Travel to Cuba low now – travel restrictions and economies prevent
Download 0.7 Mb.
|
- Navigate this page:
- America’s influence in Cuba is crucial for foreign policy
- Cuba is critical to America’s image in LA
- ***Caribbean Tourism Add-on/AT: DA***
- Tourism ruins Caribbean culture and economy—it also ruins the environment and cultural stability
- Increased Travel to Cuba will be devastating for Caribbean economies
- Tourism in the Caribbean negatively affects the environment, and the social sector—studies prove income from tourism doesn’t outweigh the negative effects
- N/U – Caribbean Travel Low Now
***US Influence Add-on***Plan leads to increased influence over CubaCenter for Democracy in the Americas et al 9 [Center for Democracy in the Americas, the Latin America Working Group, the Lexington Institute, the New America Foundation, and Washington Office on Latin America, TRAVEL TO CUBA HELPS U.S. FARMERS AND AGRICULTURAL BUSINNESS IN OUR NATIONAL, 2009, INTERESTS http://democracyinamericas.org/pdfs/trade_talking_points.pdf] In addition to helping to create the substantial market Cuba should provide ¶ American farmers, travel to Cuba by U.S. citizens helps in creating the kind of ¶ dialogue and social interchange that Cuba hasn’t seen in decades. ¶ • People-to-people exchange between Americans and Cubans promotes ¶ understanding, transmits ideas, and generates debate. As Cuba’s people and ¶ government contemplate their future, unrestricted American travel to Cuba will ¶ help position our people, our values, and our businesses, and enhance our ¶ influence. America’s influence in Cuba is crucial for foreign policySabatini and Berger 12- Sabatini is the editor-in-chief of Americas Quarterly and the senior director of policy at Americas Society/Council of the Americas and Berger is a policy associate at the Americas Society. [Christopher Sabatini and Ryan Berger, “Why the U.S. can’t afford to ignore Latin America”, CNN.com, 6/13/12, http://globalpublicsquare.blogs.cnn.com/2012/06/13/why-the-u-s-cant-afford-to-ignore-latin-america/, accessed 6/27/13] Here are three reasons why the U.S. must include Latin America in its strategic calculations:¶ 1. Today, pursuing a global foreign policy requires regional allies.¶ Recently, countries with emerging economies have appeared to be taking positions diametrically opposed to the U.S. when it comes to matters of global governance and human rights. Take, for example, Russia and China’s stance on Syria, rejecting calls for intervention.¶ Another one of the BRICS, Brazil, tried to stave off the tightening of U.N. sanctions on Iran two years ago. And last year, Brazil also voiced its official opposition to intervention in Libya, leading political scientist Randall Schweller to refer to Brazil as “a rising spoiler.”¶ At a time of (perceived) declining U.S. influence, it’s important that America deepens its ties with regional allies that might have been once taken for granted. As emerging nations such as Brazil clamor for permanent seats on the U.N. Security Council and more representatives in the higher reaches of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the U.S. will need to integrate them into global decision-making rather than isolate them.¶ If not, they could be a thorn in the side of the U.S. as it tries to implement its foreign policy agenda. Worse, they could threaten to undermine efforts to defend international norms and human rights. Cuba Key to Greater LACuba is critical to America’s image in LAPerez 10 – J.D. Yale Law School (David A. Perez, Harvard Latino Law Review 13 Harv. Latino L. Rev. 187, “America's Cuba Policy: The Way Forward: A Policy Recommendation for the U.S. State Department”, Spring, 2010, accessed 6/26/13) When analyzing ecosystems, environmental scientists seek out "keystone species." These are organisms that, despite their small size, function as lynchpins for, or barometers of, the entire system's stability. Cuba, despite its size and isolation, is a keystone nation in Latin America, having disproportionately dominated Washington's policy toward the region for decades. n6 As a result of its continuing tensions with Havana, America's reputation [*192] in the region has suffered, as has its ability to deal with other countries. n7 For fifty years, Latin American governments that hoped to endear themselves to the U.S. had to pass the Cuba "litmus test." But now the tables have turned, and the Obama Administration, if it wants to repair America's economic image in the region, will have to pass a Cuba litmus test of its own. n8 In short, America must once again be admired if we are going to expect other countries to follow our example. To that end, warming relations with Cuba would have a reverberating effect throughout Latin America, and would go a long way toward creating goodwill. ***Caribbean Tourism Add-on/AT: DA***Add-onUS travel to Cuba trades-off with travel to other Caribbean statesRomeu 8 - a Senior Economist at the International Monetary Fund, where he has worked since 2001 (Rafael Romeu, IMF, “Vacation Over: Implications for the Caribbean of Opening U.S.