No serious effects in Jamaica from UK travel advisory

Thursday, November 6, 2003

KINGSTON, Jamaica: Jamaican Information Minister Burchell Whiteman says there has been no significant media attention given in Britain to the recent Foreign Office travel advisory and no noticeable drop in tourism bookings to the island.

"There did not seem to be a lot of attention in the British mainstream media, only the Weekly Gleaner in London published a very dramatic story on their front page," Whiteman told reporters at a press conference yesterday.

The Foreign Office issued the travel advisory last week following the recent violent protests in Montego Bay following the killing of two men by the police. There were no reports of tourists being hurt in the riots although two tour buses waiting to take people on sightseeing trips were set ablaze. Some visitors had to be ferried by boats to the Sangster International Airport.

The travel advisory informs visitors that "there are high levels of crime and violence, particularly in the Kingston area and tourists should avoid certain routes. The threat from terrorism is low. The vast majority of visits to Jamaica are trouble-free".

It also advises visitors to "avoid walking alone in isolated areas, even in daylight hours" and to "avoid walking alone on beaches at night and avoid travelling in unlicensed vehicles".

About 200,000 tourists from the UK and Europe visit Jamaica each year.

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