Dear Editor,
I can't imagine what Minister of Foreign Affairs Fred Mitchell could possibly have been thinking when he claimed that the shift in the U.S. government's policy towards Cuba will not harm The Bahamas.
According to Mitchell, the two countries offer different products, and for this reason there is no reason for alarm. Well, he is right about one thing: The tourism products in question have almost nothing in common with each other.
Cuba can boast of offering a real experience of novelty to American travelers, the charm of the path less travelled, the excitement of the forbidden fruit.
The Bahamas, by contrast, offers the most washed out, repetitive, shallow version "fun in the sun" anywhere in the Caribbean. Maybe anywhere in the world.
Cuba offers the enticement of a time machine, a chance to go back to the quaint authenticity of the 1950s, as the embargo has caught the country in a time warp.
The Bahamas, on the other hand, has very little left to boast of in terms of authentic culture. Much of our music has become one-dimensional "hotel music", while our traditional products such as straw work, are being pushed out of the equation by cheap knockoff products from China and other countries.
The Cuban tourism product, perhaps out of dire necessity, has kept current with the evolving trends of modern tourism, including high yield eco-tourism. Meanwhile, The Bahamas goes on constructing loud and imposing mega resorts offering a cookie-cutter experience with little financial spillover to the local community.
I simply cannot fathom how our Minister of Immigration can fail to notice the many levels on which Cuba simply outdoes The Bahamas in terms of attraction and allure.
Bahamians have to face the facts: we have been coasting along for decades based on our proximity to the United States, the fact that we speak English and our currency is pegged to the U.S. dollar.
With the slow dying off of the entire region as a world recognized tourist definition, we haven't faced any serious challenges for years.
But now, it seems a real test is knocking on our door. And if I was an American tourist, I certainly know which country I would visit.

- Hugh Blair

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