Did the locals benefit too?
That's a question Tourism Concern asks in one of its recent brochures and a 'Campagn for Ethical and Fairly Traded Tourism'. (As long as the Third World currencies continue to be so undervalued, can there be anything as 'fairly-traded tourism'?)
As usual, Kalpna Desai [EMAIL PROTECTED] brought in some
food for thought, when she visited during her vacation to
Goa. Thanks to her for the link....Tourism Concern -- http://www.tourismconcern.org.uk -- says it is campaigning to * improve working conditions at holiday destinations * draw attention to injustice (such as the banishing of local fishermen from beaches to make way for hotels and resorts) * give a voice to locals * influence (British) government policy * defend local people (by ensuring they get a fair share of natural resources such as water) * put pressure on tour operators to respect the rights of, and pass on more of the benefits of tourism, to local people.
Of course, there's a long way to go. Greed knows no logic, specially in this "smokeless" hedonist industry which, in today's global economic paradigm, places the leisure of a few about the basic needs of many. And, of course, tourism makes economic sense -- so what if others have to meet basic needs like food, clothing, shelter or cope with the destruction of the natural environment which they depended on for generations?
FN _____ _/ ____\____ Frederick Noronha * Freelance Journalist * Goa \ __\/ \ India T +91.832.2409490 M +919822 122436 | | | | \ http://fn.swiki.net http://goabooks.swiki.net |__| |___| / http://www.bytesforall.net http://www.bytesforall.org \/ ----------------------------------------------------- Sign up for low-volume, high-quality news summaries and updates from Goa at http://newsfromgoa.swiki.net * It's free and volunteer-driven.
