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new frontiers
Briefing on Tourism, Development and Environment Issues in the Mekong Subregion
Vol. 5, No. 5 September-October 1999
THE REGION
TOURISM - A 'FRAGILE HEAVYWEIGHT'
[TN: 7.9.99; 8.9.99; 17.9.99; 11.10.99; BP: 30.8.99; 6.9.99; 9.9.99; 27.9.99; 30.9.99] - ACCORDING to American tou-rism researcher Linda Richter, a fifth 'S' should be added to the four well-known S's of tourism - sun, sand, sea and sex: Security. Calling tourism a 'fragile heavyweight', she argues, "Tourism as a discretionary activity is incredibly vulnerable to political instability. Even such natural disasters as earthquakes or hurri-canes do not have the lasting and devastating impact of political unrest. The issue is not whether tourism as a phenomenon can be killed, but whether it will survive in particular places in the face of civil strife and with what costs to the societies that depend on it." (Richter 1992). Indeed, this is a very opportune question in view of the volatile political climate that persists in the South-east Asian region. Not only provides the Asian economic crisis and its social repercussions a rationale to analyze the insecurities and threats facing tourism in the region, political instability must also be considered as a highly critical issue as the following examples demon-strate (see also 'Analysis'). Over the last months, Burmese pro-democracy activists were hoping they could turn the magical date of 9-9-99 into one of national uprising to topple the military regime, as they had done eleven years ago on 8-8-88. In response, the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC) stepped up its intimidation efforts to prevent mass resistance. Troop deployment in "hotspots" like Rangoon and Mandalay became more visible. Arrests, restrictions on travel and gatherings increased. Despite the incredible political tension ahead of 9 September, the generals hosted an extravagant meeting for ASEAN national tourism organizations in Rangoon last August, hoping to take advantage of its recent membership in ASEAN to boost tourist arrivals and to ease the stifling impact of investment sanctions. Foreign delegates to the tourism conference received red-carpet welcomes, after swiftly passing through the airport's customs and immigration. They were even exempted from the compulsory conversion of US$300 into Foreign Exchange Certificates. Well aware of the threat of mass demonstrations, which could have resulted in another blow to the tourism industry, Burmese officials claimed the best way to counter this was word-of-mouth publicity by visitors who have no interest in Burma's politics, visit the country, enjoy its cultural and culinary attractions and go back home to convey the message that things are "not as bad as the media make them out to be". In the following days, however, two British human rights activists - James Mawdsley and Rachel Goldwyn - were jailed in Burma for supporting the democracy movement's calls for a 9-9-99 uprising, which received broad coverage in the international media. To prevent more foreign activists and journalists from entering the country ahead of 9 September, the Bur-mese embassy in Bangkok stopped issuing tourist visas to independent travellers. But the military regime did not only turn away tourists, they also requested from Thai border authorities to keep Burmese out of Burma because any citizen who has been abroad is now per-ceived as a security threat. On 1 October, five armed Burmese students stormed the Burmese embassy in Bangkok, raised the pro-democracy movement's red-golden peacock banner and held 38 hostages for 25 hours before they managed to flee to the Thai-Burma border in a helicopter provided by Thai authorities. The Rangoon regime, apparently angry about the Thai government's "soft" approach to the Burmese students' action, promptly closed its 2,401 km border with Thailand, bringing tourism and trade to a complete standstill. Burmese troops poured into border regions, fueling fears they may be preparing to attack refugee camps and villages on the Thai side. Meanwhile in Burma, landmines were planted along numerous roads leading to border crossings. All this is, of course, very bad news for tourism promoters who have made lots of efforts over recent years to bring about "hassle-free" travel in the Mekong subregion. In addition, Burma has upset tour operators because it recently filed a request with Thai Airways International to reduce seat capacity from 3,500 to 2,500 a week on the Bangkok-Rangoon route to save its own airline, Myanmar Airways International, from bankruptcy. Industry insiders said, if THAI is forced to cut 1,000 seats a week ahead of the coming peak season, it will add to spell disaster for Rangoon hotels. However, in view of the latest political turmoil and the deteriorating diplomatic relations between Burma and Thailand following the Burmese embassy siege, the regional tourism industry as a whole is at stake. Recent political violence in East Timor and anti-military street protests on Java have also destroyed Indonesia's hopes to get tourism back on track. Tourism analyst Don Ross commented, "Some travel executives argue that tourism, like sport, has nothing to do with politics. In reality, the atrocities committed on East Timor are not easily forgotten by a travelling public tuned to global TV news and Internet sites." Furthermore, he reported that particularly in Australia, tour operators were cancelling tours to Indonesia, and a Melbourne public-relations company had launched a "Bali Busting" campaign. As the annual Indonesian travel mart opened in Jakarta in September, riot police were battling students in the city resulting in several deaths, a Dutch journalist was massacred in East Timor, and the office of the Western Australian trade mission was trashed in Surabaya. Imtiaz Muqbil reported about the events in the Bangkok Post's Travel Monitor: "About 400 buyers and