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...AKA without Vision, The People will continue to Perish
Tourism for a sustainable Jamaican economy, environment and society
Published: Friday | December 31, 2010
Wilberne Persaud, Financial Gleaner Columnist
A Gleaner December 21, 2005 report quotes then Prime Minister P.J. Patterson saying that for "the past 14 years, I have been fighting an unsuccessful battle to get the law amended so that we can have in-bond shopping facilities when we arrive at the airport. I am pleased to tell you that Cabinet has approved the draft legislation. It will be discussed in Parliament and I hope it goes through before I leave."
Patterson expected the change to become a reality before he demitted office in 2006.
In-bond Merchants Association president at the time, Kumar Samtani, felt Jamaica's airports would improve.
"In-bond duty-free shopping is," he said, "becoming more popular in the Caribbean and the rest of the world and, as such, several countries are going towards that business model, especially in their airports." That was five years ago.
The Financial Gleaner, Decem-ber 24, 2010 reports, "The Tourist (Duty-Free) Shopping System Act was amended earlier this year to allow incoming travellers - air and sea - access to purchase duty-free items before reaching Customs. The legislation became effective on December 15." Including 14 years of Prime Minister Patterson's attempts to amend the legislation, it takes two decades to implement a policy shift thought advantageous and necessary.
Did in-bond merchants have no clout? Is our parliamentary legal draughtsman overwhelmed? Can we seriously promote growth and development in such an environ-ment? Perhaps today we might cheer up. We're finding a remedy, as Financial Gleaner headline of December 24 screams: "Heavy-weights to advise Bartlett."
The advisers are Maurice Facey, chairman and chief executive officer of Jamaica Property Company Limited; Miguel Fluxa, chairman of Iberostar hotel; Daniel Grizzle, managing director of Charela Inn; Hugh Hart, attorney-at-law; Tony Hart, chairman of the Hart Group of Companies; Karl Hendrickson, chairman of The Courtleigh Hotel and Suites; John Issa, chairman of SuperClubs; William McConnell, group managing director of Lascelles deMercado and Company; and Gordon 'Butch' Stewart, chairman of Sandals Resorts International.
Long-term policy
Minister Bartlett, the report continues, said the council's job "will be the mapping and implementation of a long-term policy direction for the tourism sector, encompassing global, regional and local developments, and forging appropriate partner-ships and strategic alliances". He says the group represents "a blend of the best minds in the tourism, business and legal fraternities, which will move Jamaica's tourism industry to higher heights".
He is correct. He has indeed put together the best minds in the existing tourism business. Blend, however, is an altogether different proposition. Perhaps if we place emphasis on existing tourism business, we might begin to realise this is by no means all the expertise our minister needs. Is there, too, a journalistic misquote of the minister's statement? Surely this council will not manage 'implementation' of the policies it advocates.
It is interesting to consider the 'blend', the range of expertise and interests, as well as conflicts and downside of the tourism business. Jamaican tourism depends funda-mentally on its physical and, whether some wish to believe it or not, its societal environment.
I shall assert and take it as self-evident that this council should benefit from the presence of an environmentalist, coastal and wetlands specialist, economist and sociologist. These specialisations can be robustly justified.
But let's move on to conflicts that need attention. Intensive and environmentally hostile exploita-tion of our coastal areas provides a long-term negative to the industry - like killing the goose.
From a societal standpoint also, we need to think about access to our beaches for locals, livelihood of fisherfolk, and so on. None of this is meant as a dampener on tourism development - merely prudent long-run development. No end of adverts promoting 'look after the tourist' like we used to 'look after the banana' will pay as lucrative dividends as the affected population's genuine feel for their livelihood's stake in the tourism enterprise - rather than a stake in its heart!
A continuing problem is the dependent, usually poor and under-employed squatter and/or migratory population attracted to our tourism centres. Whereas London and New York accommodate hordes of tourists who are neither harassed, nor generate unsustainable pressure on city services, in our case merely a few cruise ships in harbour have the capacity to overwhelm. This we need to address.
