New rules to combat tourist harassment Garwin Davis, staff reporter WESTERN BUREAU - The Government is instituting new rules, and enforcing existing ones, in its bid to crush the harassment of cruise ship passengers at the Ocho Rios pier. The problem, which has placed the country's multi-billion dollar per year cruise industry at risk, came to a head two weeks ago when officials of Royal Caribbean Cruise Line told the Government to come up with a plan that would effectively deal with the problem of visitor harassment at the pier. One Government source said that the Government was given an ultimatum to fix the problem. The Ministry of Tourism has, since last week, and in consultation with local business interests, ordered its local agencies to streamline activities in the resort town to minimize the high level of passenger complaints. For starters, a new parking facility in the form of a holding area for taxi drivers will be built. This is to relieve the problem of congestion at the pier and ensure that a proper monitoring system of drivers is in place. In addition, the Pier Operation Procedures, a set of rules which outlined guidelines concerning the picking up and dropping off of cruise passengers, and which was established in 1999, but remained mostly dormant, has been revisited. Last Tuesday, the Tourism Product Development Company (TPDCo) reinforced the ticketing system at the pier where taxi drivers are assigned jobs based on a number rotation. Also, only Jamaica Tourist Board (JTB) licensed drivers with permit tickets for the day are allowed to enter the entrance road to the pier. To ensure compliance, there is also a heavy security presence in the area during the days. Andrew Grant, first vice-president of the St. Ann Chamber of Commerce, told The Sunday Gleaner last Friday that his organisation would be watching to see that Tourism Ministry's plans would be followed successfully. "We will ensure that all promises are kept," he said. "The cruise shipping industry is vital to the economy of this parish and by extension this country. We cannot sit idly by and watch it go to waste." Minister of Tourism, Portia Simpson Miller, last week acknowledged that the situation where taxi drivers were openly badgering passengers at the cruise pier had to be addressed. According to her, no longer could harassment be allowed to continue on such a wanton scale. She said the new rules had to be enforced. But, while the new rules seem to mark a positive step, with visitors being able to walk from the cruise terminal to the pier exit without much bother, it is a different story when they get on to the street. A number of drivers, not assigned to any of the official tour companies, and who can no longer go anywhere near the pier area, openly harass the visitors on the street while offering their services. They claim they have no choice. "What them really expect us to do now?" a taxi driver, who gave his name only as Richard asked. "A must gun shot them want people to fire." Maxi Tours, one of the official tour companies at the pier, is also not content with some of the new arrangements. According to President Linton Church, while he is happy with how things have been streamlined with cruise passengers being able to freely roam the pier area, some of the rules, he added, are prejudicial to the executives of his company. "We are being forced out," he said. "The way they are conducting the dispatching of the passengers and the way they are dictating things to us are not proper and I would be lying if I say we are happy. "We are not against law and order as we also want the best for cruise shipping but I wish they would give us a say into what is happening with our drivers." Mr. Church added that corruption was rampant at the pier and noted that the people who were in charge of dispatching the drivers had their own private vehicles outside and reserved the best jobs for themselves. "It is impossible for everything to run smoothly with so much corruption around the place," he said. The JUTA drivers, from the other designated tour company, though, appeared happy with the current arrangements, noting that the system is working. "We have no problem," explained Vincent Lynch.
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