Professional Documents
Culture Documents
ANLetter Volume 3 Issue 1-Jul 1994-EQUATIONS
ANLetter Volume 3 Issue 1-Jul 1994-EQUATIONS
A Statement of Corlcern
lnthbixueof theANlzttertheeditorialspaceisbeingrelinquishedtothe As such, the challenge to concerned pmple and {wPs, furcluding
Statement of Concern that has bem adoptd at the Ninth Meeting of the
our*loe, is undoubtedly to contirurc with ntd push fomtard eforts that:
General Body at EQUATIONS. The procas of ailoption ytas on3 whiclt D sapport local struggles anil mwements against datructiae
-any star
f|e-
inaolaed all Inels of functioning in the society and tlurefore r$Iects the
burism in destirutions, other tlun thos which are in way
amious kinds of concerns. c ommurwl, sectaian m exclusioist.
AsEquations enters its L0thyem of exbtence and exptimcein critiquing I raise at aaious forums and in amians ways fundammtal quations
touism issaes in lnilia, it is chnllengedby sevral concnrts on the hoizon about tottisn such as: who bmefts and who profits from, who p ay s for,
today, a scanmia that is likely to persist and extend in both magnitude and andwho loses, fucau* of tourism darclopnwnt?
implications as we approach the 21st cmtury. D and, arbing ftom this, anolve conscious, holistic policies as altenntives
D WorldBank - IMF ld structural ailjustrnmt andliberalisatianin lndia to the ubting models and practises, working with like-mindcd paple
and the promotion of tourism as pmt of an integrated economic ageniln, touw d s tlu* obj e ctia e s.
heralded by the 'New Economic Policy', especially the implications of
the recent General Agreemmt on Tlade in Smtices (GATS); Towards a critiquq Some Statements
D the elolution of tourism in Indin from its eafly 'cultural tourism' days
to aggrexive datelopment today : Special Tourism Arus, piaatisatbn In the context of neo<olonisation
of tourism infrastructure, lurury hoteb, prolifuation of dornestic D tourismhas to be viewed in the contu.t of a daelopment modelwhich
airlines, opur skies policy allowing charter flights to cater to'moss has a p olitical character ;
tou*m', golf resorts wooing upnarkct lapanae mtd European D tourism darcIopment has taleen place along with incrmsed elitism,
tourists, multinational and multilateral interests in lndian tourism, authoitarianisn, militmism and vaious forms of Sntu repression in
opentng up of hitherto'ratless areas'in theNortluast. diferent pnts of the world: aII of the* are threats to the culture,
I unresolaed questions of land alienation in India, within the context of economy mtd empowerment of communities;
Inrge-scale conaer sion and acquisition of ratenue and agricultural land D tourism developrunt along with the glabalbation process thrwtms the
fo r /
ho tels g olf cour s q /ra ail s ; swoeignty of a rution (in the broadest defnition of 'ratian');
D the ecblogical implications of.tourism in coastal arens (utater sports), D tourism eulogises a cefiain consumptive and luxurious lifestyle which
high mountain rnng6 (heli-skiing, wintu sports), of- road and is unilstainableby any means;
Himalayan car rallies sponsoreil by multinational companies, I tourism as a hnrbinger of goodwill amongst people is a false propaganda;
uncontrolled release of sold waste into the natural enaironment,
inadequate mforcemmt of sewage treatmmt rquirements by hotels and
D tourbmpromotes net wtflsw of capital to the global market econotny,
espaially to the so-called darcIopd natians;
its ffict on local health and drinking water sutrces;
D the detructian of flora and fauna in wildlife and so-calleil ecotouism,
D tourismpromotes net fluo of capital to ffiuent sections internally;
tlrc relatiorchip betwem sanctumies and adivasis, the inequal D the tourism ecorn,my promotes the conversion of drrgt to cash lir*eil
. distibution of economic benefts; to the arms trade; and,
D the commodification and musanmisation of cultural heitage - art, D tourism is based on the objectifud uiatt of the world where beaches,
artefacts, architecture - and culturalforms - music, dance,relatedlocal sanctuaries and so on are sem as objects ofpleasure which negata the
traditions as tourist attractions (all in the name of 'heritage tourism' sanctity of the objects as well as of possihle mwningful relatiorrehips
and' shoutc asing Indi a' ) betwem p@pl6 and their enoironments.
> the reality of intunational understanding' at the larcl of the petty We utelcome a aider discussion, and yutr comments anil analysis utould
traden the hawker, the women and children who prostitute thernselus, be useful in further shmpaing the discoulse on tourism in the contut of
and other informal sator 'hangers-on' of the touist rconomy; doelopment.
> drug-peddling, trade of women/chitdren as commercial sex workers,
and their growing links with internatioral twisn. K.T.Sr,"&tl,
Tourism and Environment Underlying everything we do must be an empathy for wildlife and
a respect for its habitat. We find empty bottles, empty cans and
plastic bags, not only marring the beauty but alsq threatening
Kamal Nath animals who have been known to choke and die form trying to eat
Union Mnister, the food off discarded plastic wrappers or containers.
