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The Guyanese flyer

May 17, 2011 Editorial

For almost a year the Guyana Government has been meeting with the managers of the various airlines seeking reduced costs to the Guyanese travelling public. It never escaped the notice of the local authorities that for some strange reason, it cost almost as much to travel from Georgetown to Trinidad as it did to travel from Trinidad to New York.
Basic mathematics would indicate that this should not be the case given the distance between the two destinations and given the volume of traffic between Georgetown and Port of Spain. There is the use of far less fuel to fly between Georgetown and Trinidad than to fly between Trinidad and New York.
Indeed the airlines, particularly Caribbean Airlines, offered a reason although for the greater part it arrives in Georgetown with almost a full load on each occasion.
There was a promise on the part of Caribbean Airlines to examine the situation and to see whether there was the possibility of an adjustment in fares. Today there is that reduction but it has not come as a result of any examination of the high price situation of which the government and the tourism people complained.
A new carrier, REDjet, has entered the market and it is offering cheap fares, from as low as US$10 for a flight to Trinidad. There is no need to wonder how this compared to the US$400 return charged by Caribbean Airlines. Almost as soon as this airline began flying to Trinidad the price of a ticket on Caribbean Airlines went right down. Competition does this.
We still remember the high cost of an airline ticket from Georgetown to New York until Guyana Airways took to the skies with a rate that was half the price charged by Caribbean Airlines. Needless to say, the so-called regional airline chopped its price to match Guyana Airways.
Now there is another problem. Guyanese had grown accustomed to being hassled at the Grantley Adams Airport in Barbados. At times it was reported that there was a Guyana bench on which arrivals from Guyana were placed and duly shipped out on the next available flight.
The Guyana Government intervened and appealed to its Barbadian counterpart. There was an opportunity for Guyanese immigration officials to travel to the island and work with their Barbadian counterparts. Since then there has been a reduction in the number of complaints.
Trinidad has now replaced as the place where Guyanese seem not to be welcomed. It would seem that the mere presence of a Guyana passport is encouragement enough for the immigration officials there to make life that bit uncomfortable for Guyanese. And this has nothing to do with Guyanese who reside outside the country and are making periodic visits. It would seem that the passport is a trigger.
So we now have returning Guyanese talking about the multiple searches to which they are subjected at the Trinidad airport. Last week, twenty Guyanese coming home from Canada had to remove their belts, shoes, socks and submit their hand luggage for searches.
The people never left the airport, had no contact with anyone but their fellow passengers, and at all times were under the scrutiny of the Trinidad authorities. What is more, the Canadian authorities are much better equipped to screen people boarding airlines there than we are at the moment.
We are therefore certain that the Canadians screened the passengers, especially in the light of the incidence of money laundering, much better than the Trinidadians could. It certainly cannot be that people would move drugs from the north to this part of the world. So there must be some other reason for this unwanted search although the passengers were never allowed to leave the terminal.
It cannot be a problem with the individual travelling because the advance passenger information would lead to the arrest of anyone wanted by Interpol or who may be wanted by any jurisdiction. The conclusion reached by many Guyanese who must go through the hassle at the airports should not be questioned.
There can be no other reason. Antigua, with all the benefits it received from Guyanese migration, is now grumbling about the numbers. It must be something that our politicians are not doing. But then again we are promoting Guyana as a crime-infested country.

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