The US Embassy has released a fact sheet on Spring Break in The Bahamas, warning American tourists of increasing crime and drug traffickers.
The fact sheet is the first of its kind to be issued regarding The Bahamas.
US Ambassador, Richard J. Blankenship, indicated that the Embassy has an obligation to protect US citizens living in, and travelling to, The Bahamas.
The fact sheet is the result of the embassy’s continued observation of deteriorating conditions in The Bahamas, including crimes such as kidnapping, murder, armed robbery, rape and physical assaults.
Foreign Affairs Minister, Fred Mitchell, dismissed the warning as “less than an advisory,” which if issued, would spell the death knoll for tourism is this country.
Mitchell admitted that the US Embassy had considered a full fledged Travel Advisory but following a meeting with Bahamian police and tourism officials, who outlined local security measures, decided that an Advisory was unnecessary at this time.
The Travel Warning can be found online at:
http://travel.state.gov/springbreak_bahamas.html