Mnistry of Environment and Forests,
Govemment of lndia. ln every case it is necessary, to do a detailed study about the
carrying capacity of any tourist location, be it a hill-station or a
ne of the most controvercial and 'active'subjects today is beadr resort or a wildlife sanctuary. By 'catrimgcapacity', as we
environment. And, tourism is intrinsically related to all know, we mean the load of people that a particular area can
environment. take.
Tourism represents around six per cent of world trade, and almost Until recently, tourism in our country was mainly religious
13 per cent of the total global consumer spending. The significance tourism. Pilgrims who visited the holy places were humble and had
of these two factors cannot be gainsaid. great respectfor the local communitiesliving in these places. In turn,
the visitors were welcomed with open arrns and open minds and
Tourism, let us face it, is an industry. Like any commercial venfure, given all cooperation and assistance. There was nothing obtrusive
investment in the industry has to be commensurable with in the attitudes of the pilgrims which would offend the sensibilities
profitabilify. But unlike most other industries, tourism is essentially of local inhabitants. But the present scenario, as we know, is
based on a good environment, and should therefore, naturally be diffurent.
more concemed about its proper protection, preservation and
further development, in its own interest, if not out of altmistic Tourism contains within itself the potential of developing into one
of the most eco-friendly industries
motives. - provided
re-orientation of perspective and an acceptance
that there is a
of the basic tenets
Tourism depends heavily on an authentic socie.culhual environ- of conservation.
ment and an upspoilt natural environment.
This mticle has been excerpted from the Eighth Sort Nath Chfu Memorial
Howwer, the upsurge witnessed in tourism demands vast Lecture organised by the International Fellutship Foundation oflndia.
infrastructural facilities like hotels, restaurants and roads, which
affect the environment. Even when care is taken to minimise this
adverse impact, tourists by their very numbers and behaviour,
create certain problems.
Ecologtst orhotetiu ?
In India, an environmental impact assessment is now being insisted
upon as a pre-requisite for all major tourism projects. Some areas, Nitya rfocob
such as the Aravallis, have been declared as being eco-sensitive,
and commercial development in and around national parks and
wildlife sanctuaries is being strictly regulated.
t3-year old battle for Indian beaches is winding down
Unrestrained commercialisation has eroded the stabity of our towards a denouement as the protagonists T-
coastline. Beach resorts require enormous quantities of sweet water environmentalists and the hotel industrv
to cater to the lifestyles of rich tourists. Over exploitation of word from the Ministry of Environment and Forests- await tl're final
(I\GF).
underground water creates an imbalance, making well-water in
coastal villages undrinkable, and salinising fields to a point where A t stake is the"development" of several beadres of India. The hotel
agricultwe is seriously affected. and tourism industry wants freedom to put up hotels andadventure
sports facilities smack on the water front. But environmentalists
Availability of water is also a major problem in the hill stations argue this would destroy certain fragile eco-systems as well as
giving rise to problems of sewage and solid waster disposal. traditional iifestyles along the coast.
Another crucial issue is that of energy consumption. Tourist The draft amendments appear to have been issued to appease the
facilities should be so designed as to be energy efficient, taking hotel lobby which has been clamouring for permission to build
advantage of the sun in hill-stations and wind directions and five-star hotels on Goan and Oriyan beaches wherever they wish.
breezes on the plains and coastal areas, to reduce heating, cooling "lneffect," says Shyam Chainani, honorary secretary of the Bombay
and the air<onditioning requirements to the barest minimum. Environment Action Group, "The hotel industry has been allowed
to build wherever it wants as the proposed amendments give
A lalge number of tourists, both international and domestic, are discretionary powers to MEF."
attracted to national parks and sanctuaries whidr afford them
glimpses of wildlife, mountains, jungles, rivers and lakes and also The 1991 notification divided a 500 m strip of land along the coast
allow for the new fangled 'advenfure tourism', hiking, skiing and into four coastal regulation zones (CRZ) and laid down the activities
other similar activities. that were allowed on each.
All thisis very well, and certainly deserves to be encouraged since MEF's 1991 notification bans certain activities within the CRZ.
quite apart from the income generated by tourism, it also increases Thtse included setting up indusiries or expansion of existing ones:
public awareness about nature and all its beauties. The mistake is setting up fish processing units and warehouses; discharge of
when we confuse wildlife and adventure tourism with picnics. wastes anC effluents, either municipal or industrial;miningof sand,
rock or other minerals; harvesting ground water and altemation of
the natural topography. Goa Greelr Grorrps
In CRZ-I, which comprises ecologically sensitive areas as well as ProtestNeur Coastal
national parks, sanctuaries, etc., no new construction is to be
permitted withirt 500 m of the HTL. Ilrafr
In CRZ IL which comprises areas already developed up to the shore
line,buildings arepermitted on thelandward sideof existing struc-
Rahul @swart
tures subject to municipal guidelines. This means if an area has been
dedared to be within municipal limits, i.e., it is an urban area and
appropriately developed, buildings can be constructed anywhere.
