High crime rate looms over Caribbean tourism

MIAMI: The Caribbean and its pristine beaches may be a tourist magnet, but life in paradise comes at a price: the soaring violent crime rate is higher than in Latin America or Africa.

The study, out on Tuesday, by the Interamerican Development Bank is based on a survey of 3,000 crime victims in each of five countries: the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Jamaica and Surinam.

The report said while the nonviolent crime rate was low, violent crime rates “are among the highest in the world”.

“Nearly one in three said they had lost someone to violence.

“Guns are used about twice as often in robbery and thrice as often in assault in the Caribbean as compared with the global average,” it said.

The average rate “of victimisation by assault and threat (6.8 per cent) is higher than in any other region, including Latin America (4.7 per cent)” or Africa (5.2 per cent).

The report stated that almost half of all crimes go unreported to the police. AFP