American Ex-Pat Blogging From Mauritius

[ge0rge]

Wealth (and the culture it engenders in its wake) is the answer to many of the problems in Mauritius. People become immune to the many ills mentioned in these posts if they are economically secure. If they have reasonably well-paid jobs (it generally does not have to be that much - just enough not to worry about the morrow and fair prospects for their children), there is a good probablity that they would be decent, honest and hard working people. If I have such a stake, I sure as hell am not going to jeopardise that and expose my job and family by taking bribes or do some other petty criminal misdemeanours. I would not bother to haggle just to save a few cents here and there, I'd feel more friendly, generous, civilised and well-disposed towards other people when I have resources to spare. This is what economic wealth allows people to do.

On the other hand, in Mauritius, jobs are hard to come by, pay is lousy and the future uncertain, people take what they can now and often dispensed with niceties apart to their close ones because they are in survival mode so to speak. Mauritians are from this perspective no different from other people. They need to look after themselves and their family first even if in the longer term this results in a somewhat dysfunctional society. This is a perfectly normal response to an imperfect state of affairs.

This talk of skin tax is really nonsense. Rich countries have their own 'unfair' rules and regulations to restrict immigrant in-flow. Mauritius is acting no differently - come in if you want but give us some of your money. If this is unfair so is the western rules for immigration control.By the way, if you have a few millions, you can jump the queue. that's just part of the rules too.

As to the tendency of mautitians to be dishonest. make the next generation economically secure and this trait disappears like a puff of smoke. There may be no hope for the current generation of 'dishonest' people. The damage is already done and too deep. That is their way of surviving and habits die hard (With the enlargement of the euro zone, I have sometimes wondered why some european people do not change their 'dishonest' habit of playing the system when they enter the richer western european countries. They don't because that is how they operated in their own economically poorer countries. Dishonesty is not peculiar to Mauritians).

Mauritius stuck in the middle of an ocean and no other natural resources to speak of apart from the beauty of the island itself does not sound like a great proposition for wealth creation. So I can't see much prospect of future improvement. The mauritian people are always see-sawing between some no-so-bad times and bad times. It is a miracle that there are no more serious crimes apart from petty thieving, annoying corruption, dirty streets, mis-management of their natural resources and lack of civility. Tell me which of these is not tied with money?

[ud]

It is a miracle that there are no more serious crimes apart from petty thieving, annoying corruption, dirty streets, mis-management of their natural resources and lack of civility. Tell me which of these is not tied with money?

Well said ge0rge but unfortunately also add.....murder just recently. While 11 Bangladeshi persons died in an accident, a murder was committed on a lady from Ireland. I'll let you guess what coverage and how the world media unleashed their blame on the country for the act of stupidity of young men who now face life. What a terrible mess this has brought.

ud

[thermo]

This talk of skin tax is really nonsense. Rich countries have their own 'unfair' rules and regulations to restrict immigrant in-flow. Mauritius is acting no differently - come in if you want but give us some of your money. If this is unfair so is the western rules for immigration control.By the way, if you have a few millions, you can jump the queue. that's just part of the rules too.

I could be wrong, but I think the "skin tax" originally referred to paying more for goods/services if you looked like a foreigner.

[ge0rge]

This talk of skin tax is really nonsense. Rich countries have their own 'unfair' rules and regulations to restrict immigrant in-flow. Mauritius is acting no differently - come in if you want but give us some of your money. If this is unfair so is the western rules for immigration control.By the way, if you have a few millions, you can jump the queue. that's just part of the rules too.

I could be wrong, but I think the "skin tax" originally referred to paying more for goods/services if you looked like a foreigner.

I had in mind the fact that non-mauritians having to pay more when buying properties. That sounds and is unfair alright but in many countries there are similar unfair rules. For example, in one of the northern regions of Belgium (can't remember which one off the top of my head), you are not allowed to buy a property (house or land) unless you can speak flemish (one of the variants of the dutch language). Now, if this is not some form of immigration control, I am an imbecile. This requirement would be laughable were it not for the fact that some countries including Australia or perhaps even England are seriously envisaging such a requirement. The arguments put forward for this requirement all sound reasonable but in one's heart of hearts, one knows that this is just another hurdle to prevent some people coming into the country or region.

[ge0rge]

It is a miracle that there are no more serious crimes apart from petty thieving, annoying corruption, dirty streets, mis-management of their natural resources and lack of civility. Tell me which of these is not tied with money?

Well said ge0rge but unfortunately also add.....murder just recently. While 11 Bangladeshi persons died in an accident, a murder was committed on a lady from Ireland. I'll let you guess what coverage and how the world media unleashed their blame on the country for the act of stupidity of young men who now face life. What a terrible mess this has brought.

ud

Yes. Not good at all. I have not read or seen anything reported on the Bangladeshi deaths but plenty is being reported on that poor girl's death in the UK and certainly in Ireland. I had to remind my Irish friends that this is the first tourist death as a result of a theft gone wrong. They were thinking that Mauritius is a dangerous place and I have to tell them - no, no, no. Mauritius is not like that. But at the end of the day, one cannot defend the indefensible. It was a terrible crime and so unnecessary. Stupid is not even the word.

