TOURISM is good for the country. The success of the campaign, “It’s more fun in the Philippines,” is borne by the visitor receipts reported by the Department of Tourism (DOT) for August 2016: P15.69 billion.
However, the outlook is not all that sunny. The August 2016 receipts are down by 25.8 percent, from the P21.96 billion earned in August 2015.
For Cebu, which accounted for 103,778 airport arrivals representing 20.64 percent of inbound visitors in August 2016, the most worrying is the recent travel advisory issued by the US Embassy, alerting its citizens to avoid southern Cebu, a possible target of terrorist groups planning to kidnap foreigners.
On alert
After the US Embassy made its travel warning against the southern Cebu towns of Dalaguete, Santander and Oslob, Sun.Star Cebu’s Justin K. Vestil reported that the British and Canadian embassies also warned their citizens about the need to “maintain a high level of vigilance and personal security” because of the “high threat from terrorism” in these towns.
In 2005, two Canadian nationalists were kidnapped by the terrorist group Abu Sayyaf in Samal Island, Davao del Norte. “Robert Hall and John Ridsdel were later beheaded by the Abu Sayyaf,” reported Sun.Star Cebu.
The US travel advisory immediately reverberated among tourism stakeholders, from local government units to tour operators and other industry insiders. The travel warnings may hurt Cebu’s tourism offerings, from canyoneering, whale shark watching and other water activities flourishing in the south of Cebu tourism corridor to the Sinulog celebration in Cebu City.
Although Cebu has always been safe and untainted by incidents of kidnapping or violence involving foreigners, the travel warnings must be taken seriously by the authorities, as well as citizens and visitors.
Security measures in public places, such as malls, are seemingly halfhearted and cursory. At the same time, the public must cooperate with measures tightening security and view the inconvenience as a trade-off for their welfare and safety.
Backlash
While the security of the public, both residents and visitors, is of paramount priority, stakeholders must address the possible backlash of the travel warnings.
For one, the authorities must disseminate verified information to update the public and maintain a general atmosphere of order and calmness in the face of alertness and vigilance.
Before the US Embassy issued its travel warning, unverified messages were circulated on Facebook, warning about possible kidnapping planned by the Abu Sayyaf in southern Cebu, reported Sun.Star Cebu’s Kevin A. Lagunda, Oscar C. Pineda and Elias O. Baquero on Nov. 4.
The authorities must consider a social media campaign to consider the spread of misinformation, rumors, and speculations that will fuel public panic.
Another adverse consequence of the travel warnings is the rise of bigotry, distrust of foreigners, and racism.
The Police Regional Office (PRO) has asked the public to report suspicious activities or persons to the police.
One of these reports concerned two men “with Middle Eastern” features who checked in with two “brown-skinned men and a woman, possibly Filipinos” at Dakong Bato in Dalaguete, reported Sun.Star Cebu last Nov. 4.
To associate anyone with Middle Eastern features as having terrorism links is dangerous, not to mention irrational and discriminatory. The description of “brown-skinned” can apply equally to Filipinos, Thais, Indonesians, Indians, Malaysians, and other Asians.
According to the DOT monitoring of visitor arrivals during the first three quarters of 2016, the Middle East is one of the top 12 countries that are the sources of arrivals in the country, representing two percent of the
market.
Consistently, the same trend for the first three quarters of 2015 and 2015 reflects that Saudi Arabia, with 39,352 arrivals, is among the countries with substantial growth in visitor volume to the country, reports the DOT.
Is this how Filipinos should treat visitors and guests from the Middle East, with xenophobia and Islamophobia?
This age, boosted by globalization and plagued by terrorism, demands the balancing of alertness and vigilance with openmindedness and co-existence. More insidious and unsparing than the threat from without are the fears that prey on society from within and turn people against each other.