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Tourism for a sustainable Jamaican economy, environment and society
Published: Friday | December 31, 2010
Wilberne Persaud, Financial Gleaner Columnist
A Gleaner December 21, 2005 report quotes then Prime Minister P.J. Patterson saying that for "the past 14 years, I have been fighting an unsuccessful battle to get the law amended so that we can have in-bond shopping facilities when we arrive at the airport. I am pleased to tell you that Cabinet has approved the draft legislation. It will be discussed in Parliament and I hope it goes through before I leave."
Patterson expected the change to become a reality before he demitted office in 2006.
In-bond Merchants Association president at the time, Kumar Samtani, felt Jamaica's airports would improve.
"In-bond duty-free shopping is," he said, "becoming more popular in the Caribbean and the rest of the world and, as such, several countries are going towards that business model, especially in their airports." That was five years ago.
The Financial Gleaner, Decem-ber 24, 2010 reports, "The Tourist (Duty-Free) Shopping System Act was amended earlier this year to allow incoming travellers - air and sea - access to purchase duty-free items before reaching Customs. The legislation became effective on December 15." Including 14 years of Prime Minister Patterson's attempts to amend the legislation, it takes two decades to implement a policy shift thought advantageous and necessary.
Did in-bond merchants have no clout? Is our parliamentary legal draughtsman overwhelmed? Can we seriously promote growth and development in such an environ-ment? Perhaps today we might cheer up. We're finding a remedy, as Financial Gleaner headline of December 24 screams: "Heavy-weights to advise Bartlett."
The advisers are Maurice Facey, chairman and chief executive officer of Jamaica Property Company Limited; Miguel Fluxa, chairman of Iberostar hotel; Daniel Grizzle, managing director of Charela Inn; Hugh Hart, attorney-at-law; Tony Hart, chairman of the Hart Group of Companies; Karl Hendrickson, chairman of The Courtleigh Hotel and Suites; John Issa, chairman of SuperClubs; William McConnell, group managing director of Lascelles deMercado and Company; and Gordon 'Butch' Stewart, chairman of Sandals Resorts International.
Long-term policy
Minister Bartlett, the report continues, said the council's job "will be the mapping and implementation of a long-term policy direction for the tourism sector, encompassing global, regional and local developments, and forging appropriate partner-ships and strategic alliances". He says the group represents "a blend of the best minds in the tourism, business and legal fraternities, which will move Jamaica's tourism industry to higher heights".
He is correct. He has indeed put together the best minds in the existing tourism business. Blend, however, is an altogether different proposition. Perhaps if we place emphasis on existing tourism business, we might begin to realise this is by no means all the expertise our minister needs. Is there, too, a journalistic misquote of the minister's statement? Surely this council will not manage 'implementation' of the policies it advocates.
It is interesting to consider the 'blend', the range of expertise and interests, as well as conflicts and downside of the tourism business. Jamaican tourism depends funda-mentally on its physical and, whether some wish to believe it or not, its societal environment.
I shall assert and take it as self-evident that this council should benefit from the presence of an environmentalist, coastal and wetlands specialist, economist and sociologist. These specialisations can be robustly justified.
But let's move on to conflicts that need attention. Intensive and environmentally hostile exploita-tion of our coastal areas provides a long-term negative to the industry - like killing the goose.
From a societal standpoint also, we need to think about access to our beaches for locals, livelihood of fisherfolk, and so on. None of this is meant as a dampener on tourism development - merely prudent long-run development. No end of adverts promoting 'look after the tourist' like we used to 'look after the banana' will pay as lucrative dividends as the affected population's genuine feel for their livelihood's stake in the tourism enterprise - rather than a stake in its heart!
A continuing problem is the dependent, usually poor and under-employed squatter and/or migratory population attracted to our tourism centres. Whereas London and New York accommodate hordes of tourists who are neither harassed, nor generate unsustainable pressure on city services, in our case merely a few cruise ships in harbour have the capacity to overwhelm. This we need to address.
full hundred
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