All language subtitles for Caribbean With Simon Reeve S01E01

I'm starting my journey
around the Caribbean Sea,

here on the exotic island
of Hispaniola.

It's an island
divided between two countries,

the Dominican Republic,
where I am now,

and poor, long suffering Haiti,

where I'll be heading to
later on in my journey.

'I headed to Santo Domingo, the
capital of the Dominican Republic.

'It's one of the largest
cities in the Caribbean,

'and it's where European settlement
of the Americas first began.'

This was the first Spanish
city in the Americas.

It was home to the first
European cathedral,

university and monastery
in the New World.

'Christopher Columbus
landed on Hispaniola in 1492.

'His brother founded the Caribbean's
first European city here.'

Hola.

For centuries,
this was a Spanish colony.

It was from here that Europeans
set off to conquer

the rest of the Americas
and, of course,

annihilate many of the indigenous
people already living there.

The fate of the New World
was set here.

Today, the Dominican Republic
boasts some of the fastest

economic growth in the region.

With hundreds of miles of beaches,
the country's

a bit of a Caribbean holiday cliche.

You probably know somebody who's
been here on their holidays, because

this is the most popular tourist
destination in the Caribbean.

'Ten million people live here.

'They're joined by about five
million tourists each year.

'There's sun, sea,
sand and plenty of adventure sports,

'without too many boring worries
about health and safety.'

Oh, my God.

This is one of those things that
sounded like a really good idea.

I was told this was a flying boat.

It looks more like
a flying dinghy to me.

Where do you sit?

OK.

HE SCREAMS

What am I going to hold on to?

'It wasn't the ideal experience
for a traveller with vertigo.'

HE YELLS

'But eventually I calmed down
and started to enjoy

'the incredible view.'

More than 25 million tourists visit
the Caribbean islands each year,

half coming from the United States.

Many Caribbean islands
have become completely

dependent on their income
from the travel industry.

Bloody hell! You crazy Frenchmen!

That was incredible. Thank you.

You're welcome.

I tell you what, it takes budget
airline to a whole new level.

I know this entire gig
looks like a bit of a cushy number,

but the Caribbean
isn't all paradise.

Away from the tourist resorts

and lush beaches, there's another
side to this country and the region.

This island's always been a key hub
for trade in the Caribbean.

Now it's being targeted
by the international drug cartels

smuggling cocaine
from the production areas

in South America to users
in North America and Europe.

The trade is fuelling poverty
in the Dominican Republic

and an increasing drug
and crime problem.

We're just arriving
at the headquarters...

of the Police Anti-Narcotics
Division.

'Colonel David Rodriguez
was briefing his
special operations unit.

'The unit is tasked with tackling
violent drug gangs.'

This is the other side
of paradise, I guess.

'I was joining them
on a drugs raid.'

What we're doing is dividing the
teams. There's a couple of guys who

are going to enter the premises
on a motorcycle.

They're like what we call the point.

OK.They're going to radio us
and tell us,

"OK, fine, go in."

I never really know
whether to feel safer...

wearing this or
to feel more of a target.

OK, we're off.

'We were heading to one of
the city's poorest districts.

'Millions of Dominicans
are still stuck in poverty,

'and around a third of the people
here live on less than £3 a day.

'We were soon in the gang area,
ready for the raid.

'Then, suddenly, two undercover
police officers ahead of us

'spotted a wanted gang member,
and we all set off in pursuit.'

It's a right warren, isn't it?

How can you
operate in an area like this?

HE LAUGHS

We've basically run
into a complete warren.

And obviously, the people
we were looking for have legged it.

DOG BARKS

Come and take a look where
- a guy just jumped.
- Jumped?

He came down this, those stairs,
and jumped through here.

This goes through a tunnel that goes
under the road where we parked.

Wow.

Apparently, he threw part of what
he had in this room.

You could hide
kilos of drugs in here.

Look at this place.

We've got something.

You've got something?
What have we got there?

Marijuana and cocaine.

How much is there, approximately?

Over 180 grams, maybe.

So there's a couple of thousand
dollars' worth of cocaine there?

