ASEAN Tourism Pact to Be Stamped

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 ◆ ASEAN Tourism Pact to Be Stamped

Southeast Asian leaders will seal a tourism pact at their summit in Cambodia next month to revive confidence in the region following the bloody bomb blasts in Bali, a minister said on Oct. 22.

The decision to deepen tourism co-operation among the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) was made two years ago but there was more urgent now following the Bali tragedy, said Malaysian Tourism Minister Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir.

"The leaders will sign an ASEAN tourism agreement in Cambodia. It will spell out the decision of all ASEAN countries to work together to promote tourism to the region and also intra-ASEAN travel," he told reporters.

"We want to help each other in tourism, to encourage intra-ASEAN travel. Maybe the richer ASEAN countries will invest in hotel resort development in the not-so-rich ones."

The annual ASEAN summit on November 4-5 in Phnom Penh will bring together leaders from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Viet Nam, Singapore, Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand.

Heads of state or high-ranking officials are also expected from China, Japan, South Korea and India. The Bali bombing, which killed at least 190 people, was a huge blow to ASEAN's multi-billion-dollar tourism industry, already reeling from terrorism, kidnappings and the aftermath of September 11.

The region has been hit by mass cancellations following the October 12 blast but tour operators say it is still premature to conclude that travellers are steering clear of the region.

Many countries have, however, cautioned their citizens against travelling to Indonesia following warnings by the United States, Britain and Australia of possible new attacks, especially at tourism sites in cities and resorts.

Australia and Britain have also issued travel advisories warning of heightened risk alerts in most ASEAN countries.

Earlier, Abdul Kadir launched two tourism funds totalling 600 million ringgit (US$158 million) to boost development in the industry in Malaysia, where it is the second top foreign exchange earner.

"Our theme to the world is 'Malaysia Truly Asia' - that this is a moderate, liberal, multiracial, multicultural country where people live happily with one another," he said.