Bahamas government issues US travel advisory amid racial violence

By Caribbean News Now contributor

NASSAU, Bahamas — In an ironic twist contrasting with the more usual US travel advisories about crime and violence in The Bahamas, the ministry of foreign affairs and immigration has issued a travel advisory, urging Bahamian men to cooperate with American police officers and avoid being “confrontational”.

The official warning comes in the light of the recent fatal shootings of two African American men by police officers in the US, which have sparked outrage and protests, and the apparently racially motivated killing of several police officers in Dallas on Thursday night,

“The ministry of foreign affairs has taken a note of the recent tensions in some American cities over shootings of young black males by policemen.

“We wish to advise all Bahamians traveling to the US, but especially to the affected cities, to exercise appropriate caution generally. In particular, young males are asked to exercise extreme caution in affected cities in their interactions with the police. Do not be confrontational and cooperate. Bahamians have been advised to stay away from any political demonstrations under any circumstances,” the statement said.

In the event of any difficulties, Bahamians are advised to contact the nearest consular office.

“If there is any issue please allow consular offices for The Bahamas to deal with the issues. Do not get involved in political or other demonstrations under any circumstances and avoid crowds,” the statement said.

The Bahamas has consular offices in New York, Washington, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Denver, Chicago and Dallas.

However, one reader commented, “It seems rather hypocritical to me given that The Bahamas has a murder rate of 29.8 per 100,000 people (according to Wikipedia) while the US has a murder rate of only 3.9 per 100,000 people, meaning that the murder rate in The Bahamas is 7.6 times the rate in the US. You have a much higher chance of being killed staying home in The Bahamas than travelling to the USA!”