- Yeah.
- So are you happy with
this as a result?

Super happy. Super happy.
Let's go.

Local drug gangs
are getting wealthier

and more dangerous as they get
access to more powerful weapons.

The murder rate in the
Dominican Republic is several times

higher than in the United States.

To help deal with violent crime,
Colonel Rodriguez's unit trains

at a commando base in mountains
to the north of the country.

HE SHOUTS

THEY SHOUT IN REPLY

David, can you give us
a sense of the scale of the threat

your men and your women are facing?

We have boats coming in
full of cocaine shipments.

We're talking about 1,000 kilos,
1,200 kilos.

Now we have more drug-related
murders.

And you see that more
and more here now?

Every day. It's my 24 hours.

Officers here are being trained
in close-quarter armed combat,

and to meet violence with
an overwhelming response.

GUNFIRE

'Drugs with a street value of
around half a billion pounds

'are now being burnt each year
at this secure facility

'inside an army base.'

Astonishing.

The heat is really intense.

I think what you see there is
the Caribbean, of course,

not just as paradise,
which it may well be,

but the Caribbean as victim.

It's in the middle,
between the supply,

which is coming out of Central
and South America,

and the major markets for demand,

which are in Europe
and North America.

'According to the World Health
Organization, the Dominican Republic

'is actually the world's most
dangerous place to drive.'

Do you know anybody
who's been injured,

or worse, in road accidents?

The son...

of a good friend of mine...

had a car accident
just right here, in this corner,

- a couple of years ago.
- Good Lord.

And I'm still suffering. Everybody
in the office is suffering that.

- Died?
- Yeah.
And was alcohol involved?

Yes, yes, yes, yes.

He was drinking or
somebody else was drinking?

Somebody else was drinking, yes.
It was not him. Somebody else.

'It's a sad but common story.

'There are laws here about
drink-driving and dangerous driving,

'but nobody seems to enforce them.

'With that firmly in mind,
and with our seat-belts applied,

'we set off across the country.'

'Carlos was driving me to the border
between the Dominican Republic

'and its neighbour
on the island - Haiti.

'Nearly 200 miles north-west,

'we arrived in the town of Dajabon.

'It looked like
it was the monthly market,

'but apparently
it's this busy every day,

'with thousands of people
crossing the border.

'I'd been catapulted
into chaos and colour.'

You stand here for a minute
and you start to realise

how the human traffic is flowing.

This way, you've got people
going back into Haiti,

who are taking back stuff
they have bought

in the Dominican Republic to sell,

because Haiti doesn't produce a lot.

'Haiti's by far the poorest country
in the Western hemisphere.

'Many Haitians have fled abroad.

'Up to a million have moved
to the neighbouring,

'richer Dominican Republic.

Relations between the two countries
are not great at the moment.

The Dominican Republic's
in the process of kicking out

thousands of Haitians, many
who've lived here for generations.

And, historically,
relations between the two states

have not been good.

This is part of the reason why.

This is the River Massacre,

and it commemorates
a period in the 1930s

when, perhaps, 25,000 or more

Haitians were killed
by Dominican soldiers.

These were Haitians who were
living in the country.

Many of them had been here
for many years,

but the Dominicans identified
who was Haitian or not

by getting them to say
the Spanish word for "parsley",

which Creole-speaking Haitians
had trouble saying properly.

And, on that one word,

often people lived or died.

Many of them were hacked to death.
It's appalling.

'Haiti's become a by-word
for poverty and suffering.

'It's endured colonial rule,
terrible leaders, bad luck

'and a catastrophic
earthquake in 2010.

'It has a pretty grim reputation,

'but I was hoping to see
a different side to the place.'

Simon, how are you?

Jean Daniel?

It's a pleasure to meet you.

HE CHUCKLES

Very nice to meet you.

So this is Jean Daniel.

He spotted us.

We have a camera with us.

The first time we've met.
Thank you for coming over.

Thank you for being here.

And Jean Daniel is going to
be our guide across Haiti.