sellers attending the Tourism Indonesia Mart and Expo watched helplessly as anti-riot police opened with tear gas and water cannons at the protesting students right behind the show venue, the Jakarta Convention Centre, on the road to Parliament House. The drama came just hours after the opening ceremony, during which rousing speeches about how safe Indonesia was as a tourism destination and how badly it needed tourism to help rebuild its economy. In perhaps the most anti-climactic comments of the show, outgoing Tourism Minister Marzuki Usman said: 'For you who come to Indonesia, you have first-hand contact with our people, and I hope you will convey to your friends and clients that except for some trouble spots, Indonesia is stable and safe, that the tourism product is still intact, and the people are still hospitable.' Show organizers tried to evacuate participants to an assembly hall adjacent to the exhibition area, where they could be better protected in case things got out of hand. Fears rose when a handful of protesters, hurt in the fracas, were carried to safety by their fellow students right through the centre, using the side door. The show's appointment schedule was disrupted along with the evening bus transfers back to the hotels. The protests moved away from the centre later but police, seeking to escort buses to the dinner function, opted for a safe route that took nearly two hours from some hotels." Political instability is endemic and appears to be worsening in the Southeast Asian region. Without more democracy, freedom, economic equity and social justice, the situation will certainly not improve, and security in tourism will remain just an empty slogan. In the words of Richter, "we have a paradox: nations which are veritable hellholes for most of their citizens are sold as 'unspoilt paradises' to outsiders."
HEALTH HAZARDS AND TOURISM
[TN: 29.8.99; 19.9.99; 13.10.99; TI: July 1999; II] - WHILE millions of international tourists are drawn every year to Southeast Asia's white beaches, exotic jungles and cultural sites, travel stories about health problems often remain untold. Experts contend that visitors are usually being kept in the dark about health threats that may be lurking. With revenues from Asia's tourism in the billions of dollars, it is little wonder that governments and industry are not eager to volunteer information about potential risks (see also 'Analysis'). "I've seen a lot of ill-judgement," recently commented Dr. Paul Zakowich, a Singapore-based American internist and author of the book "Travel and Stay Healthy". During his 16 years in Singapore, which offers good medical facilities, Zakowich has helped manage numerous medical evacuations within Southeast Asia. He noted for example that about a third of the 20 million tourists who flock to the region every year are hit by diarrhea, which often ruins their holidays. Yet, travel agencies rarely give health warnings, and without preventive measures, tourists are increasingly exposed to diseases such as diarrhea, malaria, dengue fever and HIV/AIDS. However, it is primarily the local people who suffer, if proper information about health threats is not provided for the sake of tourism. For instance, the spread of HIV/AIDS among the Thai population has often been linked with the Visit Thailand Year promotion campaign. In an essay "After the Forests: AIDS as Ecological Collapse in Thailand", Ann Danaiya Usher recalled developments as follows: "Indeed, 1987 appears to be the year AIDS tightened its grip. And the Visit Thailand Year hysteria certainly facilitated this, but not necessarily because foreign sex tourists were infecting Thai prostitutes, as many of us feared. Rather, in the government's frantic efforts to protect the 'holy cow' that tourism had become, news about AIDS was played down or censored… In response to criticism, then Prime Minister Prem Tinsulanonda dismissed AIDS as being 'just like any other disease'. Delighted by the bulging national (and private) coffers, his government extended the international promotion campaigns of Visit Thailand Year for an additional six months…
ANALYSIS
TOURISM, GLOBALIZATION AND CRITICAL SECURITY
IN an article entitled 'Tourism, Globalization and Critical Security in Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand' [SJTG 19[2], Dec. 1998], Michael J.G. Parnwell, a professor at the Centre for South-East Asian Studies, University of Hull, U.K., seeks to articulate recent debates on globalization and critical security with the process and local impact of international tourism development in Southeast Asian countries. The impact of tourism is viewed within the "new security" framework which involves broadening the notion of security beyond its traditional focus on military issues and inter-state relations into such realms as political, economic, societal and environmental security with an emphasis on local situations. According to Parnwell, the political realm includes restrictions on the liberty of people or constrained opportunities for autonomous action, political oppression and the restriction of human rights, exploitation of the weak by the powerful, and a lack of equity and justice. The economic realm includes factors, which may threaten people's livelihoods and welfare, such as trade instability and the threat of economic collapse, threats of impoverishment and to the quality of life, and restrictions on the provision of basic needs. The societal dimension includes restrictions on the expression of societal and cultural identities, and threats to the cohesion of marginal societies. Finally, the environmental dimension includes the degradation of natural ecosystems and growing resource scarcity. Insecurity may thus derive from vulnerability to danger, anxiety, fear and instability, and from threats to liberty, self-determination, self-expression and self-identification. Parnwell then presents three case studies to exemplify how the perceived macro-level