News of a young honeymoon couple shot dead in their hotel room on the Caribbean island of Antigua a year ago sent shock waves through the British public.
The attack on Brits Catherine and Benjamin Mullany in their seaside cottage at the Cocos Hotel on July 27 2008 jarred with the image of Antigua as a sun-drenched, palm-tree-lined idyll.
The world’s media shone an unflattering spotlight on the island and its growing crime numbers, fuelling a crisis in confidence in the island paradise.
Fiercely protective of its tourism industry – which contributes 75% of its economy – the Antiguan government has revamped the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda over the past year, and spent millions of dollars on new security measures. But has it done enough to ensure Antigua’s tourism industry makes a full recovery?
The Mullanys were the first tourists to be killed in Antigua in more than a decade. Shocked by what was reported as evidence of the “dark side of paradise,” consumers were contacting their travel agent or tour operators to cancel or alter their plans to visit the island.
The incident also had a devastating impact on hotels on the island, explains Antigua Hotels and Tourist Association general manager Neil Forrester. “Several hotels reported cancellations and losses amounted to more than $1 million. There was definitely an impact on bookings up to the end of the year.”
Security measures
In the days immediately following the shooting, the Antigua authorities reacted quickly, forming a working party to assess security on the island and carrying out an island-wide security audit.
In the last year, a raft of new measures have been introduced, including 60 new police officers, 24-hour mobile police patrols, and additional street lighting.
Forrester was involved in setting up Crimestoppers Antigua, an anonymous phone line which citizens can use to provide information on crimes. The government has also invested $7 million in a new communications system to help speed up police response time to 911 calls. Police have also been given high-speed computers and cameras that provide real-time data on crimes.
“The incident gave the impression that crime was rampant, which was far from the case,” said Forrester.
“The government has made an effort to improve the police force. Firstly, top Canadian officers were brought in to head up the force. Much improvement has been made in infrastructure, equipment and police training.”
Cruise concerns
Much of Antigua’s tourism revenue comes from visiting cruise ships – revenue which came under threat following the shootings. Antigua and Barbuda Cruise Tourism Association president Nathan Dundas said cruiselines asked questions about security and were reassured by the local police.
Dundas argues that security is vital to the success of the tourism industry on the island. He called for increased measures after cruise ship passengers on excursions were targeted by gangs of robbers earlier this year.
He said: “The association requested assistance from the police to tackle the few incidents we had with cruise ship passengers that were robbed, and we were very satisfied with the response.”
The major beaches and tourist attractions now have mobile police patrol vehicles and tourist areas have been given extra policing.
Dundas added: “The police were assisted recently with the provision of two more mobile beach patrol vehicles donated by the Ministry of Tourism, which has boosted the effectiveness of the local law enforcement officers.
“We also saw increased police presence in the main areas of the city of St John’s, especially the Redcliffe and Heritage Quay areas during cruise ship days. We are happy to report that we have seen a significant reduction in reports of incidents of this nature since the authorities have stepped up their patrol.”
Educating local businesses
ABTA has also stepped in to offer guidance to the island. Head of health and safety Angie Hills is due to travel to Antigua next week to host a health and safety seminar for local hoteliers and tour operators.
“The Mullanys were living the dream and you don’t expect the dream to end like that,” she said. “There were a lot of headlines over the first few days, but I think Antigua handled it well.
“The Antiguans have asked us to provide training and information for hoteliers on how to handle petty or serious crime, food poisoning and other incidents.”
Hills said the shootings also highlighted the need for tourists to be aware of their safety abroad, and advised agents to give customers ABTA’s health and safety leaflet or direct them to the Foreign Office website.
In the public eye
The coming months are not likely to bring easier times for Antigua. The Mullanys will no doubt appear in the headlines again when the murder trial begins.
The country is also awaiting the outcome of the trial of Sir Allen Stanford, the Texan billionaire arrested in the US on a multi-billion-dollar fraud charge.
His financial investment in Antigua – primarily in banking – was around $8 billion – bigger than the country’s GDP, says University of Sheffield department of politics teaching associate Dr Matthew Bishop.
“He invested a lot in [Antigua], in restaurants, cricket and banking and he had some interest in the airport. The outcome [of the trial] will impact jobs.”
With visitor numbers down 14% year on year in February and hotel occupancy down 12%, it is more important than ever for Antigua to promote the message that it is a safe choice. In these uncertain times, it is vital Antigua spreads the word of its police force’s achievements to set potential visitors’ minds at rest.
Antigua steps up security
- 60 new police officers have been appointed.
- New vehicles have been added to the police car fleet.
- 24-hour mobile police patrols have been introduced.
- More street lighting has been added.
- Abandoned buildings have been demolished.
Antigua at a glance
- An average of 238,804 tourists travel to Antigua each year.
- 92,816 tourists stopped over in Antigua from January to April 2009.
- 296,127 cruise passengers visited Antigua from January to March 2009.
- Average hotel occupancy in April 2009 was 60.4%, while in April 2008, it was 72.4%.
- Europe is Antigua’s biggest market, followed by the US.
- Tourism contributes around 75% of the economy of Antigua.
- For the 2008/09 season the island received 298 cruise ship calls with 591,000 passengers. This is expected to increase to 334 calls in 2009.
- A 2007 World Bank report revealed that the Caribbean has a rate of 30 murders per 100,000 people a year.
Pictures: Rex Features