This made interesting reading.

[Andy D]

http://www.thetobagonews.com/index.pl/a ... id=5444300

With only 2 weeks to go till i'm off i couldve done without reading this but like everywhere else in the world,if a reasonable amount of care is taken then you can pretty much avoid any problems.

[Steve Wooler]

Hi Andy

We carried a copy of the last FO Advisory on this site. I've just been through the old version with the new, word for word, and it adds absolutely nothing of significance. Mind you I'm grateful to the Tobago News for giving publicity to this mildly rehashed news. The authorities in Trinidad and Tobago need to be made aware of the concerns of overseas visitors and get to grips with the rising poblems before Tobago's reputation is irrevocably damaged and tourism to the island killed. Trinidad may be happy with the reputation of being the most lawless island in the Caribbean, but if Tobago is to survive as a holiday destination, it is imperative that it doesn't go the same way.

[Andy D]

Hi Steve,

I totally agree with you,the mindless actions of the few should NOT spoil things for the majority.While it is always disheartening to read stories of crime against tourists i'm sure instances are few and far between.Tobago is a beautiful island and people of all nationalities should be able to go and enjoy it without fear of crime.I'm sure the authorities are doing all they can to keep the island as safe as possible for tourists,and so they should be because tourism is obviously a large part of the islands income.

[Steve Wooler]

a large part of the islands income.

Change this for ALL Tobago's income, if you exclude the paltry sum it receives from Trinidad. Tobago has no other industry. Tourism is the only self-generated income.

I wish I could believe the authorities were doing everything possible. I get different stories and opinion from every resident that I speak to. Without question of doubt, Tobago isn't getting the resources it needs. This is possibly because the levels of crime on the island are insignificant compared to Trinidad - so the T&T government think that Tobago hasn't got a problem. Other say that the THA (local authority) simply have their head in the sand and don't recognise the problem. From my discussions, I think they are well aware of the problem, desperate to do something about it but cash-strapped and unable to do what is needed. As a consequence, they just try to keep the whole subject under wraps. Thank heavens for Tobago News and our own readers, so we can get a balanced truth.

I did hear a story from a very reliable and informed source that there was only one police patrol car for the entire Caribbean coast. The local Hoteliers Association offered to buy and sponsor the running costs of a second patrol car. The local government turned the offer down on the grounds that it could be seen as bribery and therefore corrupt. If this story is true, and knowing Tobago I can believe it, I rather dispair.

[Alan Cb]

Steve

Approximately TT$ 2 billion has been allocated to Tobago in the 2005/2006 Trinidad & Tobago budget, which for a population of of 55,000 works out at TT$ 36,364 per capita. This can hardly be described as "paltry". I doubt whether Tobago earns TT$ 2 billion per annum from tourism.

By comparison approximately TT$ 34 billion has been allocated to Trinidad, which for a population of 1,250,000 works out at TT$ 26,154 per capita . Therefore the budget allocation to Tobago is 39 % higher than the budget allocation to Trinidad, on a per capita basis.

I doubt whether Tobago can now claim that it is not getting the financilal resources that it needs to deal with the increase in crime.

[Steve Wooler]

Hi Alan

Yes, it is perfectly true that Tobago have, for the first time, been awarded a decent budget this year and, in fact, there have been movements in the right direction for the past year or two. I won't play the statistics game, because different stats can be used to paint whatever picture we like.

[Brian Taylor]

we will never know how much tobago makes from tourism, since the tourism devision does not know about half of the guesthouses and villas on the island... it is always easy to complain...but we are still a developing country... let's hope, we develop