US embassy cable - 05KINGSTON1037

UNCLAS KINGSTON 001037 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAR (BENT) 
NSC FOR SHANNON 
SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD AND J7 (RHANNAN) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: JM, AADP, AMGT, CASC, CMGT, CPAS, KPAO, KCSY, KHLS, PGOV, PREL, CA, BD, XL, XM 
SUBJECT: DEMARCH DELIVERED: WESTERN HEMISPHERE TRAVEL 
INITIATIVE 
 
REF: STATE 61416 
 
1. Responding to reftel request, Charge on April 5 
communicated talking points by telephone to Gilbert Scott, 
Permanent Secretary, Ministry of National Security, and to 
Barbara James, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Industry 
Tourism.  Both were interested in the issue and appreciated 
the advance notice of the impending deadline.  Scott 
commented that requiring Americans to travel with 
machine-readable passports instead of birth certificates 
would make it easier for Jamaican immigration officials to 
use their newly implemented automated entry/exit system. 
James said that she would pass the information along to Aloun 
Assamba, Minister of Industry and Tourism. 
 
2. Also on April 5, Poloff conveyed same talking points by 
phone and fax to Ann Scott, Caribbean and Americas 
Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade. 
Scott accepted the information and indicated that she would 
review the details of the initiative.  She also registered 
her concern for the impact the initiative would likely have 
on Jamaica's important tourism industry.  Scott questioned 
whether a public campaign would promote the new travel 
initiative to U.S. citizens.  She offered that this would be 
important because it is her impression, based on the number 
of tourists who travel to Jamaica each year with only birth 
certificates and drivers licenses, that Americans are 
generally reluctant to acquire passports, especially compared 
with Jamaicans, who commonly use passports as a form of 
identification.  Scott was initially confused when contacted, 
pointing out that the Summit of the Americas is currently 
discussing a Western Hemisphere Transport Initiative (WHTI). 
TIGHE