-Cuba Tourism,” published July 2008, http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/wp/2008/wp08162.pdf, accessed 6/27/13, IS) Economic diversification requires finding an instrument that identifies visitor preferences in a market in a hypothetical post-opening of Cuba-U.S. tourism. Previous work has found that measures of national culture (or cultural distance) are a useful instrument for predicting such preferences. In other words, measures of cultural distance identify OECD tourists with destination preferences that differ from U.S. tourists. As the likelihood of Cuba opening to U.S. tourism were to rise, Caribbean competitors would need to hedge potential tourist losses to Cuba by diversifying to from US. tourists, therefore diversifying the Cuban economy, and toward culturally different countries. This effect would be strongest and most observable for Caribbran destinations that are most dependent on U.S. tourists. This effect would also be most observable whenever it were to appear that the Cuba-U.S. tourism restrictions might be lifted. In such times, heavily U.S.-dependent countries would have a strong incentive to diversify away from U.S. tourists, that is, reduce * in Equation (8). At times when these tourism restrictions are very unlikely to end, they would have little incentive to do so. Tourism ruins Caribbean culture and economy—it also ruins the environment and cultural stabilityMcDaniel 10 – Paul holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in geography from Samford University and the University of Tennessee and a Master of Arts in Education from the University of Alabama. He is pursuing a Ph.D. in geography from the University of North Carolina. [http://www.ehow.com/facts_5561618_effects-tourism-caribbean.html The Effects of Tourism in the Caribbean 6.29.13] The travel industry and tourism have had significant effects on the Caribbean region. These effects range from positive to negative, particularly in relation to the local cultures, policies, economies, environments and people of the many Caribbean islands. The major effect is that many Caribbean island countries' economies are highly reliant on the travel and tourism industry.¶ Effects on Culture¶ Each Caribbean island tries to maintain its own distinct history and culture. When these cultures come into contact with the strong forces of globalization, maintaining traditional local culture often becomes quite difficult.¶ Effects on Politics¶ Island governments often have a ministry of tourism to oversee the country's advocacy for increased tourism and travel industry development, which adds jobs and contributes to an island's economy.¶ Effects on Economy¶ Economic effects, both positive and negative, are perhaps the most visible of tourism effects on the Caribbean. These include island nations' utmost reliance on tourism and travel as the predominant industry. However, because many tour and travel companies are not always based in a particular island country, much of the profit does not stay on the island.¶ Effects from Industry Cycles¶ Travel and tourism can be a very cyclical industry, with travel increasing and decreasing as a result of fluctuations in the global economy. When the travel industry is bustling, the Caribbean is able to attract many visitors from around the world, but in tough economic times fewer people spend money on travel, leading to fewer people visiting and spending money in the Caribbean.¶ Effects on Environment¶ Tourism can have environmental effects on Caribbean islands, such as hordes of cruise ship tourists flocking onto and off of islands each day, consuming energy and resources. Additionally, local ecosystems and environments can be affected by cruise ship and land-based resort activities Ext.- LinkIncreased Travel to Cuba will be devastating for Caribbean economiesSanders 09 [Sir Ronald, 4/19. Sir Ronald Sanders is currently a Visiting Fellow at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies, University of London in the UK. He is an International Consultant, Writer and former senior Caribbean Ambassador. http://www.eturbonews.com/8860/caribbean-cannot-base-tourism-us-embargo-against-cuba 6.28.13] US President Barack Obama has fulfilled a promise made to Cuban-Americans during last year's presidential campaign to ease travel restrictions allowing them to visit Cuba as they wish, and to send money back home to their dependents.