In the next zone, CRZ III, an area of 200m from the HTL is a no
development zone. Land within 200m to 500m of the HTL can be nvironmentalists and green groups in Goa have objected to
developed with the MEF's approval. CRZ III pertains to relatively the draft amendments to the coastal regulation zones
undisturbed or rural areas. Villages can e4pand in this zone, subject notification of the ministry of environment and forests, dated
again to the precondition that new construction are in keeping with February 79,1997.
traditional rights, the total covered area does not exceed 33 per cent
of the total plot size and the maximum height of a building is less The draft amendments to the earlier notification were dated
than9m. November 1'I.,,1993, and are seen by environmentalists as "shaped
to satiate the greed of the hotel industry in Goa".
CRZ IV covers islands
- Andaman
and other smaller islands
and Nicobaq, takshadweep
and pertains to land within 200m of the
- of coral and sand for construction or
HTL. It also bans the use
The draft amendments relate to the definition of the high tide line,
the extent of the no-development zones on the coastal stretches or
industrial purposes as, says Shekhar Singh of the Indian Institute of
in terms of distance from the high tide line, the fencing of private
Public Administration, Indian coral reefs have been adversely
property in coastal areas, the construction of basements by private
affected bypollution and coastal "development". Buildings maybe
developers, the basis for calculating floor space index, and the
constructed only with MEF's permission.
stafus of sand dunes.
WhileMEF's draft guidelines further define F{TLand leave the four
CRZs untouched, they are somewhat soft on the hotel industry. The The Goa Foundation at Mapusa in Goa, the Goa chapter of the
original notification banned any construction within 200 m of the lndian Heritage Society, the oldest environmental NGO in Go4
HTL but the amendment could change that. "Provided the Central Nirmal Vishwa, the fagrut Goenkarandri Fouz (Vigilant Goans'
government may, after taking into account geographical feafures Army) from the statehave protested against the draftamendments.
and overall coastal zone management plans, and for reasons to be
recorded in writing, permit any construction subject to such The National workshop on Human Rights, Environment and the
conditions and restrictions as it may deem fit," the amendments go. Iaw, and the Bombay Environmental Action Group have raised
objections to the amendments following the B.B. Vohra Committee
Within a year of the 1991 notification,lndia's ninecoastal stateswere report on coastal regulation zones. These groups consider the
supposed to prepare their respective CRZ plans but only one, amendment as a "sell-out" to the luxury hotels and resorts lobbv in I
Pondicherry, has done so till date. However, Goa and Daman and Goa.
Diu submitted plans in which large stretches of untouched coastal
areas were demarcated as CRZ II which meant they were urban The first regulation advocated no constructions within 500 m of the
areas and could be used to "develop" tourism and hotels. Bothwere high tide line. In 1981 that clause was relaxed for Goa, Trivandrum,
asked to modify their CRZ plansby a committeesetup toverify the Mahabalipuram and Puri-Konarak to allow beach resorts beyond
state plans. the 200 m shetdr of the high tide line. With the pressure of
population and the growth of the tourism indushy, the Cenhe
Other states have been less than interested, largely due to a lack of expressed the need for a detailed coastal area management plan.
political interest.
The entire politics of coastal development revolves around the Under the Environment Protection Act, 19trc, a notification
declared coastal stretches as coastal regulation zones (CRZ) and
demarcation of CRZ II. Large areas of the the coastal states are
graded restrictions were imposed on development therein.
placed in this category in the state plans, and the MEF clears the
plan, it will open the floodgates for any development in that ar€a.
According to the Goa Foundation, under pressure from the hotel
Tourism and hotels are a major foreign exchange earner for the industry, the Cenhe was pursuaded to appoint an expert committee
country but the kind of hotels planned for u:.L992 to examine the issues raised by hoteliers regarding the CRZ
S-stars
- do nothing
the local economy and are very heavy-on infrastructure. Instead, restrictions.
one suggestion is that, the tourism indwhy should aim at no-star
tourism or paying-guest tourism. The committee was set up under the chairmanship of B.B.Vohr4
with 14 participants from several state govemments and
That would be an acceptable trade'off between coastal development ministries.
and environmental interests. More importantly, local people would
bmefit instead of being caught in the cross-fire between the two The most vociferous objections to the relaxation of the high tide line
lobbies. I from 100 m to 50 m came from the Goa Foundation and the Indian
Heritage Society. "Any ambiguity may permit destruction of
The Pioneer precious estuarine/rivering florai Noronha of the Goa Foundatioh
wrote to the secretary, MOEF. Claude Alvares, secretary of the Goa hoping to get the instant thrills of modern sporb and adventure
Foundation, emphasised that it is inappropriate at this stage to facility within the seduded, virgin, natural surroundings. These
consider relaxation. are the short-ctrts for modern adventurous "Niryana".
But at the end of the day, two staunch critics were among the first
three contest winners. World Tourism Day 1993's focus, oddly
enough, was environmental protection. I
oa's state govemment and its influential hotel lobby praise
TWN Feature
:ourism no end. But truth, as they say, comes from the
lmouth of babes. And how!
-
"The Pearl of the Orient (Goa) could tum out to be the dustbin of
the world," warned student Marisa Coutinho. Tourismwhich once
brought Goa a lot of fame was now turning into a major problem,
she said. "Ourbeaches are like a dumping ground. They are getting
buried deep under a maze of concrete blocks, five-star hotels and
holiday homes," she charged. "Tourism, unless controlled, could
soon become part of the hydra- headed monster destroying our
environment," she said.
Ciling examples from near home, Grary D'Souza noted how hotel
wastes were being dumped into creeks, and small villages like
Calangute had become concrete jungles. Gracy called for blocking
permissions for hotels which threatened fwther harm to Goa
"Tourism may come, and tourism may go, but we should be able to
remain in a happy, green Goa," she argued.
t
proposal. Then in November 1993 several Janata Dal MLAs in The Chief Minister, however, emphasised that the opponents of the
Orissa State Assembly opposed the project tooth and nail. It took a move were "ill-informed" and said the state govemment is not
very interesting turn in fanuary 1994 when 30 MPs wrote a letter to handing over the ovvnership of the sites, but onlygiving permission
the Prime Minister to clear the project. Interestingly some MPs have for tourism-related activity to be carried out by private
..signed both the letters. enfrepreneurs. :'
It is important to mention that during the '80s, the then Prime De Souza stated that Tiracol Fort had, in fact, been denotified
Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, did not allow a single several years ago to give the resort's restaurant contract to a private
hotel to come up in the area. Five years back when Mr. Biju Patnaik caterer, while GTDC continued to maintain the lodging premises.
was in opposition, he also opposed the project, butnow is strongly
in favour of the project. As against the Rs 1.5 lakh earned by the resort last year, the lease
earning is expected to be Rs. 2.5 lakh. This, according to the tourism
When the matter came up for final hearingbefore a Divlsion Bench department sources, will help fund substantial repairs of the
of the Supreme Court consisting of Hon'ble justices Mr. Kuldip monument. The lease period will be initially seven years.
Singh and Mr. B.D. Hansaria they took the Government of Orissa to
task for ignoring the environmental aspects of the project. The Tiracol is one of the three large coastal forts that will eventually be
Government through their Counsel told the Court that the original converted to privately managed resorts. The other two are Reis
proposal of constructing deluxe hotels, etc. on Puri-Konark beach Magos and CaboDa Rama in south Goa.
covering an area of 2,227 acres forest land is withdrawn.
According to IGB the "selling out" of Tiracol will provide a
The Supreme Court was not satisfied with the mere withdrawal of backdoor entry for one of the world's most exclusive resort chains,
the projectby the State of Orissa. The Court directed to the Statre of the Club Mediterranean (Club Med), whidr operates resorts on
Orissa that they shall ensure that no tree should be felled in the islands in a number of European and South-East Asian counhies.
proposed area. The petition filed by the environmentalists was
disposed off accordingly, setting at rest the controversy about this Goans, intensely possessive of their mvironment and cultural
highprofiled project of the Govemmentof Orissa whose real object
was under dark clouds from the very beginning. I
heritage
- both Hindu and Christian - see the denotification ofI
Reis Magos as an assault on their heritage.
The Court issued notices to the Kerala govemment and the
W,rn OvEn Lono Avv,tpPA's Travancore Dewaswam Board which is the authority managing
the Sabarimala temple. In a highly appreciable expression of
judicial activism, the Court directed that the public should be
Wrt-oERNESS invited to the court to have their say in the matter. Therefore, the
Latlnef Kizhiseeri Court directed the Kerala govemment to give publicity to this
matter through its Public Relations Department, using the Presg
radio and TV. General Public are invited to become parties to the
case and can file statements in the Court.
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project would destroy the religious sanctity of Sabarimala. This High Court against the government of Kerala which criticised the
letter was treated as a Public lnterest (Pf Petition because the Court govemment for its lack of action on the application made by the
felt that the matter required detailed consideration. Devaswom Board for allotment of land for development of
Sabarimala. In this case, the Deswaswom Board asked for a 200
According to Sarasappan's letter, the Sabarimala tourism project acre land, spread over Sabarimala, Pampa shores and Billakkal,
involves construction of five+tar hotels, roads and other structures intmded to increase the facilities for pilgrims. The major thrust of
for tourists, especially to cater the needs of foreign tourists. He Dewaswom Board's argument in this case depended on ihe Kerala
stated that the commercialised tourism proposed by the govemment's proposal to grve forest land to encroachers. During
Govemment of Kerala would destroy the cultural ethos, historical this legal battle between the government and the Dewaswom
background and religious sanctity of the Sabarimala temple and Board, major newspapers supported the Dewaswom Board
adjoining forest. through their finely worded editorials. Public opinion at this stage
was also very clear. Majority of the people were against massive
deforestation of Sabarimala through five star tourism
Mr. Sarasapp€rn was summoned by the Court to give a swom development but demanded upgrading and spreading of facilities
statement conceming his complaints which was recorded on Mardr
needed by pilgrims who are mainly from the middle class and
77,1994. Then the Chief fustice placed the matter on the judicial
lower income groups of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Kamataka, Andhra
side of the Bench hearing Dewaswom cases. The Benctr, consisting
Pradesh and other areas of India.