benefits of tourism promotion are often traded off against negative local security impacts. To illustrate the impact of tourism on political security, the first case study highlights tourism-related human rights issues as forced labour, forced resettlement and abuses against ethnic groups in Burma. The second looks at the HIV/AIDS crisis in Thailand, showing how its close association with the phenomenon of sex tourism has led to the significant compromising of social security. Finally, the recent boom of tourism-related golf course development in Thailand and elsewhere Southeast Asia is used to grasp some of the effects of tourism on environmental security. The case studies clearly reveal the global-local interaction in tourism development in the Southeast Asian context and help to explain as to how tourism, far from representing a means of emancipation and empowerment for disadvantaged social groups, is typically superimposed by external forces and reinforces the socio-political status quo in destination countries. As international tourism agencies usually work through and with influential local actors and institutions - what Parnwell calls "conduits of capitalism -, it is concluded that regulation for this global industry is taking precedence over the regulation of its development. As a result, local communities are almost inevitably exposed to greater political, social and environmental insecurity. In the main, the losers are society's weakest and most marginalized people who lack options and choice and as such are vulnerable to exploitation by powerful and profit-motivated agents and institutions who hold the means to control development. In the meantime, international and domestic tourism promoters and advertisers play a significant role in creating images of a (happy, secure and peaceful) host society, aimed to engender a "carefree holiday" for consumers, but this, Parnwell argues, may also serve to remove from the tourist a sense of moral responsibility for the effects their visits are actually having. Meanwhile, AIDS was quietly spreading inside the country among people, mostly poor people, who had little contact with foreigners. Thailand emerged from this period with the seeds of an epidemic firmly plan-ted." More recently, the Burmese government has been trying to talk away the HIV/AIDS crisis - with devastating effects for citizens in Burma and neighbour-ing countries. At the 17th Meeting of Health Ministers from the World Health Organization's Southeast Asian Region, held in Rangoon beginning of October, First-Secretary Lt-Gen Khin Nyunt renewed the regime's claim that the United Nations' report of more than 440,000 HIV/AIDS cases were "completely groundless". He also denied the existence of a rampant flesh trade in Burmese women across the borders to China and Thailand. "Young girls under the age of 25 must be accompanied by a guardian if they want to make a border crossing into a neighbouring country," he said. "Because of (the junta's) ignorance and denial, many people have died over the past ten years. It would be different if we had wise and dedicated leaders who cared about their people," commented a Burmese physician in a recent interview with The Irrawaddy. In Thailand, health woes are at present particularly rampant in border areas, which are being promoted as tourist "gateways" to neighbouring Mekong countries. Health authorities from Thailand and Cambodia, who recently met in the border town Aranyaprathet, reported an alarming increase in cases of malaria, diarrhea, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS. Thai hospital staff along the border admitted more patients are suffering from malaria, although the disease was considered to have been brought under control in Thailand. According to an unconfirmed report, there has also been a serious cholera epidemic in Champasak province in the south of Laos with the first cases found in November 1998 on "Don Nang Loi" Island. The island is located in the middle of the Mekong River not far from the Cambodian and Thai borders. Even though some information about cholera was given to villagers, the Lao government did not officially announce the epidemic, apparently due to fears it could damage the ongoing 'Visit Laos Year' campaign, said the report. It was estimated that by June this year, the disease had spread to 136 villages in Champasak's Khong district. Up to 200 people may have died, and some tourists picked up cholera as well. Likewise, Vietnam's Mekong Delta was recently hit by an outbreak of cholera, as well as by a particularly bad strain of dengue fever. When asked if there is any health advice travellers would need for a trip to the delta region, a travel agent, who also brings in tourists from Europe and America, said laughingly: "What else is there to know? No, there are no health requirements." When fires destroyed 10 million hectares of Indonesian forest in 1997, the health costs of millions of Southeast Asians affected by the smog for months rose to immeasurable heights, and billions of tourist dollars stayed at home or went elsewhere. This is why Malaysian citizens have not been informed about the smog that returned in July this year. The government decided that the air pollution index was deemed an "official secret", making it a crime for anyone to release related data and health warnings to the public. The reason: the findings might scare away tourists again. Accordingly the company, which monitors air pollution, was given the strict order to keep its readings for only "private consumption". Nobody knows how many people have fallen sick or died as a result of this cover-up. In conclusion, there is an urgent need for health authorities and official and private tourism agencies to employ some degree of common sense and foresight. Decisive action must be taken to improve information policies concerning health hazards to protect the wellbeing and lives of both local people and visitors.