CAR HORN BLARES

JEAN DANIEL SPEAKS OWN LANGUAGE

Merci, monsieur.

We are now in Haiti.

It's quite busy here, mate,
isn't it?

It's quite beautiful, too.

This is normal, is it?

Yeah, it's really normal.

Things are not as bad
as people have portrayed it.

- Oh, right.
- You know?

Well, I'm really excited to visit

and I'm really looking forward
to our travels around the country.

Yes, I'm looking forward
to it as well.

Haiti wasn't always poor.

In the 1700s, it was a French colony

and fortunes were made here from
growing sugar, coffee, cocoa,

tobacco and cotton
in the fertile climate.

It was said to be the richest
slave colony in the world,

but not for long.

The story of Haiti isn't
all about suffering.

It's also an extraordinary tale
of struggle and victory

against the greatest powers
in the world.

OK, you want me to get on this one?

Look at my masterful control
of this beastie.

Whoa! Whoo!

'I was off to see one of
the wonders of the Caribbean.'

Look at that!

Like a castle in the clouds.

'Perched on top of a mountain,

'the whopping Citadelle Laferriere

'is the largest fortress
in all of the Americas.'

It's an astonishing place, this.

This is not what people think of

when they think of Haiti.

But I have, I think,

an unfortunately negative view
of the country.

This is absolutely stunning.

'It took 20,000 workers 50 years

'to build the colossal structure.'

Look at the scale of this!

'Its walls, up to four metres thick,

'seem as sturdy
as the mountain itself.

'Its ramparts stand almost
1,000 metres above sea-level.

'It's an epic structure,

'built to last for ever.'

Oh, wow.

It's breathtaking.

Goodness me, look how
it dominates the area.

This Citadelle

represents something truly
extraordinary.

Haiti is the only country
to have been formed

as the result of a successful
slave rebellion.

In the late 1700s,

Haiti's slaves rose up against
their brutal French masters.

In wars that followed, they managed
to do the unthinkable -

they defeated the forces
of the French, the British,

even the army
of the Emperor Napoleon.

In 1804,
Haiti was declared independent,

the first free black nation
in the modern world.

Their plan to protect the new nation

from the former slave masters,

particularly the French,

was that if they saw French ships
coming in to retake the country,

they would see them arriving...

In the far distance,
we can just see the sea.

...they would retreat from the coast,
burning everything as they went,

to this fort and others.

And they would then be able

to ambush and attack the French
soldiers on mountain passes

and at choke points.

The Citadelle had hundreds of
cannons and water and food stores

that could supply thousands
of soldiers for a year.

But an attack never came.

Instead, the French used
a different tactic.

The French effectively
blockaded the island

and that was only lifted
when a Haitian ruler,

rather foolishly, agreed to pay
massive reparations to France,

basically paying them for the loss
of their slave plantations.

Those payments went on for decades

and completely crippled Haiti.

By the end of the 1800s,

Haiti was still sending almost 80%
of its national revenue

to France as reparations.

Foreign powers continued to meddle
in Haiti into the 20th century.

America invaded and occupied
for two decades from 1915,

imposing forced labour on the people

and taking huge tracts of land
for plantations.

Since then, the country has
suffered from years of coups

and political violence.

But through it all,
Haiti has kept its unique faith,

one rooted in both Africa and
rebellious slave culture.

It's a faith that has often inspired
mistrust and fear among outsiders.

- Bonsoir.
- How are you, monsieur?

This place is a bit
off the beaten track, eh?

'Jean Daniel was taking me
to a voodoo ceremony.'

It's important to see voodoo,

because voodoo is an essential part
of our culture, of Haiti's culture.

It has a pretty bad reputation,

it's seen as something scary.

This is the soul of Haiti

and this is why people
don't understand Haiti.

But there is nothing scary
about it for Haitians.

Its origins are said to be
as old as Christianity,

but let's be honest - voodoo is seen
by many as sinister mumbo-jumbo.

THEY SING

The ceremony takes place here,
right next to the centre pole.

What do the white markings on
the ground signify?

They are signs that we've inherited
from the Amerindians.

