A senior Caribbean Community (CARICOM) diplomat in Washington has called on Unites States legislators and the Bush administration to speedily ease the new passport rules, stating that they would significantly impact on the economies of the region.

Dr. Dennis Antoine, Grenada's United States ambassador and dean of the CARICOM diplomatic corps in Washington, told the Caribbean Media Corporation on Sunday that the Caribbean stands to suffer "immensely" if the US remains unsympathetic to the region's cause.

"We're looking for accommodation," he said. "We hope the United States would speed up changes to the passport rule and make it easier for our respective economies.

"We hope the impact would be softened by new accommodations," he added.

"We're looking for sensitivity and accommodation so that there will not be serious impact on the region."

Antoine said CARICOM diplomats last week expressed their deep concern in a meeting with top US State Department officials, which included Brian Nicholls, Director of Caribbean Affairs.

He said the officials, while expressing understanding of the region's plight, seemingly indicated "it's a law they're abiding with."

The new US passport rule has riveted regional governments, officials and administrators to such extent that a top-level CARICOM team, including some Heads of Government, plans to visit Washington this month to personally plead the significant case.

Last month, the Bahamas' Prime Minister Perry Christie called for a united approach in getting the United States to extend the new passport rules.

But while Washington has deferred the passport requirement for Americans re-entering the country by land and sea to June 2009, from January 2007, it has been silent on air travel.

Caribbean tourism officials are thus taking this silence to mean that the air travel rules, effective Jan. 8, 2007, remain intact.

"We need to take action now, and regional governments need to be a serious partner in this effort," said Peter Odle, the Caribbean Hotel Association

(CHA) president, noting the potential devastating economic impact on the region.

"It is necessary to develop a definitive and clear strategy to achieve the objective of delaying the introductory date for arrivals by air to June 2009, which is the same date as announced for arrivals by cruise ships," he added.

Vincent Vanderpool-Wallace, secretary general of the 32-member Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), has compared the recent US amendment of the rules, known as the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, to a "Category 6 Hurricane."

"It is incomprehensible that the United States government would approve an amendment that excludes air arrivals from the Caribbean and, thereby, grant an additional advantage to cruise lines in the Caribbean who already enjoy a significant competitive advantage, especially in light of the fact that the cruise lines supported the inclusion of air arrivals also.

"Because of the potential far-ranging effect of this action," he added, "there is nothing potentially more devastating. This is a Category 6 Hurricane.”