julie Layne complained of having to endure the Sunday-to-Sunday music emanating from the entertainment spot.
“My biggest problem is noise pollution at this point. When I get home, I am unable to do certain things because I have to endure music, and a bassline out of this world that vibrates my chest and my stomach. Sometimes, honestly, it makes me feel really sick,” Layne told the panel that included Mottley, Marshall, MP for St Michael North West Neil Rowe in whose constituency the Black Rock, St Michael bar falls, Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs Kirk Humphrey, Minister of Transport, Works and Water Resources Santia Bradshaw, and Minister of Housing and Lands Dwight Sutherland.
Following queries from Mottley on the issue, Marshall disclosed that the matter would be a civil and not criminal one as there was no law to address noise pollution in Barbados.
However, he said it is an issue that is receiving the attention of the Ministry of the Environment.
“Currently, the law doesn’t allow the Ministry of the Environment to take action against noise pollution. They can take action if you dump in the gully, they can take action if you pollute our waterway, but not if you pollute our hearing. Noise pollution though, as a whole, is going to be a much more complicated matter, but I can tell you that they have just ordered six meters and these meters are able to measure the number of decibels and that is going to help to inform the approach,” Marshall disclosed.
He described the noise problem involving the bar as a civil matter.
“I know everybody wants the police to intervene and they want the government to intervene. But this is a civil wrong in the law of tort and I would encourage you to approach an attorney. You can get together, talk to a lawyer and bring an action against the place,” the AG said.
Attorney General Dale Marshall.
Regarding police involvement in matters of this nature, he added: “Often, things that people call the police for are not things that involve the police at all…. The police are not there to police your relationship with your neighbours. The police are there to carry out law enforcement, to deal with infringements of criminal law. Most of the problems that arise are not in the nature of criminal law problems at all. So, you really need, when you have these disputes with your neighbour and so on, to seek recourse to your lawyers, seek recourse to the courts, and not involve the police.”
The prime minister suggested that to resolve the impasse, MP Rowe should have discussions with the owner of the bar and residents.
“We need to just have some conversations with each other. . . . The Member of Parliament for down there has to be able to reach out and to ensure that we can have the conversations with the Flash Zone . . . . We are going to have to reach out to the owner of Flash Zone and just say, ‘look, ease off a little bit, you can’t do Sunday to Sunday’,” she said.
Mottley said the country must have a conversation and settle on parameters for noise pollution.
“This is a matter that the Ministry of the Environment is going to have to pick up. It’s also going to have an impact…and I would expect Senior Minister Duguid…this is one of the areas you are going to have to look at,” she said, adding that while there are areas like St Lawrence Gap, Holetown, Baxters Road, Tudor Street, Westbury Road, and Oistins that are clearly entertainment zones, “we may have to get a few more”.
“There are people who like noise and there are people who don’t like noise, but all of us have to live on this 166 square mile … rock. So we are going to get the balance correct,” Mottley said.
When Barbados TODAY reached out to proprietor of the Flash Zone Bar Danraj Awadahnarine, he said that from the first day he opened some nine years ago, he had been experiencing challenges with a specific family in the community. He said he was not aware that any other neighbours had issues with the music coming from his establishment.
The emotional bar owner said the police were called out to his place regularly but it appeared it was only “this family” that had issues.
“We went to court for all of this already,” he told Barbados TODAY.
“On Old Year’s Night, they take me to court in 2018. I went to court and that matter was discharged. So, it’s been a while this thing been going on. Police does come when they call . . . . I asked them if they went up to the individual house. Nobody can’t say they calling from Free Hill and say the music disturbing them . . . . Their job is to go to that person’s house and hear for [themselves] if that music really disturbing that individual.”
The businessman added that a planned meeting with MP Rowe to hash out the issue had not materialised.
“One time the meeting set up, and all of us in the neighbourhood were supposed to meet. It get postponed. I didn’t hear him back regarding it. It was to happen a couple months ago; it never come through. I still waiting to hear from the neighbours if the music bothering all of these neighbours or it’s just a group of people which is a set of family,” Awadahnarine said.
emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb
