Janet Silvera, Senior Gleaner Writer

PETERKIN

WESTERN BUREAU:

The major United States carriers operating in the Caribbean are supporting the new U.S. passport initiative and do not believe the effect will be devastating to the region, even while stakeholders in the tourist industry are still predicting a catastrophe.

The carriers, which include American Airlines, US Airways, Continental, Delta, North West and Spirit, did not join the lobbying efforts made to the U.S. Congress, while the cruise lines invested US$2 million (J$130 million) over the last two years petitioning for an extension.

Tom Scarlett, president of the board of Airline Representatives Jamaica, confirmed the airlines' position on the matter.

He said the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, which requires all Americans travelling from the Caribbean to the U.S. to have a valid U.S. passport for re-entry as of January 7, 2007, was supported by the airline association groups based in Washington, D.C., because it will help them to minimise the use of fraudulent documents by their passengers.

For each passenger held with fake documents, the respective carrier is fined US$5,000 (J$325,000).

With no support from the carriers, the land-based operators received a shock last week Tuesday, when they learnt that their playing field was made uneven as the U.S. Congress announced an amendment delaying the implementation of the initiative until June 1, 2009, for cruise ship passengers, while still requiring U.S. citizens travelling by air to the Caribbean to have a valid passport within the next three months.

'Category six' hurricane

Since that announcement, the Caribbean Tourism Organisation has likened the decision to that of a "Category Six" hurricane, while the Caribbean Hotel Association has termed it as catastrophic, with the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association (JHTA) calling it a grave development for the Jamaican hotel sector.

The news forced the call of an emergency meeting Wednesday by the JHTA.

Coming out of that meeting, the JHTA is calling on Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller to take the lead in galvanising the other Caribbean Community (CARICOM) heads, then to request a meeting with the President of the United States, George W. Bush, or Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice or her counterpart, Secretary of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, the association stated the urgency of such a meeting, "as the window of opportunity is short," said Horace Peterkin, JHTA president.

The JHTA has also recommended that CARICOM engage the services of a professional lobby firm in Washington, D.C.

Another meeting of the JHTA and the Jamaica Tourist Board was held yesterday at the Sunset Beach Resort and Spa. Checks made with MBJ Airports Limited show that 60 per cent of American visitors to the island have passports.