[Joe]

Guys,

it's a matter of fact, that if I want to buy something in MRU , I first have a look and verify that it is what I want and then I send my wife (Mauritian) to buy it , cheaper than I could have got it. Whatever the reasons behind this behavior are; it is as I experienced it in the last 7 years.

Every buyer is here evaluated by the seller and this evaluation has an impact on the price. A tourist gets a high evaluation ... has to pay a higher price. A Mauritian who looks like he has some money ... pays more, but they usually know how to get a "local" price.

Every seller has to put a price tag on his goods, that's an official law widely ignored and nobody seems to be responsible to ensure its enforcement. A good strategy for tourists is toy buy only where there are price tags, usually avoiding the small sellers.

ge0rge, in which countries have you experienced similar behavior ? In the EU zone ? Please would you be so kind to share this experience with us !

[JoKi]

Hi Joe,

it's a matter of fact, that if I want to buy something in MRU , I first have a look and verify that it is what I want and then I send my wife (Mauritian) to buy it , cheaper than I could have got it. Whatever the reasons behind this behavior are; it is as I experienced it in the last 7 years.

Full acknowledgement!
Either you go to places with designated price tags or you ask a Mauritian of trust to buy it for you. And it doesn't take 7 years to experience this.

[leftright]

This talk of skin tax is really nonsense.

Nonsense, really. Have you ever conducted business as a "white" or a "tourist' in your country ?.
How do you explain the taxi's that do their best to rip off their clients. I now refuse to use ANY Taxi service, I hire cars instead. sick and tired of being ripped off by those thieves.

Rich countries have their own 'unfair' rules and regulations to restrict immigrant in-flow.

That is not the same as "skin tax". Any rules which are in place to restrict or prohibit immigration are NOT unfair, and it is every sovereign countries right to impose rules on who and what it allows into it's country. The option of paying millions to jump the queue is a mechanism put in place by the respective governments to generate income, be thankful that there are wealthy people that are willing to pay your government a premium for the privilege of hassle free immigration, the question is, where does all that money go ?.

As to the tendency of mautitians to be dishonest. make the next generation economically secure and this trait disappears like a puff of smoke.

Ah yes, a little bit of blackmail goes a long way.
I think you do poor people a major disservice with that statement, you are implying that the poor are not capable of honesty, and that it's ok for them to steal because they are poor, well, so much for the virtue of honesty. I have also noticed that many RICH people are dishonest, it seems to me that honesty is not determined by financial status. Honesty is a virtue, this is why morals and virtues are so important, it's the glue that keeps society together, and if one group of people considers another group or individual "unworthy" of their morals and virtues then that society will become unstuck.

Mauritius stuck in the middle of an ocean and no other natural resources to speak of apart from the beauty of the island itself does not sound like a great proposition for wealth creation. So I can't see much prospect of future improvement.

So how does Singapore, Macao, The Bahamas, Jersey, Gurnsey, and several other Islands manage to create wealth ?.
Mauritius owns large sea areas, Why doesn't Mauritius have a fishing fleet, a fish processing plant, why do they allow every other nations trawlers to rape it's waters, how do they ensure that the foreign fishing fleets don't cheat them out of the "catch of the day", I don't see the coast guard patrolling the high seas ensuring that the fishing boats stay legal, and where does all the money that is collected go to?.

Most of my shopping is done at the big stores where there are price tags, and if I need something locally I ask my maid to get it for me, problem solved.

[ud]

This talk of skin tax is really nonsense.

Nonsense, really. Have you ever conducted business as a "white" or a "tourist' in your country ?.
How do you explain the taxi's that do their best to rip off their clients. I now refuse to use ANY Taxi service, I hire cars instead. sick and tired of being ripped off by those thieves.

Welcome back leftright. Good to see you back in 2011. I'm glad that you have found an alternative that you find safer although it might be costing you higher in the short term.

Rich countries have their own 'unfair' rules and regulations to restrict immigrant in-flow.

That is not the same as "skin tax". Any rules which are in place to restrict or prohibit immigration are NOT unfair, and it is every sovereign countries right to impose rules on who and what it allows into it's country. The option of paying millions to jump the queue is a mechanism put in place by the respective governments to generate income, be thankful that there are wealthy people that are willing to pay your government a premium for the privilege of hassle free immigration, the question is, where does all that money go ?.

May I remind you that the high court in the UK have recently found the recent cap on immigration unfairly set by the government and the case is still ongoing? You can't compare a 3rd world small island country's immigration regime which we currently have in place favouring the rich through IRS, RES and other schemes versus big countries' regimes.