YOUTH TRAVEL INDUSTRY TARGETING THE MEKONG SUBREGION
[TN: 22.9.99; BP: 1.10.99; 7.10.99] - THE Greater Mekong Subregion will become an attractive destination for young Western travellers, tour operators and other speakers said at the World Youth and Student Travel Conference (WYSTC), which was held from 26 September to 2 October. The WYSTC featured con-ferences, workshops and a travel mart involving about 800 delegates from 65 countries. Participants included specialists from language-training centers, youth hos-tels, home-stay operators, adventure travel companies and student travel consultants. Thailand and other Mekong countries have become a real focal point for young travellers because of the warm welcome, low prices, "exotic" adventures and other unusual products, said Peter de Jong, secretary-general of the Federation of International Youth Travel Organization (FIYTO). The FIYTO is the main trade association for youth travel and tourism. Its more than 300 members in 60 countries account for an annual turnover exceeding US$6 billion, serve 14 million young travellers annually and sell more than six million air and surface tickets. David Jones, director general of the International Student Travel Confederation (ISTC) noted that student travellers liked to get as far off the beaten track as possible, moving into areas that present to them a different world. However, Joop Van Putten, the chairman of ISTC, warned that destinations must try to keep prices low to attract tourists, adding, "The only thing to keep in mind is that Thailand will be a destination as long as you take care of your customers. It is your nature to do this well, but there is always the possibility that people's perception changes, and if this happens, I can assure you that the business will drop." John Koldowski of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) also cautioned that with a booming tourism industry, competition would become more intense as each country stepped up marketing efforts to tap the booming youth travel market. The World Tourism Organization estimates that youth travellers - ranging in age from 15 to 24 years - presently account for 20 per cent of the global mass tourism market. Jack Coronna, chairman of the UK-based JAC Travel, confirmed that youth travel is a fast-growing and constantly developing business.
CAMBODIA
CASINO TOURISM THRIVING IN THE BORDERLANDS
[BP: 5.9.99] - CAMBODIA emerged as a new destination for gamblers a few years ago, when casinos run by foreign entrepreneurs were granted licences to operate in the country. More border checkpoints have opened as part of a trade cooperation agreement between Thailand and Cambodia. As a result, more casinos are being established on the Cambodian side of the border, catering to foreign clients (see map). The first international casino resort project , the Koh Kong Koh Kong International Club, began operating nearly two years ago. Located just a 200-metre walk from the Thai border in Trat province, the project consists of a casino, a resort, a hotel, a duty-free shop and a helicopter pad under a combined investment of nearly US$25 million. Owned by Thai businessman Phat Supapa and groups of Taiwanese and Singaporean partners, the casino offers all kinds of gambling and underground lottery. Two smaller casinos run by Cambodian and Thai operators are located opposite Thailand's Chanthaburi province at Ban Pak Pard checkpoint and at Ban Laem checkpoint - an area formerly controlled by the Khmer Rouge. One of the gambling houses was temporarily closed when a luxurious casino owned by Teng Boonma, a close associate of Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and an alleged drug trafficker, was opened in nearby Pailin town in July last year. However, Teng Boonma's business shut down after less than a year of operation because it was not lucrative enough. The two newest locations are in Poipet, opposite of Aranyaprathet in Thailand's Sa Kaew province. The Holiday Club opened in June this year and is funded by Macau, Malaysian, Indonesian and Thai investors. It consists of a casino, a department store and a 250-room hotel under construction. Just a short walk from the Holiday Club, is the Golden Crown Club's casino, which was officially opened last April. When completed, this project will also include a large hotel and other amenities for