Amerindians who were
living here before...

Who were living before.
Europeans first came here...

Way before Christopher Columbus
came in.

Way before.

Slaves transported from West Africa

could bring nothing but their faith.

And here, the French forced them
to convert to Catholicism.

Am I right in thinking voodoo is
a very complicated belief system,

but it's centred around one god?

One god, multiple spirits.

Voodoo became the name given to
the secret religion of the slaves.

It combined the faith
of their ancestors,

the religious symbols of
the original indigenous peoples

of the Caribbean, and
the Christianity of their masters.

THEY SING AND CHANT

They are inviting you to go.

Goodness. OK.

'Critics of voodoo
say it's simple superstition,

'that it holds Haiti back because
it makes people believe

'the spirits control their destiny,

'rather than telling them they have
the ability to change their life

'by their own actions.

'But perhaps you could say
the same of many religions.'

The next morning, Jean Daniel
drove me along the coast.

Haiti only has a few hundred miles
of paved roads -

it's one of the reasons behind
the terrible state of the economy.

It's tricky and expensive
to move anything around.

But we stopped off at a place
where a bit of money

is trickling into the country.

HE CHUCKLES

This is an amazing sight.

That is one of the largest
cruise ships in the world.

More than 6,000 passengers on board,

almost 2,500 crew.

It's a floating town.

'Hundreds of thousands
of tourists cruise into

this Paradise Bay every year.

The cruise company pays
the Haitian government

less than £10 per visitor
for exclusive access.

They generally don't leave
this little tiny corner.

Apparently, most of them don't
really know they're in Haiti.

We continued south
to Jean Daniel's hometown,

the capital of Haiti,

Port-au-Prince.

CAR HORNS BLARE

Built on a natural harbour,

Port-au-Prince was once one
of the major trading ports

of the Caribbean.

Now it's scarred by one of the worst
natural disasters in recent history.

So, here you have the back view
of the cathedral,

of what used to be the cathedral.

Can you see?

Oh, my God.

'On 12th January 2010,

'a massive earthquake
rocked Port-au-Prince.'

What is this here? This isn't left
over from the earthquake, surely?

Every inch of the entire block
was destroyed during the quake.

And it's still a pile
of rubble years later?

This is nothing compared
to what it used to be.

It used to be a mountain of rubble.

'The earthquake destroyed
much of the city.

'More than 200,000 people
were killed.

'Even more were injured.

'One and a half million people
were left homeless.

'It was catastrophe
on a biblical scale.'

Jean Daniel, where...

Where were you
when the earthquake hit?

I was a bank executive at the time.

- - A bank exec?
- Executive, yes.
- Right.

But from the window of my office,

I saw the Citibank building,

right across the street from my
bank,

crumbling down.

And then I realised
that it was an earthquake.

And the tremors lasted a very short
period of time, didn't they?

Yeah, it lasted less than 60
seconds.

But it felt like an hour, guys.

You think about everything, you
know?

Your family, what's happening.

You know, that few seconds was...

It was extremely moving,

extremely moving,
and it's something that,

as of now,
I still cannot explain very well.

But it changed my life completely.

What was it like
in the street outside?

In the streets,
it was absolutely horrifying.

The entire country was covered
with a white cloud.

My God.

All the landmarks, all the reference
that I had as a kid,

had disappeared.

All the landmarks!

There are no more landmarks that
I knew of as a kid that were there.

So part of my...

Really, part of my...

Part of my...

...childhood has totally vanished.

I'm sorry, mate.

'Foreign governments
and aid agencies

'pledged billions of pounds
in aid to Haiti

'in the weeks after the earthquake,

'but much of the money
has never appeared

'and many people here are still
struggling to survive.'

Oh, my God.

There are dozens of places like this
still around the city, aren't there?

Yes, there are,

particularly around the shanty
towns.

Almost half a decade
after the earthquake,

and in America's backyard,

more than 150,000 people
were still living in tented camps.

More than 10,000 foreign
organisations and charities

have worked in Haiti
since the quake.

But fundamental problems
like sewers and sanitation

haven't been adequately addressed.

