THE GUNS-for-drugs trade between Jamaica and Haiti has taken an exotic twist as female nationals from the French-speaking country are now providing entertainment at some of the popular nightspots on the island's north coast.

The Sunday Gleaner reported recently that the Haitian women, on most occasions, arrived as part of the barter agreement. The report also disclosed that in order to survive, the women accepted meagre wages, sometimes as low as $250 per day, to work in bars, shops and other small businesses.

"Most of them would be largely undereducated and unskilled and for that reason alone, they pose social challenges, and they are not going to be able to take care of themselves financially," commented head of Operation Kingfish, Assistant Commissioner of Police Glenmore Hinds.

new sensation

A visit recently to an exotic club in a resort town on the north coast by a Sunday Gleaner team confirmed that our Caribbean sisters are now the new sensation in night entertainment in Jamaica.

The place was abuzz with activity when we arrived at 11 p.m. Music coming from inside the venue filled the Thursday-night skies, as patrons waited on the 'main event'.

Three police officers, who were identified by their red-and-black vests marked 'Police' and bearing the respective regulation numbers on the back, searched patrons for weapons and cameras.

On entering, we observed six local dancers moving to the beat of disco music as they utilised the pole located in the centre of the stage to do acrobatic stunts, while shamelessly soliciting tips from the hordes of male and female patrons in attendance.

A group of men seated at the bar was involved in a heated discussion as to who was the best looking of a group of young women seated together in an area of the venue. We later learned that these were the four women from Haiti who had triggered a renewed interest in exotic club life.

sought vantage points

As it drew near to the 2 a.m. 'show time', those on the outside entered and began to seek vantage points to witness the special feature. The master of ceremonies, after warning that "the special performers" would not be offering any tricks so they should not be approached, got the show under way.

The local dancers were the first to come on stage, and despite a variety of sensual acts, failed to create an impact on the capacity crowd. It was a totally different scenario, however, when our sisters from the French island graced the dance floor.

No language barrier could prevent the understanding created by the male patrons and the in-demand performers, as they gyrated, teased and performed daring stunts to the delight and encouragement of a gathering that mimicked their many attempts to dance to reggae music.

With news of the Haitians' prowess spreading far and wide, the club's management had hired a bouncer to guard them, fearful that the immigration authorities might attempt to arrest their newfound drawing cards.

glad they're here

While the presence of Haitians could mean local dancers losing some of their popularity, at least one waitress is glad they are here: "It means more tip for me," she told The Sunday Gleaner. "Ever since them start do them thing here about five weeks ago, me leave here feeling good; the more customer, the more tip me get," the waitress added.

According to her, only one of the Haitian dancers spoke English, and claimed she was a schoolteacher in her poverty-stricken country in a town called Roseau, some 50 miles from the nation's capital of Port-au-Prince. She also revealed that she had paid US$1,600 to be transported to Jamaica.

With our planned chat with one of the newly found entertainment divas discouraged by the presence of a 300-pound muscle man, the news team left for Kingston.