ministryofforeignaffairs

As the international community reacts to the arrest of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and growing political uncertainty in the South American nation, the Government of the Bahamas has confirmed that a Bahamian national remains detained in Venezuela.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a travel warning advising Bahamians not to travel to Venezuela, citing safety and security concerns. The Ministry also confirmed that the government has raised diplomatic concerns regarding the detained Bahamian, describing the detention as “unlawful” and expressing concern for his welfare.

The individual has been identified by The Tribune as pilot Oran Munroe.

Who Is Oran Munroe?

Oran Munroe was 34 years old in 2021 when his family reported him missing in July of that year. A missing person bulletin was subsequently issued by the Royal Bahamas Police Force.

According to Venezuelan media outlet Últimas Noticias, a twin-engine Cessna aircraft crashed in Venezuela in August 2021. Reports at the time stated that the aircraft contained Munroe, a 27-year-old Colombian national, documents including a Bahamian passport, passport photos of unidentified individuals, maps, an aircraft manual, and a mobile phone.

Bahamian officials indicated in 2021 that Munroe had not been formally charged at that time, but would be subject to the laws of Venezuela.

The Tribune previously reported that the Royal Bahamas Police Force confirmed Munroe was in Venezuelan police custody in 2021, where he was being questioned in connection with alleged drug trafficking. No public update on charges has been issued since.

Munroe was a former employee of Sky Bahamas and was last seen on July 24, 2021.

Chief Superintendent Roberto Goodman, then officer in charge of the Drug Enforcement Unit, confirmed at the time that Munroe’s flight originated in Abaco before the aircraft crashed in Venezuela.

Sky Bahamas owner Captain Randy Butler told The Tribune that he reported the private aircraft missing.

Diplomatic efforts underway

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says diplomatic channels have been engaged to address the matter and to seek assurances regarding Munroe’s safety and security.

Officials have not disclosed details surrounding the circumstances of his continued detention.

Rwanda and the Bahamas have mutually agreed to waive visa requirements for their citizens to foster international friendship and ease travel restrictions. This groundbreaking decision was announced via a Twitter post by Rwanda’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, confirming that the new policy extends to passport holders from both countries.

The historic agreement was inked on September 23 in New York, coinciding with the 79th United Nations General Assembly.

This development is a follow-up to Rwandan President Paul Kagame’s visit to The Bahamas in July 2023, when he participated in the nation’s 50th independence anniversary celebrations. President Kagame was honored with the Order of Excellence medal for his new friendship with the Bahamian government.

Since 2022, Davis and Kigame have been exploring ways to strengthen ties between the two countries. President Kagame, during his official visit, underscored the significance of direct connections between Africa and the Caribbean. He pointed out the keen interest of Africans in establishing closer ties with the Caribbean region.

Davis was last in Rwanda in June 2022 during a Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting.

The Passport Office reopened on Wednesday following the death of an employee reportedly exposed to COVID-19.

The Thompson Blvd office was shut down for two days after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs advised the public of COVID-19 exposure in the building.

In a statement, the ministry said, “several positive COVID cases of employees” were identified, while acknowledging “the unfortunate passing of an employee.”

The two-day shut was to allow the Ministry of Health Surveillance Team to conduct a contact tracing assessment of the staff.

This comes as the country sees COVID-19 cases rise exponentially.

Prime Minister Hubert Minnis described it as “concerning” and stated that the pandemic is attacking the unvaccinated.

He said the country is seeking to access more vaccines to protect the unvaccinated.

“One thing the Bahamian populace must understand, we are in two pandemics. The vaccinated individuals are now out of the pandemic. The pandemic is finished for the vaccinated.

“The non-vaccinated are still in the pandemic. Therefore, it is essential for us to aggressively pursue vaccines so that we can vaccinate our populace as quickly and efficiently as possible so that they can move into the vaccinated portion, thus the non-pandemic,” he said.

At last report, 81 new cases were confirmed in the country—55 in New Providence, 19 in Grand Bahama, 2 in Abaco, and 4 in Bimini and Cat Cay.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has had to correct Channel 10 Miami News broadcast when television broadcasters incorrectly reported the coronavirus numbers in the Bahamas while warning Americans of traveling to the country based on Centers for Disease Control’s travel advisory for the Bahamas.

What happened and why it matterscovid19

• The reporter said that there were 7,460 COVID-19 cases reported in the Bahamas on Tuesday, when in fact the number for that day was 29. The 7,460-figure referred to in the broadcast was the total number of cases recorded in the Bahamas to that date. The news story was repeated on several social media outlets and at least one local news station.
• The incorrect reporting can adversely affect the country’s already ailing tourism industry as officials move to increase tourism numbers.

The big picture

The US government’s recent advisory is at a level 4, ‘very high level,’ warning its citizens that they should avoid all travel to the Bahamas, as travel “may increase their chances of getting and spreading COVID-19.” US travel advisories are issued at various levels for all countries around the world. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs says such advisories are normal and are done in accordance with US regulations.

What the Ministry of Foreign Affairs did to correct the error

• One report suggested that the Ministry took no action to correct this mistake made by Channel 10 and the Ministry’s leadership in Miami was called into question.
• The Bahamas Consul-General in Miami “immediately and appropriately” contacted Channel 10 to point out the error. Channel 10 subsequently made a retraction the same day.
• Furthermore, the Consul-General provided Channel 10 with the correct statistics for the Bahamas. The correction is on the website of Channel 10 and states, “Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story erroneously stated that 7,460 cases of COVID-19 had been reported on Tuesday. That number is, in fact, the total number of cases that have been confirmed in the Bahamas to date. We regret this error.”

Worth noting

• COVID-19 infections are actually trending downward based on the release of the latest statistics. Thirteen new cases were confirmed by health officials on Thursday:
  • New Providence–8
  • Grand Bahama–3
  • Abaco–1
  • Exuma–1

Featured Image: Tribune