By ERICA WELLS, Guardian News Editor, ewells@nasguard.com

Employers hiring illegal immigrants could soon face more public penalties as the government works to reign in the number of illegal immigrants that flock to Bahamian shores every year.

Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham, who believes that the country's immigration problem is fueled by Bahamians who employ illegal immigrants, told The Nassau Guardian that the government is expected to revise the existing laws, and will put the public on notice that the laws will be enforced.

"If there were no jobs, they would not be coming here," said the prime minister.

"We are going to give notice so that people would know that it is not just going to be a slap on the wrist, that the (the illegal immigrant) will be taken to the detention center and deported and I can't walk on the street like I've done nothing wrong," he added.

"Society will know this person was working for 'Hubert Ingraham' and he was found guilty... and let that be a warning to others not to be doing the same thing."

While thousands of immigrants are picked up and deported each year for working in The Bahamas illegally, punishment for those hiring the immigrants appeared to be rarely enforced or at least not publicized.

Just yesterday, hundreds of Haitian immigrants were picked up off southern New Providence in an overloaded sloop. Some are feared dead while at least eight others were taken to hospital to be treated for injuries.

According to the latest statistics, from January to June 2008, 685 illegal immigrants were apprehended - the large majority of whom were Haitian nationals. Over the past eight years, close to 16,000 illegal Haitians were picked up, according to the Royal Bahamas Defence Force.

Exact figures for the number of illegal immigrants living in The Bahamas are unavailable; however, estimates have put the number of illegals living in the country anywhere from 60,000 to 70,000, but some believe that number could be much higher.

And as far as quantifying just how many illegal immigrants are living in The Bahamas, the Prime Minister Ingraham said that could be very difficult to determine, if not impossible.

Statistics relating to legal Haitians living in The Bahamas was at 11,000 in 1980. The last official count was around 21,000 in the year 2000.

Ingraham said the government was aggressively seeking to first prevent the flow of illegal immigrants, and when they are found, to repatriate them.

"Systematically, everyday, we seek to find and cause to be repatriated illegal immigrants from The Bahamas, whatever their nationality," said Ingraham, who noted that the fleet of the Royal Bahamas Defence Force has been expanded — two vessels were added last week and two more are expected next month.

Ingraham also pointed out that as aggressive as officials will be in their attempts to bring the immigration problem under control, they will always operate within international standards and laws.

"We will deal with humans humanely," said the prime minister. "We will not go (to their homes) in the middle of the night, we will not go to their churches or around hospitals or hanging around schools. We are not of that ilk."