APAMO speaks out against cruise tourism in Placencia
A proposal to introduce cruise tourism in the south should have been a done deal instead it has been stopped in its tracks. In Placencia, residents are dead set against it because they feel that this brand of tourism will destroy the natural beauty of the peninsula and that far outweighs any benefits to the village. The Belize Tourism Board is promoting the project, but their support is now tainted by conflict of interest. The land for the proposed tourism village was sold by Century 21, to Royal Caribbean. One of the principals in the company that sold the land is the CEO in the Ministry of Tourism. Those against the proposal got an added boost when it picked up support from the umbrella organization for environmental groups, APAMO. News Five’s Isani Cayetano reports.
Isani Cayetano, Reporting
The idea of cruise tourism in Placencia was recently met with strong objections from residents and business owners of the village. During a consultation held by the Belize Tourism Board with other industry stakeholders a resounding ‘no’ echoed throughout the public meeting when the newly unveiled Tourism Action Plan 2010-2012 was introduced. Many, including the Association of Protected Areas Management Organizations, believe that mass tourism would bring with it the destruction of the natural environment surrounding Placencia.
yvette alonzo
Yvette Alonzo, Executive Director, APAMO
“We consider that [uhm] bringing cruise tourism to the south, Placencia specifically, as they are proposing could have some serious, detrimental effects on the fragile ecosystems down south. The southern part of the country is one of the most richest in terms of biodiversity and ecosystems and so we feel that having mass tourism brought in that area could have some serious negative impacts on protected areas that exist in that area, [uhm] Gladden’s Pit, Laughing Bird Caye [uhm] and other sensitive areas.”
Some residents believe that with proper planning cruise tourism can be beneficial to other places in the south despite the fact that certain areas are already being exploited.
james
James, Tour Guide (File: October 22nd, 2010)
“If we can plan this thing we can make this work. I listened to the chairman in the past meeting stating that we might be stressing out Laughing Bird and we could be stressing out Silk Cayes but like Mr. Dial said we have a wide variety of offering that could take these people and they do not have to be stationed here in Placencia all day, every day. There is a lot for them to do in the south.”
Yvette Alonzo
“There are a lot of mangroves in that area and so we feel that [uhm] bringing mass tourism in that area is going to put some pressure, even more pressure than what currently exists on these areas. As you know the whale shark which is, you know, a species that comes in every year between March and June, I believe, to feed on the, because the area there is spawning that occurs there and brings in many visitors just to see that species and so millions of tourism revenues is generated just from that one attraction that that area has but that is so because of the protected areas that are in that area. Also we feel that you know Belize has established itself as an ecotourism destination that caters to small scale nature and culture based attractions and so we feel that, you know, cruise tourism can take that away.”
APAMO now joins a growing list of organizations that are against cruise tourism in Placencia. Royal Caribbean, through a real estate agent in Placencia, had already bought a three-acre parcel of land on which to develop a tourism marketplace similar to the Fort Street Tourism Village in Belize City. Discussions on the matter remains ongoing. Reporting for News Five, I am Isani Cayetano.
PATHETIC! NO CRUISE SHIPS IN SOUTHERN BELIZE!!!!!
From what I hear, most of the tour guides that are for cruise ships, cannot get a job anyway, due to past bad preformance records, from what I hear, the good guides are always busy, but, the bad ones no work, for they have bad records, complaints against them and some even have no license. The south of Belize does not need cruise ships, not at all.,
It’s the grass root people who will lead—they lead by example– All Belizeans should follow suit
and stand there ground until no more grey hair..
I don’t know why they are wasting their time. G.O.B. have already signed the deal. It will go ahead, despite most of the nations protests!
Back-handers and dazzling amounts of US$ flying around in Belmopan
Sounds rotten to me. Politicians around the world are all the same, CORRUPT!!!
If the local people donot want the crime and pollution that comes with the cruise ships, then don’t shove up their throat. Just so these crooked politicians can pocket a few more dollars.
Just like your SSB spending the working class’s hard earned monies ($50M) for BTL shares to help out your ungrateful PM. He should be thankfull to Mr. Ashcroft for establishing BTL, Belize Bank, etc., etc.
WAKEUP BELIZEANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
THIS IS WHAT WE, THE COUNTRY OF BELIZE, WOULD HAVE TO DO IF WE REALLY WANT TO CATER TO MASS TOURISM:
If we really want to cater to mass tourism, we, the country of Belize, should spend all the money in infrastructure and proper control measures in all aspects; as of right now our infrastructure is a not even close as up to par for this type of tourism and as for control…this is a very unfunny joke
If this is what we want to do we will have to abandon over night tourism, even the experts say they can’t co-exist in a country this small, it simply won’t work, so we have to focus all our energy and resources to make this thing work properly and with proper control.
Question: Where will we get this money? We can only access this by borrowing more and our country, our people are already in debt of $2 Billion dollars-/+. Who will pay back the loan? Tax payers of course, you me, your wife, your mom, your dad, your kids, my kids everyone who lives in this country….
100s of millions if not billions MUST be invested to make sure we are competitive and up to par to Cozumel at least, which is the Cruise Destination with the highest cruise tourism expenditure in the Western Caribbean which is around $250US per person; right now Belize is on the lower end at $50US per person.
Also, all the manpower to back the regulations to protect our environment and form a solid control system, because regulations and statutory instruments are worthless in this country because we haven’t the manpower to enforce them and we sure seem to lack the will.