of K.B. Balanarayana Marar and K. K. Usha, perused the complaint
along with an article on Sabarimala Tourism Development Project The government of Kerala suddenly became alive and started
published in the Mathrubhoomi Weekly. This artide - "Sabarimala
proposing massive plans for tourism development, including the
Development "Saranamillayyappa" (Saranmnilloryyappa: Oh, Special Tourism Area, Bekal Fort, and Sabarimala. The Chief
Aryappa, there is no solace) - was written by the eminent Minister, Mr. K. KarunakararL who holds the Tourism Portfoliq
historian-culturologist, Dr. Rajan Gurukkal whois a professor in the
made statements in the Kerala Assembly to the effect that the only
Sdrool of Social Science, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam,
way out of the financial crisis of the State is development of mass
was published in the Feb.20-26, 1994 issue of the Mathrubhoomi
tourism all over Kerala.
Weekly. The judges while admitting the letter as PI Writ, expressed
the view that the interest of Sabarimala pilgrims and devotees of There was a kind of covert tug of war going on between the central
Lord Ayyappa require further probing into the matter. forest and environment ministries and the govemment of Kerala
over the question of denotifying reserve forests in the Sabarimala was arrested while he was on Satyagraha in Kanhangad, thc' town
region and converting them to non-forest use. Meanwhile, massive nearest to Bekal Fort. He was under detention till the end of the
programmes for converting Sabarimala into a major tourist centre festival which began on May 2L and ended on May 25, 1994. The
was made in a meeting held on September 13,7993 which was government of Kerala is conducting massive disinformation
chaired by the Chief Minister. The meeting decided to provide the campaign through the media by projecting that Tourism is the best
required land to the Dewaswom Board and decided to construct industry for Kerala. Activists in Kerala call upon all concerned to
additional roads to reduce the steep dimb, separate power supply join forces against unviable tourism development.
arrangements, star hotels and other high-tedr facilities induding
amusement parks.
The National Action Plan for Tourism, the GAIT Final Agreement
and the privatisation drive accelerated a tourism boom through
foreign equity participation, subsidies and tax deductions to the
hotel industry. The Sabarimala tourism development plan is
sufficient to make it a concrete jungle. Proposed developments are
aimed at the upper class domestic tourists and foreigners.
PRESDRYE SABARIMALA tr'OREST
Mr. Sarasappan's letter turned writ is challenging the plans to
convert Sabarimala into an upper class tourist enclave. The real
feelings behind the challenge are easily identifiable. Sabarimala is Dear Friends,
already under pressure from buildings and other infrastructure
facilities. Pilgrims coming to Sabarimala can realise the intense Sabarimala temple premises, the Pampa shores and the
spiritual experience of walking through the forest, the adjoining natural, garden-like forest are already facing
simple/spartan life to be followed during the pilgrimage and its destruction due to existing roads, shops, and other concrete
overall similarity to a hibal/indigenous culture. All these will be buildings. Now plans are being made to make Sabarimala a
lost once five star tourism enters the place with its high- tech, major tourist industry centre which proposes to build new
high-class and dollar-centric values and methods. roads, star hotels, railways etc.
Activists in Kerala are trying to consolidate their actions against the Quilon (Kollam) A. Mohan Kumar
Pooyamkutty Hydro-electric project, the Sabarimala Tourism 7846-1994 CISEC
Project and the Bekal Special Tourism Area Project. The govemment Kottamukku, Quilon (Kollam)
is trying to suppress peoples protests by using its police machinery. Kerala 691073
Recently, an activist who was protesting against the Bekal Festival, Ph:72765
organised to promote Bekal tourism by the government of Kerala;
Bekal Festival "Tladitional Arts Festival": A cultural balance-sheet
"The almost unbelievable growth of tedrnology, the proliferation
An Observet's Balance Sheet of cultural sequencing and of organizational complexity, appears
to many people to have brought to an end the power of the ritual
world. Whether or not one's tastes runs to religiosity, one can't
help admit that the old interaction forms of rites of passage and
Dhanara.j Keezhara intensification have lost or are losing mudr of their emotional
force. Yet the crises of life are still there and still as important as
they were to people in a more believing era. Furthermore, the
communal crises, for all those bold predictions of a planned and
controlled society, have an uncanny way of persisting through
tedrnological haze" (Eliot D. Chapple).
