Garwin Davis, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
Resort area business interests are calling for immediate intervention by the Government to tackle the problem of visitor harassment, which they claim is threatening to destroy aspects of the tourism industry.
The businessman said they feared that the threat posed by harassment to the industry, which is the main foreign exchange earner, particularly in the area of cruise shipping, may be getting out of control.
"I don't care whose corn I crush but the tourists are unable to come into the craft market because of the harassers," explained Mildred McCalla, president of the All Island Craft Vendors Association. "The tourists can't walk in peace. I tell you, it is out of control. There are a lot of strange people walking through the market and there is not much that we can do."
Mrs. McCalla, who is also the president of the Ocho Rios Craft Market Association, said that she has appealed to the Government's anti-harassment czar Carl Miller to assist with security but to no avail.
"From the Clock Tower right down to the pier needs cleaning up and the Government just sits back and do nothing," said Mrs. McCalla.
However, Mr. Miller said that with his security team already dealing with the prescribed tourist areas, it was unfair for Mrs. McCalla to expect him to provide complete security for the craft market.
"We have to provide a lot of security by the gate of the pier which is a problem area," Mr. Miller said. "The Ocho Rios Craft Market is an Urban Development Corporation (UDC) property and we should not be expected to provide security for them. We do, however, assist them with security which is the best we can do at this time."
Toni Allen, manager of the Coyaba River Garden and Museum attraction in Ocho Rios, said visitor harassment is a serious problem in Jamaica and one that the authorities should face up to rather than trying to, according to her, pretend as if it doesn't exist.
"No use hiding it," Miss Allen said. "Attractions like Dunn's River Falls needs cleaning up and is giving the destination a bad name. This may sound inhumane but there are a lot of people passing through the resort town that have no business there. We need to get them out of town as in many cases they are the source of the harassment problem."
In September of 1997, during a forum at the Jamaica Grande Hotel aimed at eliminating harassment, a high-level team of Government and tourism officials led by Prime Minister P.J. Patterson conceded that the problem was at an all-time high and had to be eradicated once and for all.
Describing harassment the leading ill facing the industry, Mr. Patterson called on the entire sector to bond together to fight the epidemic and vowed that stringent measures would be put in place to curtail the problem. Coming out of that meeting stiffer fines were recommended along with harsher sentences for harassers, while a more vigilant security presence was promised by Minister of National Security and Justice, K.D. Knight.
"Give me streets that are harassment free and I promise you that we can easily bring in three million tourists per year," then Minister of Tourism, Francis Tulloch pleaded to Mr. Knight.
Nearly four years later and some claim that harassment is just as bad as it has always been.
"I would love somebody to show me how it has gotten any better," remarked an attraction owner who requested not to be identified with the story. "The point is that certain people stay in their air-conditioned offices in Kingston and believe they know what is taking place in the resort town."
The source said that problems at Dunn's River Falls have been there for years and were not something that can be solved easily. He added that most of the harassment taking place in the resort town occurred on UDC-owned properties, which consist of the Ocho Rios Craft Market, Dunn's River Falls and the Ocho Rios Bay Beach.
"Those tour guides at Dunn's River, and the other hustlers around the town, make a lot of money doing what they do and it will not be easy getting them to stop," he said.
Calls by The Sunday Gleaner to the UDC office in Kingston, were not returned last week.
The Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) noted in a statement last week that whereas harassment continues to be a matter of concern, improvements in port operations, the activities of the Government-funded resort patrol and efforts to enhance cruise visitors' experience in Ocho Rios had resulted in a significant reduction in passenger complaints as reported by the cruise lines.
