However, The Bahamas remains firm in its stance, against joining the CSME, which calls for one common currency amongst the 15-member states.

This, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Brent Symonette told the Bahamian media, upon his return from the CARICOM Heads of Government Meeting in Bridgetown, Barbados, held July 1 to 4.

”I think The Bahamas’ position is well known on CSME. It’s been said by the Prime Minister, myself that The Bahamas is not in favour of CSME. That position has been stated many times,” Mr. Symonette said.

“The prime minister of Barbados, Owen Arthur dealt
with it very well; trying to position the Caribbean in a way that we can be all inclusive for all member states. And that’s what we are looking at now.” 

Maritime and Air Security

The question of maritime and air security was also discussed by Caricom Heads. Mr. Symonette noted that Jamaica and other member-states have a system where they can track passengers as they get on the plane.

Called an “advance passenger information services”, when a passenger checks in at Grenada before going to Barbados, the immigration there are well aware of who is traveling and whether there are any security risk issues.

“It’s a way of co-operation between the region, so there are a lot of issues that we can work with,” Mr. Symonette said.

CARICOM Arrest Warrants

As the document is in its draft stages, however, Trinidad and Tobago is pushing the issue; other member states have agreed not to sign off on it.
The agreement looks into the question of a warrant in one member country for a national; who happens to be a citizen of another.

The agreement will be sent to the Office of the Attorney General and the Ministry of National Security before it is signed, Mr.Symonette said. 

On the issue of health, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs said, “The health section of the Caricom Secretariat works as a technical arm of many Caricom countries and they are actually working on a regional health policy.

A conference is scheduled for Trinidad in September, to focus on the “whole question of HIV/AIDS and other health issues”, he said. 

Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative

The western hemisphere travel initiative was raised by Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham during Caricom’s meeting with US President George Bush last month in Washington, D. C.

It was also a focal point at the Caricom Summit that the region is starting to fell the impact of a drop off in tourism numbers.
”No question you will see it affecting various caricom nations,” Mr. Symonette said. “The recent change is whereby if you show proof of application for your passport and a government ID, you will be able to travel on
that.”
 He noted that he also met with former Bahamas Director General of Tourism Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, now chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation.

“They are beginning to lobby in Washington on behalf of the region to have the initiative put on the same footing as cruise ships. The law in the United States has to be implemented,” Mr. Symonette said. 

Deportation

Caricom countries are also “very concerned” that persons deported from the United States returned back to their country. There are two issues. On, the question of deportation. The second question is also providing a fund for the resettlement of those individuals back in
their respective countries.
”In some cases a person is deported to country A, where he or she probably left that country at the age of two. No connection with the country they were deported to save for the fact that they arrived in the United States from there,” Mr. Symonette said. 

“So the resettlement issue is a big issue so that they don't revert back to criminal activity and that's what we have to look at.”
He added,”One thing we did discuss was the question of movement of skilled labour between Caricom nations, the free movement of other persons and a travel card so that you didn't nee to have your [passport]”

On Travel card or Caribbean passport, Mr. Symonette said that The Bahamas is looking at the question of a Caribbean passport, but first priority is introducing machine-readable passports.