Also, we need to resign our position from CARICOM, this does Belize absolutely no benefit, we have more people that want to come work in Belize (we are still ripe with resources) than we have Belizeans who want to go work in other Caribbean Countries, the numbers simply don’t add up, look at who is trying to take over our commercial fishing industry right now – Jamaicans (no offense to the Jamaicans).
WHAT WE SHOULD BE FIGHTING FOR – WE SHOULD BE ADVOCATES OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AND PRO-PLACENCIA.
Some reasons why our economy (specifically the tourism sector) is in the crapper and what the Government and its other subsidiary responsible bodies should be doing to help instead of giving us tourism product that we won’t be able to control or compete with foreign entities.
Government resources should be allocated to improve on the Placencia Peninsula and all other tourist destination in the country; be directed toward upgrading our existing overnight tourism product. Such measures could include, although are not limited to:
1. BTB should sponsor public Consultation in Placencia, Caye Caulker, San Pedro, Cayo et al to find out why our current tourism product is in dire straits and how we can come up with a master plan to nourish that product back to life, we don’t want to hear about any other form of tourism until we can fix the one we have.
2. Reducing the cost of capital to local businesses.
3. Initiating a micro-loan program for small entrepreneurs of the peninsula to participate in the economic benefits of overnight tourism.
4. Setting up a program to provide licensed tour operators and guides access to discounted fuel.
5. Temporarily lower the hotel tax to allow hotels to offer lower rates and become more competitive in the region.
6. Reduce General Sales Tax, even if it is temporarily.
7. Reducing the cost of internet and phone communications so all residents may better compete globally for both business and educational opportunities.
8. Reduce communication costs by unblocking VOIP so that businesses, particularly small, locally owned businesses, can afford fundamental and essential business practices, such as being able to return an international phone call to answer questions about their businesses.
9. Establish improved marketing efforts to address the problem of acute seasonality of business and to promote Placencia as a prime destination for local tourism.
Something to consider:
Comparison of Weekly Local Spending by Cruise Ship Passengers and
Overnight Tourists in Placencia Village
Just 28 overnight tourists will put more money into the local economy in Placencia Village in one week as 800 cruise ship passengers. Based on numbers, it also takes over 82 cruise ship passengers in a week to equal the amount spent by just two fishermen in the same week. Over 87 cruise ship passengers are needed per week to equal the local spending one family of 4.
However, studies in Honduras, Costa Rica and the Caribbean have shown that cruise ships chase away overnight tourists.
For about the same amount of money, who would we rather have visiting our cayes, reef, Mayan sites, jungle and lagoons? Twenty-eight overnight tourists who respect the local culture and environment, want to get to know local people and come back time and again — or to 800 cruise ship passengers who come, take pictures of the natives, leave behind 99 times the amount of garbage and sewage and cross us off their list of places to see, never to return?
Notably, the figures also prove that even in the low season, local Placencia Village businesses make as much as they would if cruise ships came all year round, which they don’t. Is it a fair trade-off, then, to give up our overnight tourists for cruise ship tourists?
ALL OF U A BUNCH OF IDIOTS OBVIOUSLY DONT KNOW THE REAL DEAL OF PLACENCIA MR CHAIRMAN HAS BACK DOOR DEAL THAT IS AFFECTING HIS JUDGEMENT LIKE CHABIL MAR NO PROB FOR THE REST OF U THE DUMB MUSTARD STAND MAJORITY OF THE GUIDES IN PLACENCIA ARE IN GOOD STANDINGS HOWEVER WHAT U DONT KNOW IS THAT WE ARE BEING STARVED PAID UNFAIRLY FOR WHAT WE KNOW AND LOVE IF U HAD A BACHELOR OR MASTER OR DOCTORATE DEGREE YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE PAID FOR IT AS WELL WITH OUR EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE THE OUTSIDERS COME AND EXPLOIT THAT AND WANT TO PAY US BOTTOM DOLLAR WHAT DONT WE HAVE A RIGHT TO DREAM ALL OF U SAYING NO HAVE YOUR BIG HOUSES AND DONT HAVE TO WORRY EVERY HURRICANE SEASON WHAT IS SO WRONG FOR US TO WANT THIS TOO OK TO RESEACH IF U HAD DONE THE BLOODY THING U WOULD HAVE KNOWN HOW TO GET US TO SAY NO TO CRUISE SHIP ITS SIMPLE HELP US COUNTER THE OBSTACLES IN OUR WAY NAMELY THE MOORINGS HELP US GET OUR GUIDES ON BOARD SO THEY STOP DESTROYING THE REEEFS HOW BOUT ALL YOU RETIREES THAT ARE HERE TO RETIRE NONE OF YOU ARE U ARE JUS HERE TO MAKE ANOTHER BUCK INSTEAD OF BUYING YOUR BOATS AND TAKING YOUR FRIENDS OUT HOW BOUT ENCOURAGING THEM TO TAKE A TOUR WITH US U ALL WANT PLACENCIA FOR U NOT FOR EVERYONE ITS PLAIN U ARE ALL TRYING TO SUPRESS THE SMALL PEOPLE TRYIN TO FORCE US OUT GUESS WHAT IT WONT WORK
My wife and I are not residents of Placencia Village. However, we love the Village as a winter getaway from the cold and snow of the Pacific Northwest USA. We have talked with several of the Placencia locals who all agree that cruise ship tourism would hurt the area. Frankly, we love Placencia Village just the way it is and would hate to see it change. With the building of the new international airport north of the Village, it will change anyway, without the help of Royal Caribbean. Let’s not hurry it up with all of the negatives of what the cruise line will bring.