Moreover, images used in advertising and promotion material Eventually I'd regain an inner shength by using grcen power to
should be fair and honet representations of kanaka maoli reahty. positive ends. I'd take on tIrc rapnsibility to continually fight
Our material poverty is not "exotic," certainly not to us. Tourisb against xenophobia in everyday situations in my own interest.
should be bncouraged to expand their recreational and entertain- This could ultimately result in new drallenges, like a relationship
ment e4perience to include education about the places and peoples reaching across colours. And then... just maybe... I wouldn't feel to
of our islands which they visit. Our women, childrery cultural sites escape on vacation as often. And of course, the purple and green
and artifacts should not be turned into tourist attractions and frogs would live happily ever after noticing their colours but not
subjected to exploitation ir a.y form. In order to provide tourists de.valuing them. I
with an enjoyable time, our people have to work muctr harder,
often under dehumanizing conditions. We appreciate tourist
sensitivity towards those of us who serve in hotels, restaurants,
shops and related ventures.
The 1993 published ASA-Studybook No. 25 contains totally 14, The most self-critical contribution to the book deals with the
partly revised final reports, which all deal with several aspects of conflicting role of tourism in India. The authors B. Funke and U.
Third-World-tourism and its often 'exotic' appearances. Therefore Schnabel pose a difficult question: Is the collection of data and
this book has a dualistic perspective: It is not only the result of material in Third world countries through students from the
scientific tourism, it also brings Third-World tourism, including developed countries, for the purpose of writing a thesis etc.,
scientific tourism, and its criticism into focus. already Imperialismo Scientifico? The NGO's studies in India
have very different experiences with foreign visitors. They vary
The spectrum of themes is as vast as the geographical frame of the from immense reaction to even the bare presence of the foreigners
studies. The 400-page book contains works about tourism policy in to positive feelings of solidarity between the visitors and their
Nicaragua during and after the revolution, tourism and protection hosts. Anyway, project tourism is a one way street from the North
of environmmt in Costa Rica, tourism planning in Zanzibar or
about the social impacts of tourism in Dalya (Turkey). But the
to the South, as the authors add
- with regret.it Least
the book itself is proof of this condition
but not last,
includes not one
priority of the studies is based on Asian countries. single line from a non€erman studmt!! -
N. Hausler's report about the Goan example of tourism-induced Besides this fundamental deficienry, the book is an exciting and
acculturation describes the changes in Goan society, e.g. under- wellmade publication, which is not only interesting for experts in
of sexual norms, prostifution, drug consumption, takeover the field of tourism but also its critics. The vast majority of the
^ir,ing of the haditionaf hierachical
of western life-styles and the loosening articles are not written in an elitist scientific language, and many
social structure. Hausler notices, that culfural conservation, as is headlines, tables, maps and references facilitate the use of the book.
demanded from Goan'traditionalists' from the catholic upper class, One hopes that the announced translations in English and Spanish
as well as from some critics of Third-World tourism, is not possible. will appear soon. T
But the question posed by Hausler herself, how the acculturation
phenomena could have a positive effect on the Goan society,
remains unanswered. Reviewed by Christian Stock
It is our sincere wish tlmt along with campaig;ning and critiquing Woodlands Network crollaborates with govemment, througlr
the system, activists strould also be involved in efforts towards National and Provirrcial Ministries of Tourism, and the Ceylon
preservation/conservation of unique eco-systems under threat. We Tourist Board, the Uva Hoteliers Association, travel agents and
must include such initiatives also as part of our agenda. organisations, NGOS and inbrmal grouping+ while protecting its
own policies and programs. One common concern is the training
We are working on this concept and will be doing the necessary of regional and site guides'.
groundwork. We will periodically brief you about the progress we
make. In the meantime, would you be so kind to send your
comments/advice etc. at your earliest to A. Mohan Kumar.
WOODLAND NETWORK 30/6 Esplanade Road, Bandarawela,
SriLanka.Tel.0572T33,Fax545727t2.attnWoodlands.
lamesZachafia
Asst. Wild life Warderu Periayar Tiger Resenre, Thel&ady, IGrala.
D. Nanilakttnar ''
Presently, Hanrpi has been attracting the foreign tourists. It is no 1. The moment a foreigner lands at Hampi, the locals wake up
exaggeration that the place is being visited not only for the antiques alert with their eyes and ears.
-
of the Vijayanagar Empire but also for prudrasing drugs, especially 2. Even the dogs of Hampi are in search of foreigners.
opium, drarus and ganja. 3. You can do anything at Hampi: there is none to ask and none
to be afraid of.
