Garwin Davis, Gleaner Writer

SMITH

OCHO RIOS, St. Ann:

The call by Director of Tourism, Basil Smith, for the entertainment sector to improve on the tourism package being offered to visitors, has been dismissed by several local businessmen as "sheer hypocrisy".

They note that while the newly-appointed tourism director was "dead on" in his remarks in Montego Bay last Saturday, he would have been better served in requesting that the authorities drop the "heavy-handed approach" as it relates to entertainment in the resort areas.

More flexibility

"We have long recognised that entertainment goes hand in hand with tourism," commented Daniel Mier, owner of the Strawberry Night Club in Ocho Rios. "Yet, the moment we start putting an entertainment package together the police are there to shut us down. Mind you, we are not blaming the police as they are not the ones who set the rules. What we are saying is that for the entertainment sector to do its part in promoting tourism, the authorities have to be more flexible in how they operate."

Mr. Smith criticised the entertainment sector for what he referred to as "its lack of vision and slow response to the opportunities available in the tourism industry."

"More options are needed to give a more vibrant night life," he said, adding that tourists have been com-plaining about not having anything to do in the evenings.

Bill Fenton, president of the Fisherman's Co-operative in Ocho Rios, St. Ann, said the entertainment sector had nothing to do with visitors not being able to find anything to do at nights. He said the blame should fall squarely on the shoulders of the authorities.

"Entertainment is an integral part of tourism, but we certainly do not approach it that way," he said. "When you think of a resort town, you think of 24 hours, round-the-clock entertainment - places like Miami Beach, New Orleans, Nassau, and Key West tours. We can't say on one hand that visitors have nothing to do at nights while on the other hand we are hell bent on shutting people down. We are not saying that anyone has a right to disturb persons from sleeping. What we are saying is that the law as it relates to the Noise Abatement Act has to be flexible when it comes to dealing with entertainment in the resort areas."

Abiding by the act

The police have long maintained that it was their job to respond to complaints about noise violations, claiming that they operate strictly by the guidelines set out in the Noise Abatement Act.

Not everyone, however, is convinced by this explanation, especially the smaller tourism players who have accused the police of operating under a double standard. "The police are also to blame," commented Junior Rogers, a businessman from Runaway Bay, St. Ann.

"Every Sunday, Fisherman's Beach and Priory Beach use to offer top quality entertainment where tourists use to come out in their numbers. The police targeted both areas relentlessly to the point where Fisherman's Beach in Ocho Rios has all but given up. This would have been okay if only the same kind of pressure was applied to neighbouring establishments. It can't be that it is okay for the big man to do his thing yet when the small man does the same, we use the guise of the Noise Abatement Act to shut him down."