The local cops tolerate it if they wanted to stop it they could, simple as that.
What's cost effective about negative PR that drives away tourist dollars? On an island with barely 15,000 people (+/-), they would get to the bottom of this situation if it was a priority. All it would take is a few cameras in a few rental trucks, and maybe the intestinal fortitude to throw the perps in jail.
On would think, that after YEARS of this crap going on, that to preserve tourism that the authorities would do something to combat this.
Right We speak with our tourism dollars. Don't Go and spend your money and you;'ll be surprised what happens when it dries up. The Authorities will be forced to do something! Please, this has been going on for YEARS and some people don't get it! I for one and am not going there again untill they do something about all the break-ins! What would it take to patrol the beach dive areas. Sorry not that much. And where does their booty get sold?? The Black market. The cops can shut it down of they wished. They choose not too!
The above opinions don't reflect the reality of life on Bonaire.
Regarding "tolerance" for crime by local authorities:
There's a huge income gap between native Bonaireans and those who bring their money from elsewhere. There are no jobs for many people to do and limited welfare funds are available. Cost of living has gone through the roof and continues to get worse since dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in October 2010. Many people can't afford electricity to refrigerate food or propane to cook with. Thus petty crime is a way of life for a small portion of the population. The police are outnumbered, thieves are everywhere and look like everyone else, and the prisons are already full of more serious criminals. Adding trained officers, vehicles, and fuel at additional unfunded expense to patrol remote dive sites ranks relatively low on the police and government list of priorities.
Police and prisons are currently underfunded and understaffed. There is currently no room in Bonaire's prison system for petty criminals engaging in small-scale property crime. Bonaire's prison was completed in 2010 and currently exceeds capacity. The prison also houses prisoners from Saba and St. Eustatius (also Dutch municipalities since October 2010, like Bonaire.) Another prison on Bonaire is planned for completion in 2015.
Regarding threats to withhold tourist dollars from Bonaire's economy:
The tourism industry on Bonaire has grown unchecked and uncontrolled for years. The most recent phenomenon is the frequent arrival of hoards of cruise ship passengers. (The
current cruise ship schedule indicates ~150,000 cruise ship passengers are headed for Bonaire between November 2012 and April 2013.)
The island is struggling to provide municipal infrastructure to keep pace and is still catching up. They've just recently brought the islands first sewage treatment system online, funded primarily by ~$35 million USD tax money from Holland. There's currently a 5 month waiting list for local residents to have propane cylinders refilled for refrigeration and cooking. Electricity rates on Bonaire are 3 times that of Curacao and anticipated to further rise 20% to 50% in the near future as a result of recent arbitration between utility providers. This is also expected to cause water rates to rise proportionally. Even employed residents are struggling to pay for basic necessities of living on the island, as wages aren't rising proportionally. All of this contributes significantly to the crime problem.
There's no threat to Bonaire's tourism business if you choose not to spend your money there. If you visit Bonaire your tourism dollars are doing little, if anything, to mitigate the underlying problems or fund sustainable long-term solutions. If you don't visit Bonaire, others (like me) will. Airplanes will still fly, dive operators will still be busy, and occasionally a rental truck will be burglarized at a remote shore dive site. While you certainly have the right to spend your money where and how you like, your presence on Bonaire won't be missed.
@diversteve, thanks for the OtterBox suggestion. I've been looking for something like that. I ordered a couple of different sizes today.
