Tourism power play in the region

“Biting the hand that feeds you.” This was a bitter lesson learnt when three junior ministers in the Maldives sought to offend and criticise Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the latter promoted an Indian island as a tourist destination.

The issue surfaced after Modi’s tweet following a visit to Lakshadweep, an archipelago of 36 atolls and coral reefs in the Laccadive Sea, off the coast of Kerala, India. During his visit, Modi posted images of him snorkelling in Lakshadweep that went viral, prompting social media users in India to suggest these islands were better than the Maldives.

India is the Maldives’ biggest tourism source country and the three junior ministers pitched into the debate trying to assert that the Maldives was far superior a destination than anything India can offer, with one calling Modi a “clown”. That triggered a furore on social media with celebrities including film stars and cricketers saying Indians should visit numerous destinations in India before venturing abroad. Some cancellations were reported of Indians planning to visit the Maldives and one Indian travel platform suspended promoting the Maldives as a dream destination.

The South Asian pricey destination has drawn regional political ramifications with a straining of India-Maldives ties after Mohamed Muizzu won elections there in November 2023 as the President of the country. Muizzu, who is pro-China, in his election pledge, vowed to remove a small contingent of some 75 Indian military personnel in his island nation and change the ‘India first’ policy of the Maldives.

On Sunday, the Maldives government suspended the three junior ministers who criticised the Indian PM and sought to distance itself from the comments saying it didn’t reflect the views of the government. Tourism industry associations apologised to the Indian travel trade.

So why should Sri Lanka worry over tourism developments in a neighbouring country? That’s because the crisis resonates in Sri Lanka which is also treading a delicate line of keeping both India and China equally happy amidst gigantic superpower rivalry in this region. India and China are among the biggest tourism source markets for both these countries and shape the economies of the two neighbours as key drivers of foreign exchange earnings.

While India is the biggest source market for both these countries, any animosity towards this superpower can cause a disruption in tourist traffic as the Maldives unfortunately discovered last week. Indians are very patriotic and easily offended if their leaders are slandered or vilified.

India and China are firmly entrenched in the social and economic fabric of Sri Lanka with a multitude of projects and other financial assistance.

As I pondered over these issues, the phone rang at home. It was my jolly-mood economist friend, Sammiya (short for Samson). “Hello…..hello,” I said.

“Hello, I was calling you about some disturbance in the Maldives, where Indians have been annoyed by some comments made by three Maldives Deputy Ministers,” he said.

“These comments were unfortunate as India is the biggest source market for the Maldives and they need to keep the Indians happy,” I said.

“This is also part of regional political power play as both India and China assert their dominance over the South Asian region. This is another lesson to Sri Lanka not to offend the two nations if we are to ensure large numbers from those countries visiting us and building our tourism product,” he said.

“The Indian Prime Minister’s tweet drew some unfair comments from three Maldives Deputy Ministers criticising Modi, comments of which the Maldives government has distanced itself,” said Sunny Umar, a tourism industry official in the Maldives.

Social media was filled with comments by users seeking to boycott the Maldives. India is the Maldives’ biggest tourism source market and in 2023 drew 206,026 Indians. India was followed by Russia, China, the United Kingdom and Germany, as the main source markets.

The Maldives attracted 1,842,169 visitors last year, slightly higher than the target of 1.8 million and 12.3 per cent more than what was recorded during the same period in 2022. This year’s target is 2 million arrivals.

Indian celebrities including actors and cricketers waded into the debate, saying it was unfortunate that the Maldives was critical of India. Actor Akshay Kumar urged the people of his country to promote the nation’s tourism, saying in a post: “Came across comments from prominent public figures from the Maldives passing hateful and racist comments on Indians.

Surprised that they are doing this to a country that sends them the maximum number of tourists.”

Another industry official in the Maldives said he hoped the issue would die down since India is a key source of visitors to the Maldives.

The Maldives Association of Travel Agents and Tour Operators (MATATO), the premier tourism industry body, emphasised the importance of fostering positive ties with countries including its South Asian neighbours.

“Lakshadweep islands tourism sector has no discernible negative impact on the Maldives tourism industry. Such a development would be complementary to Maldives tourism creating opportunities for both regions. The synergies between the two destinations can enhance the overall appeal for travellers and encourage more cruise liners to explore this vibrant and culturally rich region,” it said, as it sought to allay fears of any potential cancellations of Indian tourists.

While Sri Lanka has launched many campaigns in India to woo more visitors, there are plans to attract one million Chinese visitors by 2025. “If we can hit 400,000-500,000 from China this year we would well be on the way to achieve another good year,” a local industry official said.

Arrivals from China, which have slowed down in the postCOVID period, reached 68,789 in 2023. The best year for Chinese tourists was 2018 with 265,965 visiting Sri Lanka. This year, Sri Lanka is aiming to attract 2.3 million visitors, up from a near 1.5 million last year.

Well….after a marathon session digging into delicate IndiaChina affairs and their influence and control of the region, I wondered where the trio was this Thursday morning, as they hadn’t gathered under the margosa tree as they normally do.

“Magey yaluwo gamey gihin (They have gone to the village),” said Kussi Amma Sera, as she brought my second mug of tea.

I acknowledged her response and wound up my column, reflecting on how countries like Sri Lanka and the Maldives are firmly entrenched in the power play of regional politics and the influence of the two Asian superpowers. There is no escape!