Durrant Pate/Contributor

Jamaica’s tourism product was hit with yet another body blow as the US State Department escalated its warning about travel to the island, in response to the wave of violence after 65 recorded murders in January and frequent sex attacks – including at all-inclusive resorts.

The travel alert has been raised to the second highest level, just below ‘do not travel’. The State Department advisory hints that Jamaica is the latest Caribbean nation Americans should think about crossing off their winter holiday list, joining The Bahamas with new warnings.

According to the advisory, “Jamaica’s homicide rate was among the highest in the Western Hemisphere for the past several years. However, none of the 65 people killed in Jamaica this year were visitors.”

It went on to say, “Violent crimes, such as home invasions, armed robberies, sexual assaults, and homicides are common. Sexual assaults occur frequently, including at all-inclusive resorts. Local police often do not respond effectively to serious criminal incidents. When arrests are made, cases are infrequently prosecuted to a conclusive sentence.”

The advisory notes that families of U.S. citizens killed in accidents or homicides frequently wait a year or more for final death certificates to be issued by Jamaican authorities. Canadian travel warnings even advise women to avoid drinking heavily at resorts in case they fall prey to predators.

Last week, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator Kamina Johnson Smith, held talks with US officials in Kingston amid what she has described as Jamaica’s concerns over the scope and extent of the recently issued travel advisory by Washington to Americans, who intend to visit the island.

In a media release, Johnson Smith reported that she held talks with US Ambassador to Jamaica Nick Perry, and other US Embassy officials “to interrogate issues detailed in the advisory”.