tourists and gamblers. It is owned by Bri-tish, Malaysian, Filipino and Thai entrepreneurs, and it is rumoured that Thai politicians belong to the co-investors. Both Poipet casinos usually attract up to 6,000 gambling tourists from Thailand every weekend. As there are not enough hotel-rooms available, air-conditioned containers were imported to accommodate casino visitors who want to stay overnight. Free food is provided for those who buy at least US$50 worth of chips. There is also a free bus service to and from Bangkok to transfer casino guests. The Cambodian government's decision last June to close illegal gambling dens in Phnom Penh and drive out the city's licenced casinos to locations at least 200 kms from the capital (see also new frontiers 5[4]), is likely to spur more investment in border casino resorts. According to a source in the Cambodian police force, two or three new projects are likely to be opened in Poipet in the near future. Further north, two more casinos are planned along the border, opposite the Thai provinces of Surin and Si Sa Ket. Thai officials acknowledge that casino tourism in the borderlands has become a multi-million dollar busi-ness, which has a dark side too. A leading officer of the Aranyaprathet-based Border Patrol Police commented that the Poipet casinos have certainly helped to improve the local economy but he expressed concern about a potential rise of crime rates and other illegal activities such as money-laundering. "They come, they gamble, and they spend like there's no tomorrow," said another police officer. "We can only guess at the money that is changing hands every day." It is estimated that each casino is making US$500,000 or more each day. According to the chief of the Thai customs check-point in Aranyaprathet, it is almost impossible to regulate the flow of money across the border. If customs authorities impose restrictions on the amount of money gamblers can take out of the country, they may let their companions carry money across the border, he said. But big-time gamblers usually do not carry much cash anyway because the casinos allow them to play on credit and settle the bills later, he added. Thai authorities seem to be utterly unprepared to come up with a clear-cut policy to tackle the negative impacts of casino tourism. Apart from the mush-rooming of casinos in Cambodia, Thai and foreigners have also invested in gambling resorts in borderlands in Burma and Laos because of the strong public resistance in Thailand to legalize casino operations in Thailand. Beginning of September, Thai immigration officials turned away busloads of gamblers from Bangkok to Poipet at the border checkpoint of Aranyaprathet in Sa Kaew province and insisted they must show their passports and visas to enter Cambodia. The new regulation surprised Thai travellers who used to cross the border at ease. But such half-hearted and probably temporary actions are not likely to change much. It is also improbable that harsher measures will be taken to restrict casino tourism to neighbouring countries be-cause Thailand is promoting itself as a "gateway" to Burma and Indochina. Moreover, regional agencies - such as the Agency for Coordinating Mekong Tourism Activities (AMTA) under the Asian Development Bank's Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) scheme - are making great efforts to facilitate overland tourism in the Mekong subregion.
ANGKOR TO BE OFF-LIMITS FOR DESTITUTES
[TN: 12.10.99] - FOR thousands of Cambodia's destitute landmine victims, tourists to the historic Angkor temp-les have provided a decent income. But now, local authorities have unveiled a radical plan to "clean up" the temple complex by forcibly evicting beggars and placing them in a camp. "These people are not good for tourist development and for the dignity of Cambodia," argued Chap Nhalvoud, governor of Siem Reap province. "We need to concentrate them into a controlled place or camp, send some back to the province they came from or ask the local NGOs to provide them with a place to stay. But we must clean up and make sure they don't come back." For many of the beggars - many of them former Khmer Rouge soldiers who sport missing body parts as a result of landmine explosions -, the governor's decision appears to be unfair, given the VIP defection deals secured by their former leaders, said an AFP report.
