Jamaica's U.S. ambassador, Audrey Marks, is pressuring the State Department to rescind its updated Level 3 travel advisory for Jamaica, calling the advisory's claims about crime and healthcare "inaccurate."
The advisory said violent crimes on the island are common and that sexual assaults occur frequently, including at all-inclusive resorts. The warning did not offer any details or specifics about sexual assaults at all-inclusive resorts.
/Audrey-Marks.jpg?n=9869&tr=w-500%2Cfo-auto "Audrey Marks")
Audrey Marks
The warning also said local police often do not respond effectively to serious criminal incidents and that emergency services and hospital care vary throughout the island and cannot always provide high-level or specialized care.
In a Facebook post shared on Tuesday, Marks said that the Jamaican government "disagrees strongly with the contents of the revised travel advisory, as it distorts the reality and facts in Jamaica," and has made its position known to U.S. officials. She shared a link to a fact sheet, which cited information from Jamaica's Ministry of Tourism and Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Foreign Trade.
Marks also warned against the advisory's potential negative economic impact, imploring Jamaicans, both at home and abroad, to get "involved in achieving its reversal."
The U.S. Embassy in Kingston also chimed in on social media, releasing a statement on Wednesday seemingly intended to tamp down the controversy around the reissued advisory.
"The State Department's update on January 23, 2024 was a routine release" and "was not timed with any other issue," said the embassy, describing the move as "analytical" in nature.
"We will continue to work with the Jamaican government and our local partners to serve the interests of U.S. citizens and promote the well-being of Jamaicans," the embassy added.