Atlantis would welcome locals in casino

Mon, Jul 16th 2012, 10:05 AM

While the government is not currently considering whether to change the law that prohibits Bahamians from gambling in local casinos, a senior official at Atlantis Resort said the property would welcome the move if it ever happened.
"Obviously, we will conduct our operations according to the laws of the country that we're in," said George Markantonis, president and managing director of Kerzner International Bahamas.
"We'd be delighted if there was a method to allow locals to participate in games of chance in the casinos, but realize that there are reasons why the rules are in place today.
"So we will wait and see what shows up in a national referendum and what the public debate leads to in the future."
Public debate on gambling heightened in recent weeks after Prime Minister Perry Christie said he intends to call the referendum before the end of the year.
But Christie reiterated last week that casino gambling for Bahamians in The Bahamas is not up for discussion.
"The referendum is about whether or not we have a national lottery, whether or not we legalize the web shop gambling, full stop. It's not about whether Bahamians gamble in casinos," Christie said.

Despite his comment, there continues to be widespread discussion about whether casino gambling should also be up for consideration.
Markantonis, who was contacted by The Nassau Guardian for comment, was asked whether it would be good for Kerzner's business if the restrictions were lifted.
"I think it would be good business for Kerzner, but I also think it is one more amenity for everyone who lives in The Bahamas, one more entertainment option," he said.
"Now you have to balance that with the fact that if it were allowed, the guidelines would have to make sure that they were responsible and that people didn't go and injure their personal incomes.
"So, as I said, we respect what the laws of the country are. We would like to see it spread out a bit more as it's done in other nations and we'll see how it all shakes out."
Robert Sands, senior vice president of administration and external affairs at Baha Mar, told The Nassau Guardian he is an advocate of "limited and not complete relaxation" of regulations prohibiting locals from gambling in casinos.
"I believe that gaming regulations as written today do not put The Bahamas in a very competitive position and require a major overhaul if we are to level the playing field, certainly in The Bahamas, and be competitive with other jurisdictions that exist... in North American and Europe and Asia," he said.
"I am also an advocate for the consideration and review of limited relaxations of Bahamians gambling in casinos."
In 2009, the Bahamas Hotel Association (BHA) presented a list of recommendations to the government to ease stringent requirements on gaming.
The proposal, however, did not call for the government to make it legal for Bahamians to gamble in local casinos.
The association asked the government to widen the net of people who can gamble legally, including permanent residents and people on short-term work permits.
At the time, Baha Mar CEO Sarkis Izmirlian told The Nassau Guardian that Baha Mar backed the proposal.
"It happens everywhere in The Bahamas," Izmirlian said, referring to gambling. "You might as well legalize it and let the government benefit from those tax revenues."
Asked whether he would welcome Bahamians gambling in his casino, Izmirlian said at the time that he already welcomes Bahamians everywhere on the properties at Cable Beach.
"One thing that we've done, not just in the design of Baha Mar, but in the hotels today, is we've tried to embrace the community," he said.
"I feel that some of the other resorts have turned their backs a little bit on Bahamians and some didn't even use the word Bahamas in their advertising. We're different from that; not only did we embrace the design and culture, but we want Bahamians to come into our resort."
In that 2009 interview, Izmirlian also said there are very few jurisdictions that don't welcome locals in casinos.
He added that gaming in The Bahamas was being hurt by outdated laws that fail to make the jurisdiction competitive.
"Our gaming laws in The Bahamas are just not competitive versus other jurisdictions in the U.S. and other places in the world, and we really need urgently to address our gaming regulations here in The Bahamas," he said.
"It's a detailed list of recommendations which we believe should be implemented as soon as possible. We need to be competitive on the types of games we can offer [and] how quickly we can implement new games as they become available on the market. And we also need to realize that there are certain residents here, whether it's permanent residents or others, who should be allowed to gamble."
Today, hoteliers still make similar statements about the need for the industry to be more competitive.

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Hoteliers have long sought more competitive gaming sector

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