THAILAND LACK OF VISION AND SQUABBLES AMONG TOURISM INTEREST GROUPS
[BP: 16.8.99; 23.8.99; 20.9.99; TN: 30.9.99; 14.10.99] - INDUSTRY veterans say, the Thai government has no long-term policy to develop the tourism industry in a way that would ensure sustainable growth. That was the consensus among participants in a recent Bangkok Post Roundtable discussion on the future of Thailand's biggest foreign exchange earner. Executives complained, as the government does not place a priority on the industry, the country could lose its attraction to visitors who may turn to other countries, particularly Indochinese countries, where tourist attractions are still "fresh". Vichit Na Ranong, president of the Thailand Tourism Society (TTS) noted that most destinations in Thailand were deteriorating fast, with no clear plans implemented to improve and maintain them. Thailand is popular at present because of the cheap currency, the baht, and the uncertain situation in neighbouring countries, but the glory will not last long once the region returns to normal. Roberto Jotikasthira, president of the Association of Thai Travel Agents (ATTA), shared Vichit's view, adding Thai travel people were too content, resting on their laurels. "Ten years ago, Thailand had fantastic services and attractions. Nowadays, many countries are trying to catch up with what we have had for years," he said. Meanwhile, various official and private interest groups concerned with tourism are involved in bitter behind-the-scene battles and political lobbying. The problem begins right at the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), which has seen five ministers in the last three years, prompting complaints about a lack of continuity in tourism policy. Internal conflict within the TAT has also delayed the appointment of a new governor to replace Seree Wangpaichitr who retired by end of September. Pavena Hongsakula, the present PM's Office Minister in charge of the TAT, has been facing harsh criticism for her naivety in allowing the affair to degenerate into a messy affair and the way she has been trying to push through the appointment of one of TAT's deputy governors. Pradech Payakvichien, as the new tourism chief. Now even TAT employees have doubts about the minister's credibility and her capability to supervise tourism and have demanded her resignation over the fiasco. An editorial in The Nation opined, "those who are cynical of the way, in which the country's tourism industry has been promoted and developed, see (the split over the new TAT chief) as an accumulation of confusing and conflicting visions of the country's biggest foreign exchange earner." It further said, the TAT needs a chief executive who has a broad macro-economic and social sensitivity and a long-term vision, adding, "That person also needs to have the courage to fight the numbers mind-set (referring to the over-ambition to increase tourist arrivals and foreign exchange earnings) and know when to say 'no' to relentless destructive tourism investments and activities and to work to educate and shape related policies from other ministries. He or she must also get priorities right about communicating the sensitive topics of prostitution and undesirable tourism activities to the public."
PATTAYA'S IMAGE PROBLEM PERSISTS
[BP: 22.8.99; 7.9.99; 2.10.99; TN: 2.10.99] - SOME weeks ago, Thailand again received negative press when Newsweek and Esquire published reports, which named the country - and particularly Pattaya - as a sex paradise (see new frontiers 5[5]). In response to a heated debate about Pavena Hongsakula's denial of a "flourishing sex industry" in Pattaya, the concerned PM's Office minister insisted in a letter to the Bangkok Post that she had never denied the existence of a sex industry in Pattaya. She further commented: "The sex service business is an internal problem that we are trying to curb, but controlling the supply will not help much if the demand keeps pouring in. What we need are fewer lustful visitors and more 'real' tourists to appreciate the natural, historic and cultural aspects of our amazing country." In fact, government and industry have been trying hard to make the public believe that a "rebirth of Pattaya" has taken place in order to pull the resort out of its notorious status. Some travel writers have sup-ported these efforts. Carl Parkes, author of the Thailand Handbook, wrote for example: "Pattaya many years ago had bad stories: crime, pollution and murders of tourists. Today, Pattaya has made a great effort to clean up its image. Every time I go there I have a good time." The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is now promoting Pattaya as an ideal family destination, a conference centre, a paradise for golfers heaven and even a good place for eco-tourism. Officials have pub-lished brochures and maps, highlighting natural and cultural sites in and around the city, such as Thai villages, temples, the Khao Kiew Open Zoo and an elephant camp, and bicycles are offered for rent. Some physical improvements have also been made. Lots of money have been spent on a waste water treatment project that local businesses hope will improve the quality of sea-water allowing tourists to swim again without health risks. The waterfront in North Pattaya is undergoing a revamp, and flowers have been planted on the road to South Pattaya. To attract handicapped visitors, special walkways, guestrooms and toilets have been built. Yet, critical voices can not be silenced easily. Sutham Phanthasuk, an entrepreneur-cum-city councillor in Pattaya still blames local legislators and businesses for "doing nothing" for decades to improve the resort town. "Pattaya got used to easy money during the tourist boom of the mid and late 1980s," he explained. "There is a lack of law enforcement to clamp down on our usual business (referring to the sex business). Putting in a new water and sewage treatment system is important, but it is not an overnight solution." According to recent interviews with visitors to Pattaya, there is also little evidence that the perception of the resort has changed among tourists. "Coming here was a shock," said a Dutch woman who visited the resort with her boyfriend. "We will tell our friends not to go to Pattaya because it is just a sex scene and the beach is dirty. We will come back to Thailand, but not here." Another couple from the Netherlands commented, "We knew that Pattaya was a sex town, but we didn't think it was so extreme." Other observers have argued that to totally rid Pattaya of its seedy image would simply kill it off - they may have a point.
