Caribbean News
Airbnb and CTO launch campaign to promote Turks and Caicos and other Caribbean destinations
#TurksandCaicos, March 19, 2021 – After almost a year of intermittent travel restrictions, Airbnb, the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), and Turks and Caicos are collaborating to amplify the country’s recovery from the impacts of Covid-19 by promoting responsible travel to the destination across Airbnb’s vast global community.
As part of this alliance, Airbnb and the CTO are launching a campaign leveraging Airbnb’s robust media platforms to market Turks and Caicos and other CTO member countries to millions of engaged Airbnb users.
The campaign rollout includes a series of email newsletters, a landing page, and ads on social media showcasing Airbnb listings in Turks and Caicos, as well as the existing protocols for safe travel during this time. The promotional landing page for this partnership will be unique to others worldwide. It will integrate multiple CTO member countries, promote homes in each destination, and links to each country’s website.
Airbnb has also pledged to share data with the CTO, including travel trends, to facilitate informed marketing decisions during this recovery period.
“The Turks and Caicos Islands Tourist Board is excited to partner once again with Airbnb, through the Caribbean Tourism Organization, to feature the best that the destination has to offer. The vacation rental market has grown significantly over the past few years and this campaign affords us the opportunity to promote our ‘Beautiful by Nature’ islands in a key source market – the north-east of the United States. We look forward to welcoming travelers to the Turks and Caicos Islands and feel confident that our protocols under the TCI Assured program allow us to safely host visitors. These measures are proving successful at not only protecting our visitors but also our residents. This allows guests to focus on enjoying the exceptional vacation experience afforded by the destination, our picturesque beaches, and our world-class hospitality partners.” said Pamela Ewing, Director of Tourism.
This joint undertaking with the CTO builds on Airbnb’s commitment to help strengthen communities in the Caribbean in tough times.
“With the Caribbean continuing to re-open, we’re helping to usher in the safe return of travel to this wonderful region by shining a light on the many places to see and things to do,” stated Carlos Munoz, Airbnb Policy Manager for Central America and the Caribbean.
“We’re also excited to promote the important economic impact driven by hosting on Airbnb.”
This partnership is one of the many initiatives in the CTO’s ongoing programme to help its members rebuild tourism in their destinations.
“The partnership with Airbnb will help us to promote the region responsibly by providing our members with a platform to showcase their destinations while at the same time highlighting the health safety measures that each has implemented to ensure that visitors can enjoy a safe Caribbean experience during this time,” shared Neil Walters, Acting SecretaryGeneral of the CTO. This partnership joins previously announced collaborations with organizations, including the Tourism KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa), the National Parks Foundation, and Bermuda Tourism Authority.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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