Many local people say money
that was donated to help them

hasn't always been spent wisely.

Many feel abandoned.

I do sense that too many aid
agencies think in the short term

because they need quick results
to please their donors

and in reality, what
this country needs

is a long-term plan.

'Jean Daniel agreed,
but also explained that

'Haitians need to take matters
into their own hands.'

I think that we rely too much on
outside promises and influence.

But I think that
once we get together,

that we will move forward,

that we will move into,

really, the development of Haiti.

Haiti's problems go back
well beyond the earthquake.

Haitians need education,

employment and the entire structure
of a functioning state.

They can get help from
outsiders, but ultimately,

the answers will have
to come from within.

The next morning, we went to see
how Haitians are trying to tackle

some of their deep-rooted problems.

Adeline Bien-Aime is working
with some of the city's

most vulnerable children.

Adeline, tell us about this place.
What's going on here?

'Restaveks are children
given away by parents

'who can't afford
to look after them.

'Often they're sent
to live with a relative,

'but sometimes
they're given to strangers.'

And what sort of life does
a Restavek have?

Are they expected to work
for their new family?

Is it servitude or is it...

Is it, as some people have said,

a form of slavery?

There are thought to be at least
300,000 Restaveks in Haiti.

They're a symptom of
desperate poverty.

Many parents think
they're doing the best

for their children
by sending them away,

but often Restavek children
endure long hours of work,

are vulnerable to horrific abuse

and are seldom sent to school.

Bonsoir.

ALL: Bonsoir.

HE CHUCKLES

'Adeline works for the
Restavek Freedom Foundation.

'They find Restaveks,
then teach and train them,

'giving them life-skills,
a chance at a job, and a future.'

What age range do we have here?

I set up the group. I work with
them,

and I have from 12 to, like, 20.

So can we ask then,
who is the youngest here?

Soufonie?

Soufonie. I would say Soufonie
is the youngest.

Soufonie, she's tiny.

Yeah, she is.
And Soufonie, can you tell us...

Can you tell us a little bit
about your story?

THEY GIGGLE

And does she hit you with her hand

or does she hit you with something?

Soufonie, do you have any
hopes for the future?

Do you have a dream of what you
would like to be?

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

I'm very honoured to hear
stories from you

and learn more about
the lives that you live.

'The Restavek Freedom Movement
in Haiti is gaining momentum.

'Adeline's Foundation
has helped hundreds of children,

'like Soufonie,
to go through school.

'But part of the key to ending
the whole Restavek system

'is raising public awareness.'

And while I was in Haiti,
the Restavek Freedom Foundation

were putting on
a little concert in the capital,

to help remind Haitians that
the life of a Restavek

is no life for a child.

Oh, my goodness!

It's an incredible number.

I thought it was going to be a
small, almost private little affair.

But there are...

Well, there are
thousands of people here.

'It was the finals
of a national competition.

'Singers from around the country
were performing songs

'they'd written
about the Restavek issue.'

APPLAUSE

For them to hold this concert
in the National Stadium

and for there to be
that many people there

shows that this is no longer
Haiti's dirty little secret.

There's a degree
of openness about it.

And that, hopefully,
will lead to change.

But real change will only come
to Haiti if the economy improves

and people are lifted
out of poverty.

'Across much of the Caribbean,

'tourism has helped
to lift national economies.

'Tourists spend billions
of pounds a year

'to experience
the beauty of these islands.

'Back in the 1970s,
Haiti was a tourist hot spot.

'Even wary American
tourists came here.

'But the country's desperate
troubles since then

'have left hundreds of miles
of beautiful beaches empty

'and totally undeveloped.'

'We'd arranged to meet
an American teacher from Florida

'who's fallen in love with
this bit of Haiti's coast.'

Hello! Jamie?

- Hello, Jamie.
- Hi!

Can we come aboard?
Absolutely. Come on.

Jamie, hello. Simon.
Hi. Nice to meet you.

Lovely to meet you, too.

It's a pleasure to meet you.
- Pleasure!
- Hi.

He doesn't...
He doesn't really like the sea.