THE SAND DUNES OF MAYA BEACH ARE NO MORE
[TN: 21.8.99; 12.9.99] - THE worst fears of environ-mentalists have been realized after the magnificent Maya Bay of Phi Phi Ley Island was radically transformed to shoot the Hollywood movie 'The Beach', starring Leonardo diCaprio (see also new frontiers 4[6] and 5[1]). Although legal action has been taken, it is clear now that there is no way to reverse the destruction. A photo series in a recent issue of The Nation illustrated the sad state of Maya Beach: Today, it is a forlorn scene of ugly bamboo fences and dead native plants - the legacy of a promise that was not kept. The tragedy began on 27 October last year when the director of the Royal Forestry Department (RFD), Plodprasop Suraswadee, gave 20th Century Fox per-mission for the filming on Phi Phi Ley Island, which is part of a national park. The Thai government applauded this decision in the belief, the filming of 'The Beach' in Thailand would uplift the country's image as an attractive tourist destination. The film company was granted the right to remove native plants, level the beach and to widen it for the cast to play football on it as required in the script. In addition, it was allowed to plant about 60 coconut trees to create a stronger impression of an idyllic tropical beach. However, the altering of the island's natural landscape was denounced as a violation of the 1961 National Parc Act. Besides giving a donation to the RFD, Fox also placed a deposit as a guarantee to ensure no permanent damage to Maya Bay. The move provoked a storm of protests from local residents, environmental groups, academics and parts of the public media, but the RFD turned a deaf ear to all complaints. In January, teen heartthrob DiCaprio arrived in Thai-land for the shooting of 'The Beach', which took about two months. After filming, Fox tried to return Maya Bay to its original condition by removing the coconut trees, replanting native plants and dotting the beach with bamboo stakes to hold the sand dunes in place. But the action failed miserably. Plants like giant milkweed, sea pandanus and spider lily, which were removed and kept in a nursery for months, were unable to survive as their roots were cut. The white sand, which once attracted tourists, was swept away by storms because the protective natural vegetation had been removed. The bamboo fences put up by the film crew were by no means a suitable replacement. As Maya Beach lies in shambles, local authorities and a number of local residents have filed a lawsuit against those responsible for the disaster, including RFD chief Plodprasop, the Minister of Agriculture, 20th Century Fox and its Thai coordinator Santa International Film Production Co. On 20 August, the Civil Court heard testimony from local officials about the damages to the beach's ecosystem. A representative of the Law Society of Thai-land, one of the plaintiff's team of lawyers, stressed the action of the defendants had been unlawful. In principle, local experts must be hired to study and guarantee protection against any possible adverse environmental effects from film production before approval is given, she explained. In this case, no such study was done, which is illegal, and no consultation of local residents took place. The next court hearings are scheduled for 19 November and 9 December. In the face of all this, Fox ironically plans to show 'The Beach' in Thai cinemas on Christmas Day.
VIETNAM
JUMPING ON THE ECO-TOURISM BANDWAGGON
[VNA: 29.8.99; 8.9.99] - BACKED by the United Nations' Economic and Social Commission of Asia and the Paci-fic (ESCAP) and international conservation groups, Vietnam is getting ready to exploit its nature-based tourism potential. The development of a national stra-tegy for eco-tourism promotion and the experiences of a number of other Asian countries were discussed at a recent three-day seminar in Hanoi. The seminar, which opened on 7 September, was co-organized by the Vietnam Tourism Administration, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) and ESCAP with the financial support of the Swedish International Develop-ment Agency (SIDA). Apart from representatives of the organizing agencies, participants also included officials from the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and from tourism agencies in Malaysia, Thailand and Australia. It was concluded that Vietnam has the potential to become an attractive eco-tourism destination with 12 national parks, 61 natural reserves and 34 forests of cultural-historical and environmental interest. In addition, the country has a long coast-line with diverse eco-systems, from mangrove forest to island and coral reefs. The Mekong Delta in the South of Vietnam has already been promoted for some years as an ideal region for eco-tourists. Covering some 40,000 kms, the delta area consists of 12 provinces and has a population of 16 million people, including ethnic minority groups such as Khmer, Cham, Hoa and Viet. The delta region includes highly diversified and fragile ecological systems. For example, the freshwater allu-vium area on the banks of the Upper and Lower Mekong Rivers is characterized by orchards, rice fields and a vast canal system interspersed with hundreds of hillocks and tiny islets. The saltwater alluvium area along the coast possess pristine saline forests, swamps and marshlands with thousands of bird species and other fauna, including many endangered species. Environmentalists have warned that tourism develop-ment - involving the construction of resorts and leisure facilities and a rapid expansion of transportation networks - poses a severe threat to the ecological balance and the cultural integrity of indigenous com-munities in the Mekong delta region.
