WASHINGTON, United States--The recent spate of security advisories and crime warnings for persons travelling to various Caribbean islands has some potential visitors rethinking their plans and asking “Is the Caribbean safe?”
That’s according to Yahoo Travel’s Sid Lipsey, who pointed to “an eyebrow-raising number of crime warnings,” the latest of which saw the Canadian Government update its security advisory for citizens traveling to Barbados.
The advisory noted that while “most visits to Barbados are trouble-free,” there are “incidents of crime, including armed robbery and sexual assault.” Most common are “petty crime and crimes of opportunity.”
The warning highlights the potential of being robbed while driving and suggests tourists “keep your car doors locked, windows rolled up, and personal belongings, including handbags, safely stored at traffic lights, where you could be a target for thieves.”
This advisory is the latest in a rash of recent headlines highlighting concerns about crime in the region. In September, a Nassau newspaper reported that Carnival Cruise Lines was considering issuing crime warnings to passengers traveling to The Bahamas. And a St. Lucia vendors’ association official accused local leaders of ignoring the island’s crime problem.
Such headlines – and the increasingly dire warnings about popular destinations such as The Bahamas – might lead one to believe that crime is increasing in the region, a potential concern for the roughly 26 million people who visit Caribbean destinations each year, says Yahoo Travel.
“Generally speaking, we have seen a slight increase in crime across the region,” Justin Kersey, regional manager for the Americas at international risk management firm iJET, told the website. “From Barbados to Trinidad to the Dominican Republic, we have seen a little bit of an uptick,” he said, adding that the crime increase stemmed from a regional economic downturn.
Kersey nevertheless warned against painting the Caribbean with too broad a brush. “The islands are pretty diverse, so [the crime situation – Ed.] is varied,” he said. He noted that visitors tended to be safe as long as they stayed in the tourist areas, which he said tended to be well patrolled by local police.
Yahoo indicated that while the vast majority of tourists had trouble-free vacations in the Caribbean, some of the destinations warranted more concern than others.
Following are some of the “most worrisome Caribbean destinations (in no particular order)”:
Trinidad and Tobago
According to Kersey: “Trinidad and Tobago has a particular problem with security services. The police are very unreliable.” The US State Department’s Overseas Security Advisory Council (OSAC) rates the island nation’s crime situation as Critical.
“American citizens have been victims of pickpocketing, assault, theft/robbery, fraud, and murder,” reads OSAC’s safety report on Trinidad and Tobago. It cites theft from hotel rooms and the occasional daylight robberies.
“There is no evidence to indicate that foreigners, specifically expatriates, are targeted in particular,” reads the OSAC report, “but crimes – robbery, break-ins/burglary, vehicular break-ins, home invasions, and assaults (including sexual assaults) – do occur in areas frequented by tourists and in which the expatriate community lives.”
Just last month, a British couple who had lived in the twin-island state for 16 years were robbed and brutally murdered in their home in Tobago.
In a disturbing postscript, the OSAC report added: “The use of incapacitating drugs is not uncommon in thefts and other crimes.”
Jamaica
While Jamaica is thought to have one of the world’s highest homicide rates, OSAC noted that “most criminal activity is ‘Jamaican on Jamaican’ violence, often involving organised criminal elements and gangs.”
Last year, OSAC nevertheless reported five US citizens murdered in Jamaica, as well as 36 reports of robbery, three reports of rape and/or sexual assault, and 14 reports of aggravated assault. Credit-card skimming has also emerged as another major crime issue.
Kersey of iJet warns that American tourists generally need to be concerned about street crime, especially outside the main tourist areas. The State Department advises US citizens to avoid traveling into notoriously high-threat areas of Kingston including, but not limited to, Mountain View, Trench Town, Tivoli Gardens, Cassava Piece, and Arnett Gardens. It also warns about the Montego Bay areas such as Flankers, Canterbury, Norwood, Rose Heights, Clavers Street, and Hart Street.
Dominican Republic
Kersey was himself a victim of crime in the Dominican Republic. “I was held up at gunpoint,” he said, although he added that he was outside a tourist area. “Once you get outside of the touristy areas it can get dangerous at night,” he warned.
The OSAC report on the Dominican Republic details drive-by robberies committed by assailants on motorcycles, scooters, or bicycles who snatch purses, phones, or necklaces. The report also notes an uptick in crimes against tourists during the November to January holiday season and especially during Carnival in February.
OSAC nevertheless reports that crime “is generally not violent if the victim cooperates; however, an assailant will not hesitate to use violence if it appears that the victim will resist.”
Grenada
“We’ve ranked Grenada as a Caribbean island to keep an eye on in terms of crime and security,” Kersey said.
The State Department warns that “tourists have been the victims of robbery, especially in isolated areas, and thieves frequently steal credit cards, jewellery, cameras, US passports, and money.”
American tourists are also warned that muggings, purse snatchings, and other robberies “may occur in areas near hotels, beaches, and restaurants, particularly after dark,” but there is a bright spot: the State Department says St. George’s main market square and the Grand Anse area known as Wall Street have reduced their crime rate, thanks to increased security cooperation among vendors.
Puerto Rico
According to Kersey: “Puerto Rico is on our list of most dangerous islands.” The US island territory has a significantly higher robbery rate than the US mainland (145.7 per 100,000 people in 2014, as compared to the national US average of 102.2). It does, however, have a lower rate of violent crime – 236.2 vs. 365.5.
The Bahamas
“We’ve noted that crime is increasing in The Bahamas,” Kersey said. “We’ve noted robbery and murder in residential areas and several incidents of robbery and assault in some of the touristy areas.”
In its warning about the nation, the State Department said: “Armed robbery remains a major criminal threat facing US citizens in The Bahamas. The US Embassy has received multiple reports of tourists robbed at gunpoint or knifepoint in tourist locations in the downtown areas of Nassau, to include the cruise ship docks and the Cable Beach commerce areas; several of these incidents occurred during daylight hours.”
The State Department also warned of burglaries, larcenies, and “snatch-and-grab” crimes in Nassau, as well as assaults (including sexual assaults) in casinos, outside hotels and on cruise ships.
The Bahamas has the highest occurrence of rape in the entire Caribbean region, according to the United Nations (UN).
Low-crime spots
Kersey went on to list his picks of some of the low-crime spots in the Caribbean: The Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands, St. Martin/St. Maarten, Aruba, and Turks and Caicos.
Kersey nevertheless stressed that tourists should take safety precautions wherever they travel in the Caribbean.
“Generally speaking, tourists that stick to well-known areas that are in the tourist districts generally are fine,” he said. “But it’s the wanderers who get in trouble.
“People are on a cruise ship,” he continued. “They’re visiting for the first time, they wander outside the tourist areas, go into places that aren’t as well policed, it may be late at night, they may have had something to drink – those are the factors that lead to problems.”
To avoid being targeted, Kersey advised visitors against wearing expensive jewellery or carrying smartphones. “Make sure all valuables are secured and locked away in your cruise ship or hotel room,” he said.
Another warning from Kersey: “If you are being robbed, don’t resist. Generally speaking, these robbers are happy to take your stuff and not harm you. Resistance is generally met with some kind of force.”
Kersey nonetheless indicated that the alarmist headlines about the region are sometimes overblown, and the vast majority of the region’s 26 million visitors vacation without incident.
“On most tourist islands in the Caribbean, people will be fine and safe as long as they exercise good judgment,” he told Yahoo Travel. ~ Caribbean360 ~