That's OK. We'll make him
a fan of the sea soon.

'Jamie Aquino set up and runs
the Haiti Ocean Project.

'When she first visited here
eight years ago,

'Jamie soon released
that this undiscovered part

'of the Caribbean was exceptional.'

There is an underwater topography
in Haiti that's unique.

There's two giant
underwater canyons.

Starting at one mile off the coast,

they drop to about
2,000 or 3,000 feet.

In the middle, about ten miles out,

they're down to 15,000 feet.

It's incredible! So just off
the coast, you basically...

The ground drops away
underneath the sea

and there is a vastness.

The vast, deep ocean is right there,

it's just off the coast of Haiti.
And what lives there?

Lots of marine mammals.
Pilot whales, bottle-nosed dolphins.

There's quite a population
of sperm whales.

I've also run into about a thousand
spotted dolphins

around the boat, as well.

Well, that would be spectacular.
Yeah.

I'm not going to be able to take
my eyes off the sea now.

'Jamie is encouraging local
youngsters to get involved
with conservation

'in the hope they can establish a
marine tourism industry in the area

'and help to protect
this unique environment.'

- Let it go?
- Yeah,
just don't want to get it tangled.

'By popping the microphone
into the water,

'she can detect noisy dolphins
or whales within a two-mile radius.'

I've never heard the ocean
like that.

That's not the waves at the surface.
- Right, right.
- That is the sea.

There you go, listen.
JAMIE CHUCKLES

WATERY RUSTLING

Isn't that special?

Rather than just
being a body of water,

this shows it much more
- as a living thing, I think.
- Mm-hm.

CLICKING

Hold on. I think I hear dolphins.

I'm hearing, like, a "eeer".
Listen.

CLICKING

- Can you hear?
- I can hear dolphins!
Yeah.

They really are.
Yeah, they're really close.

"Eeer-eeer!"

Wow, they're having
- a right old gossip.
- Yeah.

'With dolphins nearby,
we were all on high alert.'

Where?

Straight down.
The same line as the boat.

Oh, yeah!
Just here, coming right across!

Look, dolphins!

Oh, my goodness! Look at them!

'There was a pod of at least 30
pantropical spotted dolphins.

'There have been few
scientific studies about life

'in this unique corner
of the Caribbean Sea,

'but Jamie's convinced that
deep below us is a breeding

'and feeding ground for a population
of endangered sperm whales.

'What is clear is that this
is a home for some of the most

'magnificent creatures in our seas.'

And this...
THIS is the real treasure of Haiti.

'Judging by the excited reaction
of the youngsters on the boat,

'Jamie's project has
a real chance of success.

'It's her hope that spectacles like
this will encourage more tourists

'to visit this beautiful country,

'which could help it economically...

'..but could also change
the image of Haiti

'as just a place
of trouble and suffering.

'We sailed through the night
across the Mona Passage

'to the island of Puerto Rico.'

Well, that's how to arrive!

'This island is the spoils of war.

'Puerto Rico is actually
a territory of the USA.

'The United States took
control of the island in 1898

'following the
Spanish-American War.'

Look at this!

We've just come into
the capital of Puerto Rico,

and, honestly,
we've arrived in the States.

'It couldn't be more
different to Haiti.

'At first glance,
it looked like people here

'are living the American dream.'

Are you from here, Jose?

Born and raised down here, yeah.

Life looks pretty good here.

Well...

It's... It's...

It looks like that.

But you're a territory of
the richest country in the world.

Surely everything is just going
absolutely swimmingly here.

It doesn't work like that.

We're not on equal terms.

'Driving around the capital,
San Juan,

'I could see there were areas

'hit hard by bankruptcy
and an economic downturn.'

See how buildings
are closed over here?

Oh, yes, look at this.
Closed. Closed.

Closed. Sale or rent signs up
over here. Closed.

- Not good.
- No, not at all.

'Energy, food and other costs
are much higher in Puerto Rico

'than on the US mainland.

'And the local government here has
got itself into financial troubles,

'spending more than it can afford
and getting deep into debt.'