MAMMOTH ETHNO-TOURISM COMPLEX UNDER CONSTRUCTION
[VNA: 11.8.99; 3.10.99] - CONSTRUCTION of a massive ethnic culture and tourism complex began on 3 October in Ha Tay province 60 km to the west of Hanoi. Prominent among those present at the ground-breaking ceremony were Prime Minister Phan Van Khai, National Assembly Chairman Nong Duc Manh and Deputy Prime Minister Pham Gia Khiem. Addressing the ceremony, Minister of Culture and Information Nguyen Khoa Diem stressed that the ethnic culture and tourism "village" will preserve the cultural values of of ethnic groups. It will also serve as a national cultural centre and an entertainment and tourism site, the minister added. According to official sources, the project aims to introduce the traditional cultural heritage of Vietnam's 54 ethnic groups and provide a site for national cultural and artistic activities as well as sports and entertain-ment to attract both domestic and foreign visitors. The project, covering 860 hectares, including 385 ha of land and 445 ha of water, is in the Dong Mo-Ngai Son area, and is divided into six sections. Section I with 198 ha is reserved for models of ethnic groups' villages, with typical types of traditional houses. Section II with 103 ha reproduces in the general and symbolic way the scenery and historic periods of the country. Famous world cultural heritages and scenic places are also given a place at section III which is 37 ha. Section IV, which is 28 ha, is for cultural activities, sports and entertainment. Hotels, restaurants and administrative offices are to be built in section V which is 43 ha, and Section VI covering 360 ha will house a park on water and parking space. As part of the comprehensive masterplan, the Ministry of Construction has been entrusted with the task of helping the government in evaluating the project's detailed planning, the Ministry of Defense with clearing unexploded ordinance, the Ministry of Agri-culture and Rural Development with tree planting and coordinating with the Electricity Corporation to study a water and power supply plan, while the Ministry of Communications will build a traffic system for the area. For transportation, there will be monorail electric trams, suspended monorail, boats, rented-out bicycles and three-wheeled cycles ("xich lo") and minibus, as well as roads for pedestrians. The US$500-million-"village" is planned to be comple-ted in 10 years to coincide with the millennium founding anniversary of Hanoi. The state will shoulder 20 percent of the cost, and the remainder is expected to come from domestic and foreign sources. When put into service, it is anticipated that the project will employ about 5,000 staff.
DOG RACING TO BECOME A TOURIST ATTRACTION
[TN: 22.9.99] - VIETNAMESE and foreign gamblers will have an opportunity to bet on dog racing when the country's first track opens in the southern resort city of Vung Tau by the end of the year. The races are set to start in mid-September when construction is completed, said Tran Tuan Viet, deputy director general of Sport Entertainment Services Corp, which operates the track. The company is a joint venture between Ba Ria Vung Tau Tourist Co and Hemlock Co, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands in the Caribbean. Viet said his company will also offer package tour for foreign tourists to visit the track. Gambling is officially illegal in Vietnam. There is only one casino resort in Don Son, run by Macau tycoon Ho Stanley, which has got governmental approval (see new frontiers 5[2]). The only other venue in the country where betting on races is permitted is at a decrepit horse track in Ho Chi Minh City.
PHAN THIET GOLF COURSE BANKRUPT
[VET: 6.9.99] - THE Asian economic crisis and the accompanying tourism slump has pushed golf course operators into an unprecedented crisis and led to a close-down of many projects - also in Vietnam. Recently, the Ministry of Planning and Investment approved with the proposal from the Phan Thiet golf course for the suspension of its operation. The reason for the suspension was cited as its "business ineffi-ciency". The golf course was a 100 per cent foreign-owned project. Hong Kong's Regent International Over-seas Corp. received a license in July 1993 to develop the course in the southern coastal town of Phan Thiet in Thuan Hai Province, 198 kms east of Ho Chi Minh City and invested US$8 million in the project.
SOURCES USED IN THIS ISSUE:
BP=Bangkok Post; II=Insider Information; SJTG=Singapore Journal of Tropical Geography; TI=The Irrawaddy; TN=The Nation; VET=Vietnam Economic Times; VNA=Vietnam News Agency.
new frontiers is designed to foster informed discussion and action on tourism, development and environment issues in the Mekong subregion. The information can be reproduced freely, although acknowledgement to the publisher would be appreciated as well as the sending of cuttings of articles based on this document.
Published by: Tourism Investigation & Monitoring Team (t.i.m.-team), with support from the Third World Network (TWN), Penang/Malaysia Contact address: t.i.m.-team, P.O. Box 51 Chorakhebua, Bangkok 10230, Thailand, Fax: 66-2-519.2821, Email: tim-team@access.inet.co.th
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