Bonaire Crime - Our experience - Looking for input to share

[Lorenzoid]

That's likely very true, it is probably more a cultural issue, but it does suggest that poverty may not always be the major driver for widespread practices of thievery.

I suspect that's true. I think opportunity is also a contributor.

 

[agilis]

That's very likely true, it is probably more a cultural issue, but it does suggest that poverty may not always be the major driver for widespread practices of thievery.

I know Dominica fairly well, having been there many times over the past 20 years. The culture there is very different, unique in the Caribbean in my experience. Its history differs from most islands, as does its geography. There was never any extensive sugar industry, no large plantations, far fewer slaves, a fragile economic base, and a small population, now less than 80,000, including people from other islands who migrate there because of a labor shortage.

Except for visits from cruise ships there is almost no tourism. It's a difficult place to get to, and infrastructure is limited. My first time there I almost starved. That was my fault because I stubbornly insist on doing everything on my own. I hate being a tourist, being 'looked after'. In the long run it works out, but at first it can be difficult. One learns where things are and how things are done.

Very few people in Dominica are in any way connected with the virtually non-existent tourist industry. What does exist is in Roseau, where the cruise ships dock, and where buses take ship passengers to various places. Otherwise, its a very quiet place with very few people in the interior. Dominicans are polite, but generally keep their distance. They have their own lives and are not too interested in visitors.

Technically a former British colony with legal ties to the UK, most people speak a French patois as their first language. There is also a small population of Carib original people, most of them (though not all) racially mixed. There is also a growing Chinese population as ties between Dominica and China become increasingly close. Chinese construction crews and agricultural workers are everywhere. the Chinese embassy is massive, and there are plans being discussed for a Chinese built jetport. We in the US have decades of neglect to thank for this. Trifling small amounts of aid would have transformed Dominica but they got nothing.

Dominica is incredibly beautiful, almost edenic. It's topography is as much vertical as it is horizontal. It's covered in dense rain forest (it does rain a lot, especially in the interior) and seemingly endless mountain peaks. Roads wash out frequently, and landslides are a common occurrence. I spend much more time exploring topside than I do diving, though the diving can be spectacular in places. Very few sandy beaches, and there are dangerous currents close to the prettiest. Dominica is not for the faint of heart or those seeking pampered care.

Crime exists in Dominica, the second poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere (after Haiti), but very little. Living circumstances for the tiny population are benign, with no shortages of food or shelter. In 20 years I've never experienced the slightest problem. More typically, I've had things I'd forgotten and left behind on some isolated beach returned to me by local people I'd never met before, the next time I visited the spot.

Dominicans tend to be strongly independent people and refreshingly proud, of themselves and of their island.

 

[KathyV]

I suspect that's true. I think opportunity is also a contributor.

I am sure that is the case because of all the shore diving options on Bonaire. But that's a key contributor to their tourism industry and economy so you would think that the authorities would try to protect it.

 

[Doctorfish]

My point was that there is crime everywhere.

I agree that the petty crime on Bon is a PITA, and that the authorities should try to take steps to limit it. I would personally be prepared to spend more for the park pass if the extra funds were used to hire security services for the shore sites. Just an idea.

 

[Kharon]

When I was last on Dominica (a long time ago) Guadelupe and Martinique (islands to either side) had around 1.6 million visitors per year - Dominica had about 56 thousand. The average annual income was $3,600. Everywhere I went someone would offer to sell you something - but not a single person asked for a handout. They are a proud and honest people who see far fewer tourists than almost anywhere else, and I'm sure they don't want to lose the ones who do come and love Dominica.

 

[lmorin]

Source

Dominica will be compared with Japan (country with a low crime rate) and USA (country with a high crime rate). According to the INTERPOL data, for murder, the rate in 1999 was 7.89 per 100,000 population for Dominica, 1.00 for Japan, and 4.55 for USA. For rape, the rate in 1999 was 19.72 for Dominica, compared with 1.47 for Japan and 32.05 for USA. For robbery, the rate in 1999 was 80.20 for Dominica, 3.34 for Japan, and 147.36 for USA. For aggravated assault, the rate in 1999 was 682.39 for Dominica, 15.97 for Japan, and 329.63 for USA. For burglary, the rate in 1999 was 1735.56 for Dominica, 206.01 for Japan, and 755.29 for USA. The rate of larceny for 1999 was 17.12 for Dominica, 1267.95 for Japan, and 2502.66 for USA (data for Dominica were from 1998--no data reported in 1999). The rate for motor vehicle theft in 1999 was 77.57 for Dominica, compared with 34.01 for Japan and 412.70 for USA. The rate for all index offenses combined was 2603.33 for Dominica, compared with 1529.75 for Japan and 4184.24 for USA. (Note: data were not reported to INTERPOL by the USA for 1999, but were derived from data reported to the United Nations for 1999)

Conclusion: stay far away from the USofA.

 

[shoredivr]

I love Bonaire, haven't been there for years.

Having said that, this thread, post for post, complaints, suggestions, rationale for Bonaire police actions, comparisons to crime on other islands and the USA, crops up every few years. Started by a different person each time, it's true, but the content is the same.

 

[tarponchik]

Dominicans tend to be strongly independent people and refreshingly proud, of themselves and of their island.

I would agree, though been there only once. Dominica is the opposite of Jamaica, where everyone wants something from you. I remember just one case when locals addressed us and this was funny. We walked by as local kids played in the water near Scotts Head, and they shouted, Hey, white people! Come into water, it is beautiful!

They are poor but live with dignity.

 

[Pedroinspain]

The thing that bothers me about Bonaire is that crime against tourists is so widely accepted and no one is interested in trying to stop it - and it's been that way for decades. It irks me that the prevailing attitude is "you're a tourist so you should expect to be victimized - and when it happens then it is your own fault because you didn't take unusual precautions."

Over a month has passed since I sent the email that I reported to private parties, to the tourist authorities, to local government and to the police, asking what the ATTITUDE was to the reports on this thread of rising and un-addressed crime on Bonaire, especially viz-a-viz tourists.

The answer is that I got plenty of responses from resorts, dive shops and BONHATA. I did not get one single reply from the police, the local government or the Bonaire official tourist authority .... war-time radio silence.

Kathy's conclusion above has now been fully tested, proven, vindicated, and documented. The tourists don't matter as long as they keep arriving and keep paying for $120+ accommodation, expensive so-so dining, high tourist taxes, and while significant numbers of those same tourists make excuses for local indifference, and place the main blame on divers who expect not to find a smashed window when they return to their hire vehicle, and then resort to straw man reasoning such as, "I once heard that crime is worse in Gambia (or ... pick a place), so the crime and indifference on Bonaire is acceptable"..

 

[oldschoolto]

If you don't lock your car and leave the windows down... You would likely not have a problem... And the thread has come full circle... A few want to complain... Most want to dive.. And if I had all the complaints about a dive resort... I would just find that wonderful place that people keep talking about, but won't tell anyone..

Jim..