The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Tourism leaders are warning The Bahamas “we will pay the price” unless rising crime is brought under control while branding last week’s downgrade by the US as “a warning sign we must heed”.

Robert Sands, the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association’s president, told Tribune Business this nation needs to focus on “the big picture” and realise that “everybody is a victim” of criminal activities - not just tourists, but Bahamians and residents as well as local businesses.

Speaking after the US State Department last Wednesday issued a warning to all American travellers to “exercise increased caution in The Bahamas due to crime”, he urged the entire society to work together and “get crime under control as quickly as possible”.

“We cannot put a price tag on correcting this. It has to be corrected otherwise we will pay the price,” Mr Sands told this newspaper following the surge in murders and other violent crimes that appears to have sparked the US downgrade. “We need to be thinking big picture and working collectively to get this under control very quickly.

“The US has a four-tier advisory level. We came out of the top tier, and are now in the second tier. It’s a warning signal, and we must act quickly, positively and strategically in putting in place recommendations and solutions to help all stakeholders in addressing this particular issue.

“Crime impacts everybody. It impacts the community, it impacts businesses in the community, and industries that contribute to economic well-being. I will say that it’s everybody’s business, and we have to make a collective effort in having this addressed as quickly as possible.”

The US State Department, in downgrading The Bahamas from a ‘Level one’ country where American visitors can “exercise normal precautions” to a ‘Level two’ where they should take “increased caution”, signalled that The Bahamas’ “high homicide rate” fuelled by gang warfare and retaliatory killings was a critical factor in its decision. 

“The majority of crime occurs on New Providence (Nassau) and Grand Bahama (Freeport) islands. In Nassau, practice increased vigilance in the Over-the-Hill area (south of Shirley Street) where gang-on-gang violence has resulted in a high homicide rate primarily affecting the local population,” the US warning read.

“Violent crime, such as burglaries, armed robberies and sexual assaults, occur in both tourist and non-tourist areas. Be vigilant when staying at short-term vacation rental properties where private security companies do not have a presence.”

There is no indication that tourists are targeted by criminals, and the overwhelming majority of visitors to The Bahamas enjoy incident-free stays. However, one such incident is one too many given that this nation remains largely reliant on tourism to drive its economy back to pre-COVID output. Crime remains among the key threats to the post-pandemic recovery momentum, and there have been reports of visitors staying in vacation rentals being robbed.

“It’s definitely a warning sign, and we must heed the call to work collectively and collaboratively to address these areas,” Mr Sands said of crime and the US advisory. While acknowledging that such warnings have been issued on The Bahamas before, he added: “Things settle down for a bit, but they seem to awaken again. This [latest advisory] is an urgent call for collective collaboration.”

Emphasising that this should not be seen solely as a tourism/hotel industry issue, but one that impacts all Bahamians and residents, the BHTA chief added: “I think it’s important that we do not address this as an issue that impacts tourism. It’s an issue that impacts the entire community, the people who live in it, and businesses.

“Tourism is not the only victim in this; everybody is the victim in this. That is so important from the hotel and tourism industry’s perspective. This is everybody’s business to deal with. I believe that we cannot give up on this particular issue. We have to deploy and redeploy our best efforts and practices, and use whatever support we can get to bring this matter under control.

“The reality is that the health and safety of colleagues and visitors is of paramount importance. This is a big issue and we need to get it under control, I would say, as quickly as possible. It is important that there is a dialogue, and an open dialogue, with the widest cross-section of individuals who are very well-versed in how recommendations and solutions come together, and certainly the tourism sector will lend their support to that collaboration.”

The US State Department’s crime-related travel warning on The Bahamas could cause persons who are influenced by such advisories, both leisure as well as group travellers, to select a rival vacation destination that they perceive as safer. It may also deter those who are ‘sitting on the fence’ about travelling from doing so.

The US advisory, meanwhile, also reiterated concerns about the unregulated water sports industry in The Bahamas. “Activities involving commercial recreational watercraft, including water tours, are not consistently regulated,” it said.

“Watercraft may be poorly maintained and some operators may not have safety certifications. Due to these concerns, US government personnel are not permitted to use independently operated jet-ski rentals on New Providence and Paradise Island. “

The BHTA, in a statement describing the US advisory as “unfortunate”, said it wanted to work with the Government, law enforcement, tourism stakeholders, industry partners and civil society to combat crime, which it said was “as insidious as it is dangerous”.

Mr Sands was quoted as saying: “While we recognise crime is a global ailment, small island nations, heavily reliant on the tourism industry, are particularly vulnerable to the ill-effects of crime for a number of reasons. Not only can it deter visitors from choosing to visit The Bahamas; when crime hits it hurts our people as a whole.

“The impact of crime left unabated is an absolute threat to our nation’s tourism product and to society. We must work assiduously and immediately to stamp out the glowing embers that are threatening to ‘run hot’ in our country. We must enhance efforts to combat crime collectively. We in the tourism industry have a saying: ‘Tourism is everybody’s business’. So is crime. I cannot emphasise that enough. We must unite in the fight against crime.

“How can we be the best version of ourselves at work when we just lost someone we love because of crime.? How can we be as productive as possible if we feel we have to leave work early to get home before dark because we are worried about our own personal safety? How can we concentrate fully if we are concerned about our children at school, or our elderly parent at home alone?”