By Roy Sanford, Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
PRESIDENT OF the Jamaica Hotel and Tourism Association (JHTA) Godfrey Dyer has described as premature, the British Foreign Office's travel advisory on Jamaica in the wake of the recent unrest in Flankers, Montego Bay.
The travel advisory, which was updated by the Foreign Office's web site on October 28 and which remained current up to yesterday, specifically mentioned the Flankers incident.
"An incident over the weekend of 25/26 October in Flankers, Montego Bay (adjacent to Sangster International Airport) prompted widespread demonstrations amongst the local community in the area," the web site said. "The demonstrations resulted in some inconvenience for tourists who had to travel by alternative routes between hotels/resorts and the airport."
Mr. Dyer said he was surprised that the British Government added the Flankers incident to its advisory.
"My reaction is that it is premature," he told The Gleaner yesterday. "What happened in Flankers posed no threat to tourism in any way. It was a demonstration not a riot."
He added that any comments that can be interpreted as negative can have an effect on the nation's tourism product. "We will just have to ensure that we work to soothe it out and get the facts out," he stated.
But there is nothing to show that the incident is having a negative impact on tourism, Mr. Dyer said. "I have been keeping a close eye on all the players in the industry and there has been no indication up to now that it will affect us negatively."
The Opposition spokesman on tourism Edmund Bartlett said that although there are no hints from tourism stakeholders that bookings for the upcoming winter season were affected by the Flankers incident, he warned that such advisories could have long-term effects.
"Continued advisories can damage the market," Mr. Bartlett said. "I am concerned that Jamaica continues to attract travel advisories that regularly throws our market operations into a tailspin." On Saturday, October 25, and again on Monday, October 27, scores of citizens in the troubled community and the police clashed following the fatal shooting of two elderly men from the community. During the disturbances, roads were blocked and protesters pelted the police with stones and bottles. The lawmen responded with tear gas and firing shots in the air.
Minister of National Security, Dr. Peter Phillips and Commissioner of Police, Francis Forbes, subsequently apologised to residents during a tour of the community.
