News
Making it easier for harassed tourists to alert cops
View(s):By Ryan Casiechetty
A string of incidents of harassment of tourists and theft of their belongings has prompted authorities to focus on their protection.
Among the measures to be taken to ensure the safety of tourists are a mobile app to be introduced by the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, increased coordination with the Tourism Police, and a public awareness campaign.
“The SLTDA is formulating a mobile application to ensure the safety of the tourists,’’ Sri Lanka Tourist Development Authority (SLTDA) Director General Nalin Perera told the Sunday Times.
A man was arrested for pelting a tourist travelling by train with a slipper
Through the mobile application, tourists will be able to directly contact the police and other travel-related organisations to get information and make complaints.
Mr. Perera said they are collaborating closely with the tourism police to enforce the law against those arrested for harassing tourists.
“It should be the responsibility of every citizen to protect and support the industry that is generating foreign exchange. These types of incidents can bring a bad image to the country,’’ he said.
“By the notorious acts of a few, the whole public gets a black mark,’’ SLTDA Chairman Priyantha Fernando said.
He urged the public to ensure the security and safety of tourists by acting responsibly.
“Despite the high number of arrivals, there is no stable law to protect the tourists,’’ the past president of the Sri Lanka Association of Inbound Tour Operators (SLAITO), Mahen Kariyawasam, said.
He urged the Tourism Ministry to take action to educate people about the revenue generated through this trade and why it should be protected.
He said in a recent incident, a tourist filed a complaint with the Pasikudah Police regarding the loss of his wallet. Later, when the wallet was found, the tourist was in Galle, and the police asked the tourist to come to Pasikudah to collect the wallet.
Similarly, various incidents without a practical law enforcement response are being reported frequently, he said.
He said they have had regular meetings with tourism officials to promote the safety of tourism.
The chief organiser of the Sri Lanka Institute of National Tourist Guide Lecturers, Janaka Dunusinghe, said that qualified tour guides island-wide are useful to ensure the security of tourists.
He said the damage to the country’s image in the recent incident where an attempt was made by a man standing on the side of the rail track to rob a mobile phone from a Chinese woman on a train was minimised due to the presence of a tour guide with the visitors.
The man standing beside the railway track had struck the hand of the Chinese tourist, expecting her to drop her phone while she was taking pictures from the window of the train. The image of the man and his accomplice was captured on the phone.
Tourists alight after a fight inside a bus
A qualified national tour guide who was present with them helped report the incident to the Nawalapitiya Police, who arrested the suspect.
There are many bogus tour guides at sight-seeing locations, he said. They sometimes threaten tourists with using their guide services and demand a large sum of money.
Mr. Dunusinghe said tour information should be provided to foreigners by the Government to make them aware of the dos and don’ts.
He said police security must be provided to heavily tourist-populated trains, including coastal line trains.
Among the series of incidents reported recently were a couple being harassed by a group under the influence of alcohol in Beruwala and a shopkeeper who tried to assault a young foreigner who had asked for the price of food at his restaurant in Anuradhapura.
July recorded 143,039 tourists, the highest so far this year.
Also, Europe and Asia account for the highest arrivals—50.4% and 38.5%, respectively. About 52% of tourists arrive in Sri Lanka for vacation or leisure.
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