Placencia residents sign petition against cruise tourism
As we told you, there was confusion today in the Belize City Fort Street Tourism Village. In the south, since the Placencia Tourism Board introduced the idea for cruise tourism on the peninsula, residents of the area have expressly rejected any project to accommodate that kind of tourism there. That is being followed up with a petition bearing the signatures of over three hundred and thirty people; all registered residents of the village. The number compares with the three hundred and sixty seven cast in the last Village Council election. The residents oppose cruise tourism because they feel it will kill overnight tourism and will pose an environmental threat because of the very nature of mass cruise tourism. Copies of the petition have been forwarded to Prime Minister Dean Barrow, the Minister of Tourism, Manuel Heredia, the Area Representative, Melvin Hulse, the Placencia Village Council, BTB, and the Belize Tourism Industry Association.
WOOHOO!!!!!! BOOYAKASHA!!!!
Excellent move by the Placencia Residents! If 330 plus out of the 367 registered voters have put their signatures down saying NO to cruise tourism, there can be no funny discussion about any “silent majority” wanting cruise ships in that village! Way to go Placencia!
This would be the only thing that would help placencia. you guys thinking about the corals how about the amount of pesticides going into the sea and destroying the marine life? yes cruise tourism can be meant to be a bad stuff but there are things that can be good. better infrastructure more jobs and less crime if more security is demanded. come on the country needs it.
I think that the people of Placencia are making a mistake banning a chance for them to move forward in tourism. I wish the people would stop listening to the people who have come there with foreign dollars to retire and who do not need to work to feed their families. These people come there, buy property and have an opinion about a village that was there before them and will be there after them. Having said that, I think Royal Carribean needs to open dialogue with the villagers about exactly what thier plans are and how it will benefit the tour guides, hoteliers and other local businesses.
I think the people of Placencia are doing the right thing, if the cruise companies are going to control the lion’s share of the cruise operation and leave the crumbs for the locals there is no need for them there, keep it pristine stick to eco tourism cruise tourism this way is not a good trade off, only the few with connections will benefit and support this idea.
ATLBelizean..cruise tourism is not a move forward. I have seen what it does in Alaska and Mexico. It takes away all the local ownership of business and leaves minimum wage jobs. RC may have a dialogue, but the end result is the same. Over 50% of income will go to them and their partners. I am one who owns a condo there. I spent three weeks there recently, spent between $2000 and $3000 US, all in the community, all with locals. That money stays there 100% Criuse passengers spend $30 to $50 on average, mostly in the cruise line owned village and cruise line sponsored tours. So other than the employee who makes $3-$5 BZ an hour, the rest goes to RC in Miami. Overnight tourists leave their money in the village. You will not be able to “negotiate” with RC. They will start with a village, then add a restaruant and hotel, then add their own busses and shuttles, then they will own the guide servicies, or contract them with an affiliate company. (aren’t they doing that in Belize City now? A Jamaican company I believe). Cruise lines want to maximize their profit, and they do this by vertical intergration. From owning the travel booking company, all the way down to owning the taxi on shore. They will not do it anyother way. They forced the State of Alaska, who has billions of dollars, lots of highly educated legal staff, into backing down on a head tax. In Alaska, they own hotels, transportation services, and control some of the tour operations.
Good info Cortez, I am sure in Belize it will be no different nothing will stop them from reaching their objectives. Way to go people of Placencia say no to cruise tourism.
Cindy & ATLBelizean, why don’t you two go pimp out your damn kids to the perverts on the these ships and why don’ you two go swim in the raw sewage and crap they dumb in our waters…and eat some of it too, cause it seems all you two and people like you think about in Belize is money…its people like you who jump up and down saying lets drill for oil it will bring money…are we going to phuking eat that money (that we won’t even get as Belizeans) when all our natural assets have been destroyed and the gigantic cruise industry pilage our assets; make their profits and split?
!@#$%^& morons…all you do is think about money money money sometime I wish guate would just take over this country fi true cause when i hear people like unu talk it make me shame fi be Belizean; think before unu open unu mouth noh, please.
Cortez, I believe they also OWN the railways in Alaska and from what I understand from a close friend who lives there; they are simply buying up and owning as much as they could.
Maybe, Placencia folks are as stupid as Mike Singh made em out to be.
ALTBelizean: There are no where near 320 foreigners registered to vote in Placencia. There may well be that many living up the peninsula in the villages of Seine Bight, Maya Beach, Riversdale, etc. who come into Placencia to buy their groceries, fuel, building supplies, restaurant meals, bar drinks, clothing, cabinets/furniture, etc. but they are not counted for the petition cited. We appreciate these foreigners for what they contribute to the year-round local economy but they cannot vote. It is truly Placencians who spoke by signing the petition. Face the facts. We (vast majority of Placencians) do not want cruise ships, ports, or tourist village. We value our overnight guests, our environment and way of life.
Cortez, love your response & your explanation could not have been more clear.
Cindy, if the wealth was trickling down in Belize, we would not have half the problems we are having. Infrastructure is a good buzz word that is used every time we want to do something that will only benefit the privileged. Oil was supposed to improve our infrastructure, how well is that working out, we have Irish folks getting rich & our children unable to afford higher education & killing each other.
ATLBelizean, cruise ship tourists on a day trip do not need hotel rooms, they may stop in a hotel for a meal or to get drunk but they return to the ship at the end of the day. We will still be standing outside begging them to buy whatever trinket we are selling & the few Belizeans the cruise ship will hire will be the ones who fit a specific image & willing to work under the terms & conditions they set, a dressed up version of a banana/orange picker.
Just for clarification, in Alaska, the cruise lines own the railroad cars, the railroad itself is owned by the State of Alaska. But those rail cars sell food and drink, all of which goes into the cruise lines pockets. Then they take them to the McKinley Princess Hotel. Its called that because Princess cruises owns the hotel. RC will do the same. The cruise lines business plan calls for them to capture every dollar spent by their guests. They will not alter that business plan for anyone. And they won’t pay much of a head tax to provide the local economy with the infrastructure it requires for that many tourists. Does Placencia have the taxing or negotiating rights to deal with the cruise lines? You have to have the ability to tax and the enforcement rights in order to even have a fighting chance. The Placencia Village Council has neither. If the GOB charges a head tax, how much of that do you think will stay in the village to improve sewer, water, roads, and other infrastructure? The cruise line will tell the GOB not to worry about that stuff, they will just build their little village, buy up some beach front, and not let locals in and will tell their cruise guests that its dangerous outside of the village. They already are doing that in Belize City.