¶ This decision has caused more than a ripple of concern among tourism authorities in some Caribbean countries, and contradictory statements have been issued about the likely effect on their tourism industries.¶ The reality is that Caribbean countries have little to fear from President Obama's policy. Easing travel for Cuban-Americans to travel to Cuba will have little or no effect on other Caribbean destinations. Very few Cuban-Americans travel on holiday to Caribbean countries.¶ The real impact on Caribbean tourism will come when the US and Cuba normalize relations and the 49-year-old US embargo on Cuba comes to an end.¶ But the worry that Obama's decision has created in some Caribbean countries is a good thing. None of them should predicate the development of their tourist industry on a continuing trade blockade of Cuba by the US. Sooner or later the embargo will be lifted and Cuba will be a strong and direct competitor with other Caribbean countries for US tourists and US investment in the tourist industry. Neighboring Caribbean countries must therefore prepare themselves for this competition and be ready to meet it.¶ Hopefully, the concern generated by the easing of travel restrictions to Cuba for Cuban-Americans will catapult other Caribbean countries into serious planning for the lifting of the US embargo. Ext.- Env ImpactTourism in the Caribbean negatively affects the environment, and the social sector—studies prove income from tourism doesn’t outweigh the negative effectsKennedy 11 [Rita, is a writer and researcher and holds a Ph.D. in history and an honors degree in geography from the University of Ulster. http://traveltips.usatoday.com/effects-tourism-caribbean-63368.html 6.28.13] Tourism is vital to the entire Caribbean region, contributing an estimated 14.2 percent of the region's Gross Domestic Product in 2011, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council. A survey undertaken by the Oxford Economic organization in 2010 found that tourism played a larger role in the Caribbean economy than it did in any of the world's other equivalent areas. Yet the majority of this income -- perhaps as high as 80 cents in every dollar -- "leaks out" of the Caribbean.¶ The tourism industry is a major employer throughout the region, directly supporting an estimated 687,000 jobs and another 2,167,000 indirectly in 2011. However, many of these jobs are seasonal and very low-paid, while the money generated by internationally funded projects fails to reach locals. In fact, only 15 percent of the Chinese-funded Baha Mar construction project in the Bahamas found its way to local laborers. On many islands, a racial divide appears to exist, on the one hand, between the owners of tourist facilities, and, on the other hand, the workers at the tourist establishments, according to former Caribbean ambassador Sir Ronald Sanders.¶ Local Development¶ Tourism could have a tremendous beneficial impact on local economies, but many hotels source their food and cleaning products from abroad rather than purchasing them from local producers. An Oxfam study found that hotels in St. Lucia imported more than 70 percent of their produce every year. Local farmers cannot compete internationally and have suffered from a decline in the banana trade, but Oxfam and other organizations are encouraging hotels to source food from local farmers, and by doing so keeping the tourist income within the community and supporting farmer's efforts to diversify their crops. For some hotels and restaurants, shopping locally adds a more authentic flavor to the products that they offer tourism and is a selling point in itself. For example, the Ocean Terrace Inn (oceanterraceinn.com) in St. Kitts prides itself on serving food made using locally sourced ingredients.¶ Water Resources¶ Tourism makes huge demands on the Caribbean's water resources that is used for drinking, cooking, washing, swimming pools and air conditioning, reducing the volume of water available to local people. One study found that the average guest in Jamaica uses between 645 and 2,086 liters per night, compared with between 95 and 729 liters per guest per night in the United Kingdom. Several hotels have implemented programs to reduce their water use and make it more efficient. Installing gravity-flush toilets and low-flow showerheads can reduce the amount of water used by guests.