VZCZCXRO4443
PP RUEHGR
DE RUEHKG #1171/01 2081424
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 271424Z JUL 07 ZFF4
FM AMEMBASSY KINGSTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5115
RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE
INFO RUEAHLC/HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KINGSTON 001171 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA/CAR (RBUDDEN) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PTER ASEC EWWT PGOV GAO JM XL
SUBJECT: JAMAICAN AND FEDERAL AGENCIES REACTION TO 
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY REPORT (GAO) 
 
 
 -------- Summary -------- 
 
¶1. (U) The United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) is 
required to report on security related aspects of Caribbean Basin Ports 
On June 29, 2007 the GAO released a report, "Information on Port 
Security in the Caribbean Basin", in which they identified 
three likely modes of attack and three specific areas of security 
concern and vulnerability. The Jamaican reaction to the GAO report has 
been limited but can only be described as resentful. Jamaicans, 
including James Forbes, head of security at the Port Authority of 
Jamaica were critical of the GAO report's lack of specificity. Many 
federal agencies located within US Embassy Kingston, were also 
concerned about the reports broad labeling of Caribbean ports with no 
mention to specific countries. While many of the 
concerns identified may apply to other islands in the Caribbean, 
Jamaica seems to have made a concerted effort to comply and in some 
instances exceed international regulations regarding port security. The 
report and its findings are especially complicated, because 
the Jamaican media does not seem to recognize the distinction between 
this report emanating from an independent nonpartisan agency that works 
for congress, the different branches of government, and how they relate 
to this report. Instead, the report is viewed by many as a judgment of 
Jamaican ports by the United States Government. 
 
---------- GAO Report ---------- 
 
¶2. (U) Section 233 (c) of the security and accountability for Every 
Port Act of 2006 compels the GAO to inform Congress of port security in 
the Caribbean Basin. It is especially important for Congress to be awar 
of the security situation regarding ports in the Caribbean Basin becaus 
American cruise ships and goods travel to and from this region. The US 
Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report, "Information 
on Port Security in the Caribbean Basin", with the specific objectives 
of identifying and describing: (1) the threats and concerns to port 
security within the Caribbean Basin, (2) actions taken by foreign and 
domestic agents to meet international port regulations, (3) actions US 
government agencies have taken to assist in making Caribbean ports 
secure, and (4) the potential economic consequences of port security an 
a hypothetical attack. 3.The GAO acquired data by interviewing 
officials from federal agencies and international organizations. They 
also visited several Caribbean nations and reviewed information provide 
by those agencies and organizations working in the region. Based on the 
areas of analysis in the aforementioned section, the GAO found 
three areas that specifically inhibit port security in the Caribbean 
Basin: (1) corruption, (2) gang activity in close proximity to ports, 
and (3) drug trafficking. Illegal migration and a growing influence of 
Islamic radical groups were also mentioned by agency officials as 
potential concerns to port security. 4. However, according to the GAO 
its report is "descriptive in nature and does not provide a detailed 
analysis of the actions taken or efforts made regarding port security i 
the Caribbean Basin". 
Therefore, the GAO report merely describes the port security situation 
without taking into consideration actions taken to address the security 
concerns mentioned above. The report does not address the effectiveness 
of the programs implemented by Federal or any other agencies to address 
the security concerns raised in the report. 
 
----------------- Jamaican reaction ----------------- 
 
¶5. (U) The Jamaican reaction to the GAO report can be described as 
limited but outraged. In the media, there have been a few articles, 
references to and reports on the GAO report. Jamaicans, including James 
Forbes, head of the security at the Port Authority of Jamaica, 
are specifically disgruntled at the claims of corruption, lax security, 
and limited resources to maintain equipment. The GAO seems to have give 
rise to some confusion, because this critique of port security comes on 
the heels of the CARICOM 20/20 Summit in which Caribbean nations and th 
US agreed to move forward collectively on issues of security. 6. (U) Mr 
Forbes seems disgruntled at the GAO reports findings because 
Jamaica appears to have addressed many of the concerns mentioned by the 
GAO as a threat to security. Forbes claims the port authority of Jamaic 
is audited internally, and the port authority also has been audited by 
the US Coast Guard and other international agencies, who have found 
their financial practices to be above board. Forbes is also 
quoted as saying that the port authority has scanning equipment that 
can not only scan 100% of all cargo but Jamaica is the only country in 
the region with the capacity to scan cargo with high-tech x-ray 
equipment that can peer through 12 inches of solid steel. The 
three major ports on the island, Kingston, Montego Bay, and Ocho Rios 
are operated by both local police and Jamaica Defense Force. It is 
important to note that Forbes did not address the issue of growing 
Islamic radical influence in the region. 
 
------------------------ FEDERAL AGENCIES ------------------------ 
 
¶7.  (U) Federal agencies operating in the area have positive reviews of 
the efforts by the Jamaican government to secure the ports. In the 
estimate of the Embassy's Narcotics Affairs Section the management of 
 
KINGSTON 00001171  002 OF 002 
 
 
Jamaican ports, headed by Noel Hylton, does not appear to be corrupt. 
Narcotics Affairs also believes the Jamaica Defense Force do not 
seem to be corrupt in comparison to other law enforcement agencies in 
Jamaica. The Defense Attachi's Office (DAO) could not comment on other 
ports in Jamaica but specifically mentioned the port in Kingston as 
secure and compliance with international guidelines/standards. The 
Department of Homeland security Container Security Initiative, 
Kingston, also has found that the Kingston port is secure. Some of the 
security measures noted by the Container Security Initiative, a program 
active in other Caribbean Islands, included:(1) having a Jamaican 
Customs Officer present when someone enters the container area, (2) if 
the seal of a contain is broken, (3) a customs officer must also be 
present, (4) and all vehicles that enter the port are required to sign 
in and out. The consensus opinion of Federal agencies operating in 
Kingston is that the ports here are secure. 
 
 -------- Comments -------- 
 
¶8. (U) The problem with the GAO report is its lack of specificity. The 
GAO report makes broad claims about port security in the region as a 
whole but does not to address the differences that exist within the 
region. This is misleading, because a security concern in 
one country is not necessarily a concern another, and the report does 
not go into detail. Especially in a region that has some of the poorest 
countries in the western hemisphere together with some of the more 
prosperous in the hemisphere, the method of broad descriptive reporting 
is inconsistent with the goal of providing an accurate description of 
port security. Furthermore, while the report consults federal agencies 
regarding their assessment of security concerns in the region, it does 
not go further to address the effectiveness of programs developed by 
federal agencies to address these concerns. 
 
¶9. (U) The report's lack of specificity is a problem, because some 
governments believe, by virtue of being apart of the region to which th 
GAO report refers, there situations are mischaracterized. Other 
governments sometimes do not recognize the difference between 
the executive and legislative branches in the U.S. system or the 
independent, non-partisan nature of an organization like Government 
Accountability Office that is charged with keeping the legislative 
branch informed of how the executive spends money. 
 
HEG