WEEKLY ROUND-UP (13 DEC-19 DEC)

We will go back on some of our past week tweets of interest and expand further on the indicators that we presented, as they affect the security situation of a country. When we produce vulnerability assessments for our clients, six vulnerability (threats) factors are analyzed and assessed while four hazards are also analyzed and assessed. If gaps are identified they are covered by atmospherics elements.The goal of our tweets is to highlight and provide examples of the research that we do. It is not a complete list but merely a very small sample for our followers.

From 14 December:

1. St-Lucia update: Dengue epidemic possible: 220+ cases? (The Jamaica Observer Online).What does it mean for travelers there? Contact us.

From 16 December:

2. St-Martin (Caribbean) update: 10 cases of chikungunya french side of island. (CDC). Currently no vaccine; consult us for protective measures.

Comment: The presence of various health hazards are always worrisome to travelers.

Standard preventive practices such as vaccines are warranted while all recommendations must be adhered to. The problem remains that risk factors must be analyzed: contagion, epidemics, type of infectious disease, etc have to be identified to assess what is the exact degree of hazard and how can one prevent contraction. When travellers contact us for travel to high risk countries we fully research and identify all threats, risks and hazards and analyse situations separately. We accurately determine vulnerabilities, we generate our assessments and our final recommendations on mitigation or avoidance are articulated to our clients in the form of a confidential vulnerability assessment written report that remains the property of the clients. Real time updates are also forwarded while in country. Disease prevention and avoidance is instrumental in our advice.

From 19 December:

3. Peru update: Policemen accused of extortion arrested. We accurately assessed this on 04 Dec. Rely on us for all travel security requirements.

Comment: Contrary to most other travel security firms or even governments travel advisories websites, we do not report the news; we do not report after fact situations. To report the obvious is meaningless, and lacks critical timeliness for the well being of travelers. What distinguishes us from our competitors is that we provide accurate insight in what is likely to occur for our clients while in high risk countries. We assess what happens next from a vulnerability standpoint. It is too easy to report on a given situation, however to analyze and to eloquently express what it all means while accurately assessing what is likely to happen next is very indicative of our unique services. No gadgets, no gimmicks. We provide the intelligence that our clients fully require for safety and mission success.

We invite you to review our past twitter posts as well as this blog's entries. We encourage feedback and questions to our e-mail: parsec.consulting@gmail.com


Attribution: copies and redistribution of the above material in any medium or format is authorized providing full attribution is credited by using full link of present blog.

WEEKLY ROUND-UP (06 DEC-12 DEC)

This is our third weekly round-up. We will go back on our weekly tweets of interest and expand further on the indicators that we presented, as they affect the security situation of a country. When we produce vulnerability assessments for our clients, six vulnerability (threats) factors are analyzed and assessed while four hazards are also analyzed and assessed. If gaps are identified they are covered by atmospherics elements.The goal of our tweets is to highlight and provide examples of the research that we do. It is not a complete list but merely a very small sample for our followers.

From 10 December:

1. Venezuela update: Caracas had over 5 000 murders in 2013 so far. Vulnerability levels remain unchanged. Consult us prior to travel there.

Comment: This is an indicator of many things; socio-economics dynamics as well as the state of the country's overall security situation. In order to understand the extremely high murder numbers for a metro area of approximately 3 million, a few factors must be considered and analysed. Then unbiased conclusions must be drawn. Violent crimes, especially with guns make Venezuela one of the most violent countries. We assess, based on what we know, that the murder rate in Caracas will not lower in the mid- term (2-5 years). Based on how the economic situation evolves, the murder rate is likely to rise during the same period. What does it mean for the business traveller? This should not prevent travel at all to Caracas. However certain requirements are justifiable in order to remain safe and to return home unharmed. That is why a consultation with us is the right decision. Military Commanders entrusted us for their operations successes. So should you.

2.  Hong Kong: H7N9: 19 isolated after contact with man in second bird flu case. Health hazards concerns remain for for area. Monitoring ongoing.

Comment: This constitutes a clear health hazard for a specific and high density populated area. Regardless of the origin or how the authorities deal with the potential outbreak, what matters is how fast and where the flu will spread next.

This is when our clients can rest assured. After we produce a confidential and accurate vulnerability assessment our work is not complete. Our due diligence will extend to daily e-mails or text which can often be unscheduled as a specific hazard or threat warrants an update that supersedes our previous recommendations.

We invite you to review our past twitter posts as well as this blog's entries. We encourage feedback and questions to our e-mail: parsec.consulting@gmail.com


Attribution: copies and redistribution of the above material in any medium or format is authorized providing full attribution is credited by using full link of present blog.

WEEKLY ROUND-UP (29 NOV-05 DEC)

This is our second weekly round-up. We will go back on our weekly tweets of interest and expand further on the indicators that we presented, as they affect the security situation of a country. When we produce vulnerability assessments for our clients, six vulnerability (threats) factors are analyzed and assessed while four hazards are also analyzed and assessed. If gaps are identified they are covered by atmospherics elements.The goal of our tweets is to highlight and provide examples of the research that we do. It is not a complete list but merely a very small sample for our followers.

From 29 November:

1.  Thailand update: Protesters left Army HQ. No serious acts of violence reported now. Most reports from Bangkok. Tourists areas unaffected at this time. Reminder: some protests can be hasty, unannounced. Avoid crowds, head local authorities instructions.

From 02 December:

2. Thailand: Of the few options available to Thai PM, perhaps calling elections is proper course of action. Either way this week is critical for a solution; Thursday is King Bhumibol Adulyadej's birthday. BTW Thai military has a 18 coup track record since 1930s...

Comment: Protests have toned down just prior to the revered and respected King's birthday on Thursday. Furthermore the military has displayed signs of restraint which are indicative of the will to de-escalate the conflict. Significant pointers that would hint to widespread violence were lacking. Although escalating violence cannot be discounted it presently remains unlikely.

From 03 December:

3. Algeria: Kidnapping warning; in the southern area (Algerian Sahara) AQIM is offering rewards to various persons who are in contact with foreigners or tourists to turn them over. Borders are porous between countries in the Sahel area, this threat is not limited to Algeria.

Comment: Algeria and other northern African regions such as the Maghreb and the Sahel zone present a higher risk to travellers and NGOs for kidnappings. The Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) probably employs this tactic in order to finance its operations, among other things. AQIM and its affiliate groups and brokers have adjusted their tactics and procedures to the evolving threat they face and have proceeded to successfully refine their operations. Therefore not only can close protection services prove ineffective but a proper strategy for NGOs is of vital importance in the first place.

From 04 December:

4.  Peru update: Extortion targeting NGOs & corporations in Trujillo area - and northern Peru have been reported. We judge that it could be attributable to lax law enforcement. The security situation there likely to degrade, based on expanding criminal schemes. Consult us.

Comment: This is typical warning intelligence. We monitor for additional indicators and reports, to include sources on the ground for accurate assessments. Ongoing.

We invite you to review our past twitter posts as well as this blog's entries. We encourage feedback and questions to our
e-mail: parsec.consulting@gmail.com


Attribution: copies and redistribution of the above material in any medium or format is authorized providing full attribution is credited by using full link of present blog.