As the winter tourism season unfolds, Minister for Tourism Dr Ernest Hilaire says projections show the Saint Lucian economy to receive a boom with an expected increase in both cruise and stay over arrivals. He noted however, that the conflict between Venezuela and the United States is being closely monitored as any act of aggression in the region can adversely impact the tourism industry.
“Wars always have consequences beyond the theatre of engagement,” Hilaire said on October 27, adding: “Sometimes persons who are involved in making those decisions do not really consider their collateral damage.”
“We’ve always promoted the Caribbean as a Zone of Peace. We’ve always promoted the notion that nuclear weapons and warships and those things should be kept out of the Caribbean, and we hope as much as possible we can keep the Caribbean as a safe and peaceful area.”
“We do not want to be a theatre of war in the Caribbean,” he reiterated.
“But at the end of the day, we understand some things are bigger than us, so we are monitoring what’s happening and almost every day we are looking at the matrices to see what the numbers are saying, to make sure that if something is starting to adversely happen we can respond to it.”
Hilaire who also serves as Deputy Prime Minister is hoping for the best and that good sense would prevail.
Minister for Education Shawn Edward has also weighed in on the situation explaining that while the focus for education officials recently has been for the safety and wellbeing of Saint Lucian students in Jamaica due to the passage of Hurricane Melissa, there have also been engagements with Saint Lucian students in Trinidad and Tobago.
Edward told reporters that Trinidad has been a talking point as due to US/Venezuela tensions and with respect to the presence of US military personnel in the Caribbean more specifically Trinidad. Acknowledging a certain level of anxiety, Edward said his ministry would be guided by the Ministry of External Affairs in terms of what pronouncements should be made.
“We have reached out to some of our students, not the entire student body, but just to get a feel as to what they’re sensing, what is their disposition in Trinidad during this particular period. But I don’t think we are at the stage now where we ought to panic. We have to remain calm and let me assure you that if it becomes necessary for us to reach out to our students in more direct ways, the Government of Saint Lucia will do so.”
Edward went on to say that if anything changed it would be incumbent on the administration to reach out to the students to provide whatever comfort levels could be afforded. In August, the Trump administration started accumulating a US military presence in the Caribbean including warships, surveillance planes, fighter aircraft, and nuclear-powered fast attack submarines along with more than 4 500 sailors and marines.
The main target according to the Trump administration has been narcotraffickers coming out of Venezuela. With the arrival of the USS Gravely in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad on October 26, the country has been drawn into the conflict receiving heavy condemnation from Venezuelan government officials.
You all thought you all were in charge doing endless crime. now you all see who is in charge.
Russia just stick their noses in it it’s not looking good