Essence of tourism
SAFETY is the essence of successful tourism promotions. And security is the main concern of returning overseas workers, “balikbayans,” and local and foreign tourists.
While it is often taken for granted, a tourist, especially foreign, must feel comfortable, safe, and secure while walking on the streets at daytime or night without feeling a heightened sense of trepidation, fear, and uncertainty that there is always an imminent possibility of molestation,, mugging, snatching, hold up, and even rape.
Moreover, owing to widespread drug addiction, these threats become highlighted and give the country a bad reputation.
It is the bragging rights of former Davao Mayor Rodrigo Roa Duterte that an individual can walk the streets of the city at time of the day or night without fear of being molested or robbed.
Bohol and Dumaguete are two of the few safe tourist destinations.
Indeed, while Tourism Secretary Wanda Teo and her crew are doing a yeoman and gallant effort to promote Philippine culture and products both here and abroad, the Philippines will not achieve the volume of tourism like in other countries if tourists do not feel comfortable and safe in an archipelago of so many islands.
While it is difficult to articulate the apprehension, a tourist, even a local, will understand the feeling of unease.
Thus, in spite of terrorist bombings and deadly terrorist attacks on civilians in London, Paris, Brussels, Berlin, Madrid, Barcelona, and Nice, tourists still flock without hesitation to these magnificent and historic capitals unmindful of sudden and unexpected events as these destinations are tourist friendly, urbane, safe, and relatively peaceful in the best of times.
In Bangkok, Jakarta, and Hong Kong, tourism thrives and business as usual so long as tourists do not carelessly stay in the vortex of protests and demonstrations which will be their own undoing.
Hence, with Borobudur, Angkor Wat, palaces, beach resorts, and castles, tourists will converge and descend when they will feel relatively secure, at ease and safe.
On the home front, with the abject lack of infrastructure, shortage of interesting places of interest, the notoriety of the country for extra-judicial killings (EJKs), poverty, unemployment, and congestion, the Philippines is definitely not a preferred tourist destination.
When all is said and done, while the President is obsessed with the war against the drug trade, he should focus on criminality which is not only rising but is, more importantly, a deterrent and deleterious to trade.
Unless you are an enemy of the Cuban Revolution, Fidel Castro insists that there are no extra judicial killings, torture, or police abuses in Cuba.
You be the judge.
“Whither is fled the visionary gleam? Where is it now, the glory and the dream?” — William Wordsworth