In seven countries at once, tourists are advised to reconsider their travel plans to one of the largest countries on the planet due to the danger of violence. And it is about the USA. New Zealand, Canada, Australia, Great Britain, France, and even Venezuela and Uruguay have issued recommendations for their tourists planning to go to this country. The warning level is still minimal, but the “trend” is quite interesting. At the same time, the main problem pointed out by the warnings is terrorism and violence with the use of firearms.
According to Yahoo News, there have been more than 200 mass shootings in the US this year, meaning incidents where four or more people have been injured or killed, not including the shooter. “There have been more than 600 mass shootings in the U.S. in each of the last three years or about two every day,” the paper notes. As a result, the 2022 Global Peace Index, which measures the peacefulness of countries and consists of 23 quantitative and qualitative indicators, ranked the US 129th out of 163 countries, just ahead of Brazil. “This is a cause for concern for any country that seeks to attract people to life, work, and recreation,” experts said.
The Pew Research Center found that the US gun death rate in 2021 was 14.6 per 100,000 people – a rate far higher than most developed countries. For example, the situation in countries that have issued warnings is as follows: Canada – 2.1 per 100,000 people, Australia 1.0, France 2.7. However, the publication does not forget to mention that the indicator is “much lower than in many Latin American countries”, including El Salvador and Colombia.
The details regarding the warnings are as follows.
New Zealand has issued the country a second level of danger in its travel advisories for the US, meaning that citizens are advised to exercise extra caution. “The United States remains an object of interest to terrorists, both from international terrorist groups and from local extremists,” – state the representatives of the country’s tourism authorities.
Canada, which supplies the United States with a significant part of tourists, has so far managed with a minimal degree of warning. “There are cases of mass shootings in the country, as a result of which there are often victims. Although tourists are rarely among the victims, there is a risk of being in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Canada warns.
Australia has also put the US on the “least” alert list but lists gun crime as the biggest problem. “Violent crime is more common than in Australia. If you live in the US, study and practice active shooter exercises,” the Australians advise.
Great Britain has issued the following warnings to tourists who wish to visit the country. “It is quite likely that terrorists will try to carry out terrorist attacks in the USA. Violent crime, including gun crime, rarely involves tourists, but you should be careful when traveling in unfamiliar areas.”
France warns tourists against traffic and physical threats in major cities such as New York, Boston, Chicago, New Orleans, and Los Angeles. “Most major American cities have seen an increase in carjackings involving violence and threats, sometimes with weapons,” they say.
And finally, about the warning from South America, where for the first time tourists were urged to be careful back in 2019. This happened due to “the spread of acts of violence and indiscriminate hate crimes.” In particular, Uruguay is urging tourists who have gathered in the US to be careful “in the face of increasing indiscriminate violence, mainly due to hate crimes, including racism and discrimination.”