#Providenciales, August 15, 2019 – Turks and Caicos – The
Dominican Republic saw a sharp drop in tourism bookings and visitor interest by
Americans in June 2019 following the headline-grabbing news reports of suspicious
deaths and alleged brutal attacks. The
DR enjoys fantastic popularity normally, having recorded 6.6 million visitors in
2018.
Law
suits, dramatic loss in flights to the Dominican Republic and cancellations so
severe that at least one all-inclusive resort caught in scandal is closing
temporarily in November; these are examples of how crime against tourists can
sink, an otherwise buoyant ship.
Fortunately
for this Latino-Caribbean country, to which the Turks and Caicos is connected
by direct flights through two domestic airline companies, the drive to the DR
is not slowing down. The Dominican
Republic Central Bank reported to CNN that U.S. tourist arrivals are up almost
10 percent for the first half of 2019.
But the
DR admits, it is a precarious predicament and there continues to be a lot of
making up for the fall out caused by those damaging reports related to questionable
medical care, unhealthy hotel environments and visitor-targeted crime.
From the
US; the FBI, the ATF and the CDC have been invited by the United States
Department of Homeland Security to join the investigation and the report is
there has been no travel advisory issued by the USA against trips to the Dom
Rep.
Not too
far way, and also directly connected to Turks and Caicos by flights is Jamaica.
Just hours ago, news of new travel alerts surfaced from the Canadian Government after the Jamaican Government was forced to extended its state of emergency to October 28, 2019. Crime in tourist areas is simply too high.
The State
of Emergency which applies to St. James, Westmoreland
and Hanover parishes – which are homes to Montego Bay and Jamaica’s world
famous, Seven Mile Beach means security forces will be able to have more freedom
to conduct searches and seizures, to detain persons of interest and curfews can
come into effect without notice.
Simultaneously, Jamaica is recording record growth in tourism. The #1
English speaking country, when it comes to visitor arrivals experienced a decrease
in hotel occupancy during the month of June.
One analyst in BuzzTravel explained that the reason Jamaica is still
seeing double digit growth in arrivals, despite its issues with crime is there
is greater transparency.
“Jamaica is both honest and proactive when it comes to tourism and
tourism security. When confronted with a problem, Jamaica recognized the
challenge and then solves it.”
In fact, on July 31,
2019, Jamaica’s Tourism Minister, Edmund Bartlett announced the appointment of
a retired Jamaica military officer, Dave Walker, as the Director of Visitor Safety
and Experience.
Growing
over its record performance last year are the Turks and Caicos Islands, which
continues to be listed as one of the safest places to visit. Still the
fragility of this leading industry, which is actually the fuel driving all
other industries in the country is being captured in social media op-ed pieces.
Residents
are concerned about the surging figures in gun crimes.
“We must also ensure
that there is a visible presence of police officers throughout all communities
in the Turks and Caicos 365 days a year and 24 hours a day. In addition,
the officers must provide confidence and trust to the community so that the
residents can report the crimes to the police, thus creating fear for the
criminals. People are afraid to report crimes and the criminals know that.”
While reports of crime overall from April to June 2019 were down, crime statistics reveal that gun crime grew by a concerning 80 percent in the same period. This trend is concerning as a glance back at crime stats for 2017-2018 reflected a decrease in gun related offences.
Now
retired Police Commissioner, James Smith said over that period 13 firearms and 178
rounds of ammunition were recovered.
Businessman
and social media columnist, Drexwell Seymour in his latest article said there
are too many guns, too much crime and not enough fear about doing wrong.
“I know there is a cry that we need to find jobs for our people
so the crimes can be reduced. I am not convinced that this is the case as there
are people who are working and simultaneously committing crimes. I personally believe if we start fearing God,
start fearing the laws of our country and start fearing the police officers, it
will be the beginning of the resolution and alleviation of crimes in our
country.”
Country leaders and officials continue to point to the abatement of crime as being a ‘community as a whole’ issue to be tackled. Perhaps now, with a new Governor and a new Police Commissioner, the atmosphere is perfect for a sincere attempt at synergy.
#magneticmedianews
#tourismandcrime