Do not listen to AVIS!

[mmmbelows]

Then go ask them first hand. Apparently you ignore the information that is out there from first hand accounts of reports of victims of theft there, they report what the police are going all the time which is nothing. I guess you don't believe them, so make a trip and do some interviews at the police station. When you get done and are on the same page as everyone else that the police there don't care about the petty theft inflicted on divers, that they look at tourists as rich whiners who come to their island with expensive doo dads and gadgets and can afford a little loss here and there, that stealing from them is not such a bad thing since they complain but never do anything and they keep on coming back anyways, plus it keeps the thieves busy with them and off the locals. When you figure all that out then you'll have caught up and be on the same page as many of us already are already.

 

[redacted]

Then go ask them first hand. Apparently you ignore the information that is out there from first hand accounts of reports of victims of theft there, they report what the police are going all the time which is nothing. I guess you don't believe them, so make a trip and do some interviews at the police station. When you get done and are on the same page as everyone else that the police there don't care about the petty theft inflicted on divers, that they look at tourists as rich whiners who come to their island with expensive doo dads and gadgets and can afford a little loss here and there, that stealing from them is not such a bad thing since they complain but never do anything and they keep on coming back anyways, plus it keeps the thieves busy with them and off the locals. When you figure all that out then you'll have caught up and be on the same page as many of us already are already.

I think you missed the mark a bit on that one. The police know that all tourists are briefed to leave vehicles unlocked and nothng of value inside. They just don't understand why the victims found those instructions so difficult to follow.

 

[Lorenzoid]

Then go ask them first hand. Apparently you ignore the information that is out there from first hand accounts of reports of victims of theft there, they report what the police are going all the time which is nothing. . . .

Asking is not the same as data. I have read the same police blotter reports you have.

It seems to me it's a complicated issue that you want to oversimplify. Maybe you would be willing to pay whatever the cost would be of eliminating petty theft by having patrols up and down the island, prosecuting and incarcerating the perpetrators, etc., but it remains to be seen whether that's true of all visitors. I and some others here don't feel the crime against tourists is out of proportion. Serious crime is rare and is mostly against local businesses, not tourists. Hotels and resorts do, or at least should, have guards, as they do in other parts of the world that I regard as similar to Bonaire. Those that don't are as susceptible to room burglaries as resorts elsewhere in the world that don't have guards. As has been said many times before in these threads, if the crime were to get bad enough to scare off enough tourists that it hurts their economy, then Bonaire might do something.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I think you missed the mark a bit on that one. The police know that all tourists are briefed to leave vehicles unlocked and nothng of value inside. They just don't understand why the victims found those instructions so difficult to follow.

To be fair, in addition to the (easily preventable) petty theft from vehicles parked at dive sites, there has been some theft or burglary from hotel rooms and rental homes. Some friends of mine had their VRBO burgled, and someone on SB reported the same sort of home burglary not too long ago. Still, I don't see how that is different from what happens in hotels or rental homes elsewhere in the world that have no guards, gated walls, etc. Anywhere you have a lot of tourists staying, you have criminals waiting for an opportunity to get into their lodging.

It's my impression that other than theft from vehicles and the occasional burglary, there's almost no crime against tourists. Few if any reports of muggings, not even aggressive panhandling. Bonaire is all right with me.

 

[mmmbelows]

I think you missed the mark a bit on that one. The police know that all tourists are briefed to leave vehicles unlocked and nothng of value inside. They just don't understand why the victims found those instructions so difficult to follow.

Yep, there wouldn't be any thievery in the world if dickheads just locked their foot lockers.

 

[DustyC]

Point?

That Bonaire has far more LEOS than many comparable sized places. And far less crime.

 

[mmmbelows]

That Bonaire has far more LEOS than many comparable sized places. And far less crime.

LOL. Can't even call a statement like that speculation, it's just plain false.

 

[DustyC]

Are you really going to try to say that Bonaire has fewer than 3 LEOs on duty at a time? Anyone that's ever landed there has seen a few times that many before they got to their rental car.

I know of more shootings in my area than the petty thefts on Bonaire that so many here cry over. I wouldn't even want to begin to count lesser crimes here.

People want more cops, don't want higher taxes, and can't be bothered to tale simple anti theft measures.

No wonder so many people think Americans are spoiled brats. Most are.

 

[Lorenzoid]

. . .
No wonder so many people think Americans are spoiled brats. Most are.

I hesitate to think of us as that, but every time I participate in one of these threads I can't help but think back on so many of the places in the world I have traveled. In all but the most idyllic places I have noticed lots of bars on the windows, razor wire atop the walls, guards at the gates or in the lobbies, etc. A few places have a high police presence, but in most places the residents rely on such defensive measures. We who live in the US, Europe, Australia-NZ, and other such relatively idyllic places by world standards should consider ourselves extremely fortunate not to have to live behind razor wire and barred windows. Economists and politicians think of the world as divided between "the developed world" and "the developing world," but perhaps it is more useful to travelers like me to think of the world as divided between "our world" and "the real world."

 

[mmmbelows]

Are you really going to try to say that Bonaire has fewer than 3 LEOs on duty at a time? Anyone that's ever landed there has seen a few times that many before they got to their rental car.

I know of more shootings in my area than the petty thefts on Bonaire that so many here cry over. I wouldn't even want to begin to count lesser crimes here.

People want more cops, don't want higher taxes, and can't be bothered to tale simple anti theft measures.

No wonder so many people think Americans are spoiled brats. Most are.

If the desire for safety for one's family makes American's spoiled brats, I think you'll find the majority of people in the world ready to raise their hands and join calling themselves spoiled brats too.