Paul I Jukic  03/20/2008 03:11:46 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Search Results

Cable 
Text:                                                                      
                                                                           
      
UNCLAS        NASSAU 00071

SIPDIS
CXNASSAU:
    ACTION: AMB
    INFO:   RSO POL FBI CONS DCM

DISSEMINATION: AMB /1
CHARGE: PROG

APPROVED: DCM:HARDTDB
DRAFTED: POL:PIJUKIC
CLEARED: POL:DBOCONNER, RSO:ADEJONG, CONS:KRABASSA

VZCZCBHI333
RR RUEHC RUCNCOM
DE RUEHBH #0071/01 0251517
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 251517Z JAN 08
FM AMEMBASSY NASSAU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5145
INFO RUCNCOM/EC CARICOM COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NASSAU 000071 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR WHA/CAR, DS/ITA, DS/IP/WHA, AND CA/OCS/ACS/WHA 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: BF CASC KCRM PGOV PHUM
SUBJECT: DOWNTOWN NASSAU MURDER PRESSURES GOVERNMENT TO ACT 
ON CRIME 
 
REF: NASSAU 1458 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶1. (U) Deadly violence struck the tourist and commercial 
heart of downtown Nassau January 7 as a drive-by shooter 
missed his intended mark, instead mortally wounding a high 
school student waiting in a crowd at a bus stop.  The 
shooting prompted renewed concern about the impact of rising 
crime on tourism, the backbone of the local and national 
economy.  Media speculation centered on fears of a potential 
issuance of a travel advisory by the U.S. as a result of 
violence moving into the tourist center of the country.  Post 
dispelled this national anxiety in public statements 
highlighting information already available on State 
Department web sites for travelers, which urges caution even 
in tourist areas.  The incident nevertheless represents a 
potentially significant development in a general increase in 
crime that has afflicted the country.  It has increased 
pressure on the government to take prompt, meaningful action 
against crime.  END SUMMARY. 
 
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RANDOM SHOOTING TRAUMATIZES DOWNTOWN SHOPPERS, TOURISTS 
--------------------------------------------- ---------- 
 
¶2. (U)  A high school student died from multiple bullet 
wounds on January 7 after falling victim to a drive-by 
shooting at a bus stop in the commercial heart of downtown 
Nassau.  The brazen attack in broad daylight on busy Bay 
Street sent cruise visitors fleeing to the safety of their 
ships, locals scrambling for cover, and witnesses shocked at 
the ensuing chaos.  Police quickly apprehended three other 
men waiting at the same bus stop, believed to be the intended 
targets of the shooting.  Police also identified a suspect 
and launched a public manhunt.  The media reported his 
capture on January 20.  The motive for the shooting remains 
unclear. 
 
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FEAR OF U.S. TRAVEL WARNING 
--------------------------- 
 
¶3. (U)  The downtown killing at the peak of the afternoon 
rush hour prompted renewed concern in the public and press 
about the potential issuance of a travel advisory or warning 
by the U.S. Embassy -- an almost compulsive anxiety within 
the tourist dependent island.  In fact, the media have 
speculated for months, as the murder tally rose, over such an 
announcement and its potential negative effects on the 
all-important tourism sector, which forms the backbone of the 
economy in Nassau and The Bahamas.  Post sought to dispel the 
renewed speculation and anxiety with comments to a leading 
newspaper making clear that there were no plans to issue an 
advisory, as publicly available consular information already 
noted the high crime rate and the potential for violent crime 
in tourist areas.  The Ambassador repeated these sentiments 
in an impromptu radio appearance the same day. 
 
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RIPPLE EFFECTS OF CRIME 
----------------------- 
 
¶4. (U)  The tragic death of a high school student on the 
first day of classes in the New Year spurred another bout of 
national soul-searching about crime -- already perceived to 
be spinning out of control at the end of 2007 with a record 
number of murders -- and its causes and effects.  Many 
observers and witnesses expressed disbelief that anyone could 
be so foolish and callous as to discharge firearms in the 
middle of downtown Nassau in a high-traffic area in front of 
numerous passersby, and only hundreds of yards from the 
cruise ships which bring the tourists and cash upon which 
small businessmen, and the broader economy, almost completely 
depend.  Many observers commented on the breach of an 
informal 'understanding' that such incidents not occur on Bay 
Street, given its importance to the country's economy. 
 
¶5. (U)  The victim's death prompted the Ministry of Tourism 
to issue an immediate statement of condolence, in a clear 
sign of official concern about how the incident might be 
perceived outside the country.  The incident, albeit rare and 
isolated, represents a watershed in the ongoing "crime wave" 
in the country.  While high crime is an unfortunate fact of 
life in Nassau, most of the worst violence has been limited 
to certain neighborhoods and areas of the capital not 
normally frequented by tourists, and generally avoided by 
other island residents.  This brazen attack suggests that 
inhibitions about violent criminal activity in tourist areas 
have eroded, if not entirely disappeared.  The incident has 
also renewed demands for immediate, muscular government 
action on crime. The last murder of the year occurred on 
December 29, when a policeman was killed in the line of duty 
in Nassau, capping a record-breaking year of 79 murders and 
across-the-board increases in violent crime in The Bahamas 
(see reftel). 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶6. (SBU) The fatal shooting, coupled with continuing criminal 
violence in the capital -- including a stabbing in scuffle 
again on Bay Street January 16 -- has generated increased 
political pressure on the Ingraham administration to address 
high crime rates and intractable problems in the criminal 
justice system.  The opposition has strongly criticized the 
FNM government's policy shifts in the law enforcement area, 
including high-level personnel changes in the police force, 
and is likely to try to capitalize on the recent events to 
make their case that the government erred in ending PLP 
neighborhood policing efforts.  How the government meets the 
crime challenge will play an increasingly decisive role in 
how the public perceives its overall effectiveness.  This 
event has brought home to the cabinet that it has no higher 
priority than beating back the surge in crime before the 
violence begins to impact The Bahamas' tourism-dependent 
economy. 
SIEGEL