¶ Environment¶ Tourism can be harmful to the environment in a variety of ways. Cruise ships sailing through the Caribbean dump waste into the sea; one 2002 study found that a ship carrying 2,000 passengers and 1,000 crew generated the same amount of waste as a small city. This waste, including oil residues, harms marine ecosystems, including coral reefs. Groups such as the Caribbean Tourism Organization are promoting more sustainable tourism projects that attempt to reduce the impact of tourism on the local environment, while the United Nations' Caribbean Environment Program supports this effort with the Cartagena Convention. The Convention aims to protect the Caribbean's delicate marine environment by establishing a series of protocols on combating oil spills, creating protected areas and dealing with pollution from the land. N/U – Caribbean Travel Low NowThe Caribbean tourism industry is low now, and will continue to fallJessop, 2/1 [David Jessop, Director of the Caribbean Council, “The long-term future of Caribbean tourism”, 2/1/13, http://www.caribbean-council.org/sites/default/files/colfeb1%20(The%20future%20of%20Caribbean%20tourism%201).doc, 6/30/13] A week or so ago, the Board of the Caribbean Hotels and Tourism Association (CHTA) passed unanimously a resolution calling on Caribbean Heads of Government to convene a summit on tourism. What the private sector body wants is for urgent high level consideration to be given to the many challenges now facing the industry and the threats these pose to region’s tourism-dependent economy. ¶ Since then their request has been dismissed by some commentators as posturing. ¶ Why this should be is in part a reflection of a sense across the region that the industry, and hoteliers in particular, are too well off, that tourism largely involves foreigners, and that those who run it have been crying wolf for too long, without offering solutions that the region’s political leadership can relate to. ¶ The matter is not helped by there being an uncertain hiatus between the retirement of CHTA’s Director General, and the appointment of a successor; with the consequence that there is, as yet, no indication of who is to follow through, to ensure that such a high level exchange might occur. ¶ Despite this, there is real merit in the concerns expressed by CHTA and a clear need for a policy dialogue on key issues between all key stakeholders in and beyond the region on the future of what has become a highly complex and vital industry. ¶ It may of course not be possible to bring all Heads together, but there would be real value if one, or better still a small group of Prime Ministers who understand the political, economic and social dimensions of tourism, were to provide the political leadership necessary to create such an encounter. This would have particular value if such a group were able to report to their colleagues on the political steps required to enable Caribbean tourism to remain fresh, viable and able to provide sustainable long term support for the Caribbean economy.¶ The reality of Caribbean tourism today is that although the number of visitor arrivals into the region is again increasing, the value of the tourism economy is moving in the other direction: since 2007, for example, annual visitor spend has fallen by US$5 billion. Governments ignore this at their peril. If income is falling and profitability has yet to reach pre-2007 levels, it suggests that the Caribbean is becoming less competitive in relation to other destinations, and that current levels of tourism employment and tax revenue may not be sustainable. ¶ There is no shortage of statistics or professional advice to suggest this, but a dearth of industry voices able to articulate this clearly or politically and promote a serious debate not about where the industry now is, but where it might be in twenty years time.¶ What is even odder is that beyond this there is little if any interest by governments or regional institutions in the econometric modelling of the Caribbean industry to enable the development of models into which assumptions that for instance demonstrate whether the reduction or increase in taxes bring greater or lesser returns. As a consequence, taxes go up, airlines are incentivised and tax holidays are granted without there being any clear understanding of whether the short, medium or long term impact is likely to be positive or negative. For an industry worth more than US$25 billion per annum and which employs at least thirteen per cent of the region’s workforce, this is truly disturbing.¶ Download 0.7 Mb. Share with your friends:
|