The U.S. Retaliates with Bahamas Travel Advisory

In what is widely seen as a “tit for tat” response to a similar travel warning issued by The Bahamas foreign ministry in relation to the United States, the US embassy in Nassau on Tuesday warned Americans traveling to The Bahamas of a “significant increase” in armed robberies in New Providence, particularly at ATM machines.

The crime warning came four days after the Bahamian government issued an advisory in light of the recent fatal shootings of two African-American men, which have sparked outrage and protests, and the killings of several police officers in Dallas on Thursday night.

“Over the course of the past six months, the US Embassy has received reports of a significant increase in armed robberies throughout New Providence, specifically targeting patrons of ATM machines, parking venues at various retail locations, and armed carjackings,” read the US advisory.

“For your safety, you should avoid using ATM machines located in isolated areas and consider using ATM machines located in shopping centers that have security coverage. Use the buddy system when using ATM machines.”

While the embassy said it has received reports of a significant increase in armed robberies over the last six months, minister of national security Dr Bernard Nottage told Parliament in June that armed robberies overall were down 21 percent in the first six months of the year compared to the same period last year.

Nottage said crime overall was down 29 percent. The United States has issued numerous crime warnings about The Bahamas over the years. Advisories from the Bahamian government are rare, however.

In its advisory issued on Friday, the government asked young Bahamian men in particular to “exercise extreme caution in affected cities in their interaction with the police”.

The advisory, which was widely carried by US media on the weekend, said, “Do not be confrontational and cooperate. Bahamians have been advised to stay away from any political demonstrations under any circumstances.”

The ministry of foreign affairs later denied that it issued the advisory for political reasons, after former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Assistant Director Tom Fuentes said on CNN the reason appeared political.

The Bahamas was not the only country to issue advisories last week.

On Saturday, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain warned their citizens traveling in the United States to be careful and stay away from any demonstrations.

On Sunday, shadow minister for foreign affairs Hubert Chipman said he supported Mitchell’s decision to issue an advisory.

Chipman said yesterday that he does not believe the US advisory is a “tit for tat”.

“Like I said, this is nothing new as far as The Bahamas is concerned and the US issuing alerts,” he said.

Source: The Nassau Guardian