Experts Call for Better Protection of Tourists

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 ◆ Experts Call for Better Protection of Tourists

Tourism experts urged Chinese travel agents to upgrade the protection of their customers traveling abroad in the wake of this month's car-bomb attacks in the Indonesian resort of Bali, China Daily reported Friday. Experts said travel agents should work more closely with insurance operators and increase the amount of insurance cover fortourists to minimize the loss in case of accidents. Zhang Guangrui, a tourism researcher with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said tourists should also be encouraged to usecredit cards instead of cash, pointing out that credit-card use isstill not popular among Chinese. Many Chinese tourists, considered as nouveau riche in the eyes of cash-starved foreign destinations, have become the targets of pickpocketing and robbery, and even easy prey for abduction, Zhangsaid. Wang Fude, a professor of tourism of the Beijing Second ForeignLanguage University, said travel agents have the responsibility toeducate tourists on general safety, including detailed and up-to-date information on their destinations. Wang said agents should also draw up contingency plans in the event of accident during trips. Jiang Haizhong, a marketing director of the China Travel Service, said the firm has decided to encourage tourists to purchase life insurance.