Garth Rattray SOMETIMES PEOPLE who should know better say and do things that amaze me. On Thursday, September 9, as Hurricane Ivan approached Jamaica, the U.S. Department of State made a public announcement urging "U.S. citizens to carefully consider the risk of travel to Jamaica at this time due to the threat posed by Hurricane Ivan." This was expected because travel to the island during that period would obviously be foolhardy. In fact, the statement urging people to "carefully consider the risk of travel to Jamaica" seemed a bit tame when one reflected on the fact that a category four hurricane was bearing down on us.
I thought that the advisory should have ordered people to stay clear of Jamaica at that dangerous time. It therefore seemed incongruous that days after the hurricane, on Wednesday, September 15, the same Department of State issued an ominous and damaging travel warning that urged U.S. citizens in Jamaica to depart as soon as safe transportation was available. The warning went on, "The government of Jamaica has declared a state of emergency. The airport in Montego Bay is currently open and the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston is scheduled to reopen shortly. Telephone service in Jamaica is widely unavailable. If unable to immediately depart, U.S. citizens are advised to locate shelter, monitor media reports, and follow all official instructions."
A MAJOR BLOW
The hurricane in and of itself was a major blow to our already fragile economy. It was especially devastating to our main source of income, tourism. But the U.S. travel advisory arguably delivered the greatest blow of all. As already noted in The Gleaner, Friday, September 17, 2004, the travel advisory was full of inaccuracies and innuendoes. The Norman Manley airport was open on Tuesday (the day before the advisory) and our telephone services were far from "widely unavailable". The state of emergency was declared to facilitate the control of possible illegal activities and the ready acquisition and distribution of aid. Many American States declare states of emergency before or after natural disasters for the same reasons.
The wording of the travel advisory by the State Department left people feeling as if a catastrophic event had occurred, which was followed by some degree of anarchy. It was explicit in its call for visitors to "immediately depart" or seek shelter. Because of that frightening report, anyone would believe that all hell had broken loose on the island and that it was one of the most dangerous places on planet earth. I have heard similar travel advisories issued for war-torn countries and other places where terrorism was rampant or civil wars were raging.
PARANOIA
Inspite of the plea by the Jamaican government for the U.S. State Department to tone down the "inappropriate" and "unnecessarily harsh" travel advisory, it took about two or three days for the thing to change. I wonder what would happen if the inaccuracies were not picked up. How long would it remain posted like that? We will never know the full extent of the damage done to our tourist industry. No one is asking for lies to cover up our problems nor for our visitors to endanger or inconvenience themselves in order for us to make a dollar we are only asking for accurate reporting of the facts and careful attention to the tone of such releases.
Perhaps the 9/11 disaster has precipitated a smattering of paranoia and hyper-responsiveness from the U.S. administration but they need to remember that the socio-economic health of the entire world is intricately intertwined. No longer can mighty America alienate others without eventual consequences to her own people and economy. It is in her best interest to help make and keep the economy of our tiny nation buoyant. Our success or failure impacts on the drug (transhipment) trade, which in turn impacts on the United States of America, costing them billions in anti-drug programmes and security measures.
Until that nation comes to appreciate the "oneness" of the world, it will consistently fail to understand that the thoughtless actions of some within their administration will come back to haunt them.
Dr. Garth A. Rattray is a medical doctor with a family practice.