"TWo eyes and two e€us are not erough to comprehend Hampi in
toto" said AbdulRazak, the Persian travelerwhocame to Hampi in
4. A woman was recent$ murdered here. A student lost his
genitals. There were no enquiries by the police.
the 15th Century. Ironically, the place has been invaded by the
hippies, expelled from the vicinities of Goa. It is a common site near 5. You cannot travel alone here. Hampi is full of thieves and
the holy places of Hampi that the semi<lad foreigners ane seen murderers.
hnggirg or kissing each other. Apart from polluting the austere
atmosphere, such instances provide enough threat to our ethical Source: Published in 'Tharanga", Kannada Weekly,
standards. DLt2l5l1994, Translated by Yatna: PIRC
The sdrool children and the students frcmother places who would
have come oh excursions relish the semi-clad splendour that
unleashes all over Flampi on the advent of these foreigners. These
people serye as the role models for the locals thus providing a
distorted view of the so<alled Western culture.
There appears to be serious law and order problem here. The drug
traffic.king bootlegging theft and robbery are going on unabated.
This is not to say that drugs were unheard of at Hampi before the
advent of the hippies. The monks and savants at different corners
of this holy city had been indulging in the usuage of aphrodisiacs.
But, they never mixed with the locals and never attempted to spoil
the social serenity. The story is different today.
74
The need for a critical reply to the General Assembly
of the Intemational Monetary Fund fiMF) and the
An Invitation World Bank (WB) in Madrid in Autumn 1994 in the
50th annivercary year of the Bretton Woods
IIPT's Second Global Conference: BUILDING A SUSTAINABLE Institutions
WORLD THROUGH TOURISM, to be held in Montreal, September
An unmissable opportunity to denounce, at an intemational
12-76,1994.
level, the policies and the interests defended by these
The Conference builds on ttre success of First Global Conference: organizations
TOURISM - A VITAL FORCE FOR PEACE held in Vancouver,
October 1988. More then 800 persons from 67 counhies participated
A unique occasion to draw the attention of the Spanish
peoples to the nature of the Centre-Periphery relationship
in that conference . Organisers are projecting 1500 participants from
80 countries for the Second Global Conference. In the first week of October 1994 the General Assembly of the
The conference will feafure case studies of Zffi " success stories" in
IMF and the \ /B will take place in Madrid, an event which will
12 theme-related-topics areas including: tourism and environment,
bring together more than 1O000 bankers, ministers, executives,
politicians and journalists.
culture and heritage, sustainable tourism development, ecotourism,
promoting international understanding and cooperatiorl The General Assembly is the main annual meeting of the world's
Indigenous People's tourism, rural and community-based tourism, supreme financial powers and the international political dass. In
parks and protected areas, barrier-free tourism, communicatiory the autumn of 7994, in Madrid, this meeting will take on a special
education, alternative conflict resolution and a special stream, significance due to the symbolic nature of the date, the 50th
"People Can Make a Difference". anniversary of the creation in Bretton Woods of the IMF, WB and
GATT, and due to the special importance which will be given to the
Major sponsors are the Govemment of Canada, the Govemment of
future of these institutions.
Quebec and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees
International Union. The Conference is endorsed by The United The Bretton Woods institutions are responsible for upholding the
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Tourism inequaliiy and injustice of the present world economic ordeq,
Organization (WTO), and the World Tlavel and Tourism Council resulting in a growing disequilibrium between the Centre (the
(wrrc). North) and the Periphery (the South and the East), and with
The Conference will produce a MONTREAL CHARTER - devastating social and environmental consequences.
TOURISM2000 withconcrete actions thatcanbe takenby the travel They are the principal guarantors of the interests of the world's
in support of AGENDA 21 and the
and tourism industry main economic powerq giving rise to the growing concentration of
BIODIVERSITYCONVENTION. T wealth in the countries of the Centre, though an increasing
minority in the "rich" countries is becoming progressively margin-
ated from the benefits of this "development", while the immense
majority of Humanity is totally excluded from enjoying the fruits of
a model of progress which accelerates the depletion of natural
resources and whidr pollutes the environment on a planetary scale.
Visitor Management! a Question of Balance
Thisyear theGeneralAssembly willbe precededby a major official
Is it possible to provide visitors with a quality holiday experience conference, entitled "Fifty years after Bretton Woods: The future of
while at the same time placing enough constraints on their the IMF and the WB" which will take place on September 29 and 30.
behaviour to preserve the environment and cultural identity of the
This conference will celebrate the contribution of the institutions
destination? This is the question whidr is facing destination
created in Bretton Woods n 79M to the "development" of the
numagers all over the world in the wake of the 1992 Rio Earth
peoples and the nations of the planet, emphasizing the need to
Summit and whidr, as more travellers visit more destinations wery
endow these institutions with even more supranational powers in
year, is becoming increasingly urgent. With the growing global
order to oversee an increasingly globalised economy.
emphasis on sustainable development, pressure is mounting for the
Travel & Tourism indushy to manage visitors in harmony with The celebration of these events in Madrid, which will be
long-term environmental goals as well as with theneedsof thelocal accompanied by a major press and television publicity campaign,
community. obliges ecologist, development and human rights NGOs and other
social movements and organizations in Spain to take the initiative
This issue of Envitonment anil Deuelopment, the newsletter of the
and to make as forceful and effective a reply as possible, despite the
World Travel & Tourism Environment Research Centre (WTTERC),
limited resources at their dispcisal.
