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Caricom
visa meets snag |
Published May 18, 2007
by CARLOS ATWELL
PLANS to recommend a CARICOM special visa similar to the one
introduced for Cricket World Cup (CWC) 2007 appears to be
running into opposition from some regional hoteliers.
In Jamaica, president of the Jamaica Hotel and Tourist
Association, Horace Peterkin, has been quoted in The Gleaner
newspaper as saying the CARICOM visa would have a negative
impact on tourism in his country.
"Jamaica has always been talking about diversifying, that we
don't put our eggs in one basket. Now the basket that is
affected is the same one that requires the CARICOM visa so,
rather than encouraging a developing market, the CARICOM
visa will have the opposite effect of driving that market to
other places that will not have a visa requirement." |
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However, during a telephone interview yesterday, Barbadian
Peter Odle, president of the Caribbean Hotel Association,
said he could not give a definitive response as the
organisation was waiting for more information.
"There are too many people saying this and that who did not
have the facts straight. Nothing has been approved. It now
has to go through the proper machinery to see if it is
something everybody agrees upon.
"We have a number of concerns but we will be brought into
the loop shortly and will make a more definitive statement
then," he said.
This special visa was a requirement during CWC in order to
visit the Single Domestic Space of the nine host countries –
Barbados, Jamaica, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago; Dominica, St
Kitts, Antigua and Barbuda, St Lucia and Grenada.
Both the visa and the Single Domestic space came into effect
February 1 and ended on Tuesday.
A Press release issued yesterday by CARICOM stated that the
Heads of Government had agreed in February to set up a task
force to consider future use of the visa, taking into
account any changes necessary from the experience of CWC.
This task force will have its first meeting on May 25 in
Trinidad and Tobago and has to report to the July 2007
meeting of Heads of Government in Barbados.
"In addition, a paper will also be presented on the issue of
how to best establish a rationalised Single Domestic Space
to facilitate hassle-free travel within the region on a
permanent basis," the release said.
At the Tenth Meeting of the Council for Foreign and
Community Relations of CARICOM held May 10 to 11 in Belize,
its foreign ministers unanimously endorsed the permanent
fixture of the visa. |
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