COUNTRY CLEARANCE GRANTED TO O?NEAL FOR

UNCLAS BRIDGETOWN 001170

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ASEC OTRA BB XL
SUBJECT: COUNTRY CLEARANCE GRANTED TO O?NEAL FOR
TRAVEL TO BARBADOS

REF: 051520Z SEP 07


1. Embassy Bridgetown warmly welcomes and grants
country clearance to Mrs. Mitzi O?Neal, Special Agent,
NCIS for travel to Barbados from September 18 - 23,

2007. The purpose of this mission is to liaise with
USMLO and RSO and to provide support for a United
States naval ship visiting Bridgetown port.


2. Embassy points of contact are CDR P. Kofi Aboagye,
Chief, Military Liaison Office, (246) 227-4339 or cell
(246) 230-2705; LCDR Rene Cerda, Deputy Chief,
Military Liaison Office, (246) 227-4166 or cell (246)
230-2712; Mr. Robert Starnes, Regional Security
Officer, (246) 227-4135 or cell (246) 823-4436; and
Mr. Eric Freeman, Assistant Regional Security Officer,
(246) 227-4173 or cell (246) 826-1164.


3. Hotel reservation has been confirmed for traveler
at the Hilton Barbados, Needhams Point, Saint Michael,
tel. 1-246-426-0200; fax. 1-246-434-5792. Hotel
confirmation number is 3290638432. The United States
Military Liaison Office (USMLO) and the Regional
Security Office are located at the United States
Embassy Barbados, Wildey Business Park, Wildey, Saint
Michael.


4. Post?s resources do not allow us the flexibility
to meet and assist visitors at the airport. However,
Barbadian Customs and Immigration are visitor-
friendly. The taxi rate from the airport to the hotel
is approximately BDS$30 (US$15). The exchange rate is
approximately 2 Barbados Dollars for 1 U.S. Dollar.
You should bring enough U.S. Dollar bills to pay the
taxi. U.S. currency, traveler?s checks, and credit
cards are routinely and widely accepted here. The
exchange rate for Saint Lucia is approximately $2.70
ECD (Eastern Caribbean) dollars for $1.00 U.S. dollar.
U.S. currency, traveler?s checks, and credit cards are
also routinely and widely accepted here.


5. Entry requirements: A valid U.S. passport is
required to enter Barbados. No visa is required if
your stay is under six months, including those
travelers arriving with diplomatic or official
passports. For further information, travelers may
contact the Embassy of Barbados, 2144 Wyoming Avenue
N.W., Washington D.C. 20008, tel. 1-202-939-9200.


6. Restrictions: The laws of Barbados, Antigua and
Barbuda, Saint Lucia, Grenada, Dominica, and Saint
Kitts and Nevis prohibit non-military personnel from
wearing any articles of camouflage clothing.
Immigration officers in these countries randomly check
visitor?s baggage on arrival at the airport; if items
of restriction are found, you will be asked to
surrender them to the officers.


7. Departure tax for Barbados is BDS$60 or USD$30.


8. ICASS TDY Policy: Each visitor, regardless of
length of stay, must bring/forward fiscal data to pay
for direct costs of the visit. Each agency,
organization or visiting delegation will be charged
for the actual costs attributed to its visit. Direct
charge costs include, but are not limited to: airport
transportation and expediting; driving services;
American and LES overtime (for such services as
airport expediting, cashier accommodation exchange,
control room staffing, representational event
support); travel and per diem costs incurred by post
personnel in support of visitor?s field travel; rental
of vehicles and other equipment; long distance
telephone calls; office supplies, procurement/small
purchasing; departure tax and other airport fees.
Post will not provide service if fiscal data is not
provided for the direct charges.

For TDYers remaining at post over 30 days, there is a
charge for ICASS support services. This charge is for
the following ICASS services: Basic Package, CLO and
Health Services. Agencies will not be billed until
the accumulated invoice cost for TDY support exceeds

$2,500 for the fiscal year. If your sponsoring agency
is not signed up for ICASS services at post, please be
prepared to sign a Memorandum of Understanding for
ICASS support services upon arrival. The agency
should provide post with a written communication,
generated by the traveler?s headquarters, that
confirms the agency will pay ICASS charges for the
TDYer, provides the agency ICASS billing code to which
the TDY support charges should be applied, and
authorizes the traveler to sign the ICASS invoice
generated by the TDY module. Where travel is urgent,
the TDYer should bring this documentation with him/her
to ensure there are no interruptions in the provision
of service. Post will not provide any service to a
TDYer staying in excess of thirty days without
provision of this documentation before day 31 of the
TDY.?


9. The following is general information pertaining to
security and health considerations throughout the
Eastern Caribbean:

Security
--------------
In the Eastern Caribbean, foot travel outside of well-
established tourist areas is not generally
recommended, especially at night. Be vigilant when
using public telephones or ATM machines near roadsides
or quiet areas. As in many U.S. metropolitan areas,
wearing expensive jewelry, carrying expensive objects,
or carrying large amounts of cash should be avoided.
Visitors should also safeguard valuables while at the
beach. While hotels are generally safe, many visitors
have experienced loss of unattended items. Hotel
burglaries are not uncommon and all valuables should
be locked in room safes if possible.


Health Information
--------------
Throughout the Eastern Caribbean, the most likely
threat to a visitor?s health is sunburn. It takes
several weeks to become accustomed to the heat and
humidity. Prolonged exposure to the sun, without
protection, causes sunburn and may ultimately result
in sun-damaged skin or even skin cancer. Sunscreens
should be used for protection. In Barbados, St.
Lucia, and St. Vincent the major health threat is
dengue fever, transmitted by mosquito. Dengue cases
are most often seen in the summer months. Persons
should therefore protect themselves with insect
repellant. There is also a growing number of HIV/AIDS
cases reported. The Eastern Caribbean enjoys clean
and safe drinking water. Only routine boosters for
immunizations (i.e. tetanus, diphtheria, and oral
polio vaccine) are required when traveling to this
region. Barbados has the best medical facilities of
all the islands in the region and most of the medical
specialties have practitioners here.

FISHER