focuses on the challenge of visitor management. It is a daunting
challenge, requiring a delicate balancing act between the personal It is in this context that various Spanish organizations,
freedom of holiday-makers and the restrictions necessary to recognizing the extreme intemational relevance of these eventt
preserve the environment they came to enjoy. Ultimately, however, have been working since early 1994, in the preparation of activities
as writers reiterate throughout this newsletter, both the quality of to reply to the celebration of these meetings in Madrid and to
the visitor experience and the viability of the destination will denounce the role of the Bretton Woods institutions as the main
depend on preserving the quality of the environment. In tire long defenders of unjust international economic relationships.
term, then, the benefits of visitor management are apparent and
those destinations which achieve the right balance will reap the The coalition of Spanish organisations have decided to organise an
economic benefits. In the short term, there is a pressing need to international Altemative Forum called "The Other Voices of the
pool the experience of destination managers, to assess the whole Planeh lnternational Gathering of Social Movements and NGOs in
range of visitor management techniques, and to explore their reply to the 50th Anniversary of IMF, WB and GATT at Madrid
effectiveness in particular types of destination. I betweenSeptembs2Sto October 7,7994. I
15
groups, how they mobilize their supporters and the industrial
and govemmental responses are important questions for
research.
Movements in Asia conflict over both terrestrial and marine resources. Fishermen
are fighting against tourist facilities; farmers against the
Leiden, 27-29 October 1994 construction of large dams, roads, and airports.
Orgntized by the lnteruwtional lrstitute of Asian Studis (IIAS, Leidm) Conflicts over trees gave birth to the Chipko ("Hugging our
and the Nordic Institute of Asian Studire (NIAS, Copnthagen) trees") movement in India. Typically such conflicts are between
centre and periphery, between the majority population agairut
Oriental cultures have often been portrayed as a harmonious unity minorities, between the authorities in need of foreign exchange
of mufual respect, complementarity and symbiosis between man and local people fighting for their physical as well as for their
and nature. Nonetheless, Asia has had its fair share of cultural survival.
environmental disasters: from industrial discharges whidr have The conservation movements itself might cause conflict over
killed thousands of people in Japan, to deforestation in Southeast use rights. The activities of Buddhist monks in Northem
Asia and the Himalayan foothills causing serious erosion and Thailand for the protection of forests have led to dashes with
floods. Population pressure and new lifestyles haveplaced formerly
the hill tribes. And national parks in Pakistan have deprived
plentiftrl resources under stress and people are set against each local farmers of important grazing lands. Values held by a new
other in pursuing their self interests.
urban middledass concemed about the environmental
degradation (caused by their own lifestyle) pose a threat to
Environmental movements in Asia therefore provide scholars with minority groups and their culturg astheir acces to their
a broad spectrum of questions for investigation. How do the Asian
life-sustaining resources are being curtailed.
movements differ from eadr other and how are they differentfrom
their westem counterparts in their selection of campaigns and in Environmental movements exist within a larger socio-culfural
their intemal structures? What are the philosophical bases of these context and are frequently linked to other political issues sudr
organizations and what do they tell us about Asian attitudes as equal rights, liberation movements, nationalistic sentiments
towards nature? and so forth. Not surprisingly, the attitudes of authoritie
toward environmental organizations differ widely from
Tentatively four main avenues for addressing such questions counhy to counky and, from case to case, Economic, social and
(moving from the specific to the general) have been suggested : cultural factors might stimulate or inhibit mobilization of the
people for environmental issues differently in, for example, the
1. Many organizations have been established to combat induskial Philippines or Indonesia. In some cotrntries, such as |apan" it
pollution. They are often local groups organized ad lnc to seems easier to mobilize people for limited, local problems than
combat a particular polluter, as was the case in Minamata in for more general environmental issues. Comparative studies
|apan where fishermen and their supporters fought against a are therefore particqlarly relevant for a better understanding of
factory disdtarging mercury into the sea. The structure of sudr environmental movements in Asia. I
At ptesent, discussions about tourism issues are cnrrieil on within tzto itilferent languages
of gozteftnnents anil inilustry on the one hand anil of actioists groups on the other. The
-proposeil setninat is not an atternpt to continue nfly one of these specific traditions nor
eoen to pitch an acailetnic tent on a suitably miildle ground. On the contra.ry, it is an
attempt to allow the ilffirent forms of knowleilge to confront anil engage with each other,
hoping that many interstics will show themseloes,
Pub|istEdbyEquitableTourismoptim(EQUATIo}s),r6E,8thMainRG4BehindIrdinmglClub,Bangalr.INDIAPhme06G5582'313,Fax:080-558262z(At'04),T€lex:0g'$
(AttL 0@), Cable: EqJATIONIS BANGALORE, Dedgn & Layot by DhlMni K@hara ard 'fpcetting by Verba Netwck Swi€, 139, 8th N{ain 12th Crcs, ldallevaram, Bmgalor, Phme: 334662
t6