As to the tendency of mautitians to be dishonest. make the next generation economically secure and this trait disappears like a puff of smoke.

Ah yes, a little bit of blackmail goes a long way.
I think you do poor people a major disservice with that statement, you are implying that the poor are not capable of honesty, and that it's ok for them to steal because they are poor, well, so much for the virtue of honesty. I have also noticed that many RICH people are dishonest, it seems to me that honesty is not determined by financial status. Honesty is a virtue, this is why morals and virtues are so important, it's the glue that keeps society together, and if one group of people considers another group or individual "unworthy" of their morals and virtues then that society will become unstuck.

Wow this must be the year 2011's most amazing discovery: There is dishonesty among both poor and rich people. Let me once again enlighten you on how poor people are being charged for benefit fraud in the UK and how rich MPs are also getting sued for their false claims.

Mauritius stuck in the middle of an ocean and no other natural resources to speak of apart from the beauty of the island itself does not sound like a great proposition for wealth creation. So I can't see much prospect of future improvement.

So how does Singapore, Macao, The Bahamas, Jersey, Gurnsey, and several other Islands manage to create wealth ?.
Mauritius owns large sea areas, Why doesn't Mauritius have a fishing fleet, a fish processing plant, why do they allow every other nations trawlers to rape it's waters, how do they ensure that the foreign fishing fleets don't cheat them out of the "catch of the day", I don't see the coast guard patrolling the high seas ensuring that the fishing boats stay legal, and where does all the money that is collected go to?.

I'm not sure if you're aware of this but Iet me enlighten you:
1) The Wikileaks have confirmed the real agenda behind the British making our sovereign Chagos Archipelago a natural marine reserve to stay in the good shoes of the yank and help them maintain their strategic base for storing illegal cluster bombs, torturing innocent presumed Al Quieda terrorits and preparing for an assault on Iran. On top of that, the Tromelin territories too have not yet been given back entirely to us by the French. The territories we have have not been set and fishing areas have not been traced yet to allow the fishing industry to flourish. We have the fleet, we have a Tuna and Sardine processing plant (which feeds the british - it's called John West). We have a very small fleet of coast guard and require the help of Indian and other countries' patrol ships too because the territory falls within the waters where loads of ships have become prey of Somalian pirates. Seychelles are getting the help of the British and the French patrol vessels so the nets are closing on these pirates. There are a few cases of Taiwanese or Chinese vessels caught and their owners trialled in Mauritius for illegal fishing. You don't seem to understand the extent of our territory and how impossible it is to monitor every square mile!

2) We lost our sugar fixed export quota rate to the european countries 2 years ago and face competition from other larger sugar producing countries like Brasil, Trinidad and Tobago e,t,c. This is why the sugar factory numbers have more than halfed in the last couple of years and have had to outsource in renewable energies (thermal plants) just to keep the plant running.

3) You're talking of these countries. Do you have a list where we can rank them against Mauritius? I am interested to know how you can back up these claims. We share a lot of economical pillars with them mainly tourism and fishing. You tend to forget that accessibility plays an important role too. These countries are accessible from the States while Singapore is within grasp from Asia for trade to flourish easily and fast. Mauritius' location although as a hub linking Africa , Europe and Asia, even Australia suffers from the distances between them.

Most of my shopping is done at the big stores where there are price tags, and if I need something locally I ask my maid to get it for me, problem solved.

There you have it! You have a maid! Consider yourself among the top tier of the Mauritian society. Keep complaining!

[leftright]

Wow this must be the year 2011's most amazing discovery: There is dishonesty among both poor and rich people. Let me once again enlighten you on how poor people are being charged for benefit fraud in the UK and how rich MPs are also getting sued for their false claims.

You miss my point completely, which is,
Why do poor people use the excuse that they're poor for their dishonesty, what happened to being poor and having morals and virtues, this ALWAYS eludes you ud, but from previous conversations here I know that dishonesty is acceptable to you, as long it's done to "other" people, preferably "whites" and "tourists".
I guess you can excuse and blame the murder of that young lady in a 5 star hotel on the fact that the thieves were poor Mauritians who needed the money, that her death by strangulation was a accident, and silly girl, if she hadn't gone back to her room for "biscuits" she would still be alive, so it's all her fault.

There you have it! You have a maid! Consider yourself among the top tier of the Mauritian society. Keep complaining!

Yes I have a maid, which part do you resent, the fact that I have a maid or that I help support her family of five ?.

ud,
As stated before, you are BLINDLY patriotic, you always make excuses and blame external factors for, the lack of governance, the lack of infrastructure, the lack of industry, the blatant dishonesty, the dangerous disregard of traffic rules by the locals, the bent police, the bent customs officials who make it impossible to import anything without a healthy "private" contribution thereby stifling entrepreneurial initiatives. Yes ud, I'm beginning to understand that Mauritius's dysfunction is everyone else's fault, especially the wealthy countries who don't just "give" money to the establishment.