So, how is all this impacting
on people here?

People are scared.
Job opportunities are reduced.

Most of the professionals that
are graduating from our university,

they jump into a plane
and they go to the United States

and find a job over there.

From 2000 to 2013, over
200,000 people left Puerto Rico.

My wife is one of them.
She just moved to Florida.

Your wife... Yeah.
- ...has moved to Florida?!
- Yeah.

She landed a job with the same
company she was working for here.

She's going to be making over three
times what she was making here.

Three times more?
Three times. Same company.

How on earth does that work
for you as a couple?

Well, it's a sacrifice,
but I'll be moving shortly.

'There are now more Puerto Ricans
living in mainland America

'than in Puerto Rico.

'The problem's often called
the brain drain

'and it's a huge issue
across the region.

'In some Caribbean countries,

'70% of the educated workforce
have emigrated.'

Cheers, Jose!

'I headed to a small island
off the coast called Vieques.'

Wild horses.

It's quite a special place, eh?

'It's also a place where the impact
of America has left deep scars.'

Great view.

It looks, um... peaceful
and magnificent now, doesn't it?

But for decades, this was actually

one of the United States'
military's principal firing ranges.

It was a bomb-testing area, basically.

'For more than 60 years, the
United States Navy used Vieques

'to test weapons it would use
in conflicts around the world.'

Huge quantities of munitions
were kept at that end of the island,

then flown up to that end
and dropped.

It's still restricted and we're
not allowed to go there,

but that end of the island
is said to be

as cratered as the surface
of the moon.

'The US military bombarded
the island

'with hundreds of thousands
of tons of bombs.

'They even used the chemical
Agent Orange.

'I met up with local fisherman,
Cacimar Zenon,

'who lived through the bombing,
to find out what it was like.'

'The constant explosions
shook houses

'and made life here intolerable.

'Islanders began a campaign
of protest and direct action.'

People from the island are coming in

on a protest boat

to try and disrupt

the firing and shooting.

Goodness me.

I mean, this is such

a graphic illustration

of the heavy hand

of the United States.

'After a local man was killed
by a stray bomb,

'protests reached fever pitch.

'And in 2002, the US was finally
forced to end the bombing.'

'The US military claims it's now
carrying out an enormous clean-up

'operation on the island, but
they denied us access to film it.

'Many islanders who make their
living from the Caribbean

'say there's also
an enormous threat in the sea.

'Cacimar took me out for a dive.

'Out of the depths,
I could see a dark shape looming.

'At least 12 feet long, with
its nose buried in the ocean floor.

'Fishermen here say there are
thousands of unexploded bombs

'and munitions littering the seabed.

'They fear a disaster
if any get drawn into their nets.'

It sure is quite peaceful
and still down there...

apart from this massive bomb!

Unbelievable.

That was the most terrifying thing
by a long way I've seen underwater.

I...I can't quite get my head
around it, I really can't.

There's, um...
And I don't know what's madder,

diving down onto it, or sitting
on a boat on top of it.

Look how close we are to the coast.

People fish in these waters.

Completely surreal.

'Fishermen here are pleading
with the US military

'to clean up the seabed.

'Until they do, we can't be sure

'whether the device I saw
is likely to explode.

'Aside from the risk of detonations,

'Cacimar and experts believe
the bombs pose other dangers.

'They fear the munitions are

'leaching dangerous chemicals
into the food chain,

'affecting the fish that
the local population then eat.'

'A report by a Puerto Rican
scientist showed

'that there were 30% more deaths
from cancer on Vieques

'than on the Puerto Rican mainland.

'The US government refuses
to accept there's a link

'between the bombing
and cancer rates.

'But Cacimar and many islanders
are not ready to give up the fight.

'They want compensation
and a faster clean-up.

'I'd reached the end of
the first stage of my journey

'around the Caribbean Sea.'

HE EXHALES

It's completely breathtaking.

It's been a fascinating
adventure so far.

A bit frightening at times,

but through an absolutely
stunning region of our world.

And I can't wait to continue
my journey around the Caribbean Sea.