Bahamas makes top 10 ethical countries list

By Krystel Rolle - Guardian Staff Reporter - krystel@nasgaurd.com

Nassau, The Bahamas:

The Bahamas has been voted among the top 10 ethical countries in the developing world by Ethicaltraveler.org.

This is a first for The Bahamas, which is one of two Caribbean countries to make the list this year.

The report rates countries based on issues, including environmental protection, social welfare and human rights.

“It’s worth noting that island states are again a strong presence in this year’s top 10 list,” said the report. “These include The Bahamas, Dominica, Mauritius and Palau.

“One reason for this is their strong environmental efforts. These states understand that islands will be very severely impacted by climate change, and are therefore taking the vanguard in a progressive environment.”

Specifically, in the environment category, the report noted that “in 2011, The Bahamas made the important step of banning shark fishing — protecting one of the most rich and diverse shark populations in the world.”

Minister of Agriculture and Marine Resources Larry Cartwright signed off on the legislation prohibiting commercial shark fishing in 243,244 square miles of the country's waters as well as the sale, importation and export of shark products in June last year.

At the time, Cartwright said, “This is in keeping with the government’s commitment to pursue appropriate conservation measures and strategies in order to safeguard the marine and terrestrial environment.

“This also responds to concerns expressed by citizens and by local, international and non-governmental organizations to the Government of The Bahamas, calling for strengthened protection of sharks in The Bahamas.”

As it relates to the social welfare category, the report considered the welfare of the country’s citizens and visitors using combined “well-respected” resources to conduct research.

“To gauge issues such as access to safe drinking water, sustainable water management, responsible sanitation practices, and agricultural management, we considered the 2011 Human Development Report, compiled by the UN Development Program (UNDP). The Bahamas was the highest ranked ethical destination country on the index this year, followed by Chile,” the report said.

Finally in the human rights category, the report evaluated sources such as Amnesty International and Freedom House among others to gauge the effort made towards improving known situations and the preservation of the basic human rights.

Despite the government’s failure to pass the Freedom of Information Act, The Bahamas, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominica, Palau and Uruguay received the highest possible scores from Freedom House in the categories of political rights and civil liberties and received the highest press freedom score of all ethical destinations countries.

However, The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) is on the government’s agenda now. National Security Minister Tommy Turnquest, who is leader of government business in the House of Assembly, told The Guardian last month that the government hopes to deal with that before the end of the term.

The bill was tabled in the House of Assembly in October, but debate has yet to begin.

Ethical Traveler is a nonprofit organization founded in 1996 by Greenwald, which seeks to use “the economic clout of tourism to protect human rights and the environment”.

Other countries included on the list are Argentina, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominica, Latvia, Mauritius, Palau, Serbia and Uruguay.

Ethical Traveler said that while it understands that no country, particularly those facing significant economic limitations, is faultless, “our goal is to encourage the behaviors we see as creating a safer and more sustainable world”.

Jan 17, 2012

thenassauguardian