NATIONAL11 [ (Spotlight Weelky)]

Recurring Reversals

Already hit hard by the slowdown in the international travel trade, Nepal's tourism industry suffers another major blow from the sudden upsurge of Maoist insurgency

By A CORESSPONDENT

Surendra Bahadur Khadka, a car driver at Tribhuvan International Airport, has remained idle in the midst of a continuing decline in tourist arrivals. For Khadka, this year has been particularly miserable, with tourism hit by a serious of adverse national and international factors. In what should have normally been a peak tourist season between September and November, Khadka finds his prospects of recovering earlier losses close to nil.

"I don't understand what benefit do our political parties get by promoting the violent activities in the country. The Maoistsí violent activities have already proved fatal for Nepalis directly and indirectly," he says. "The latest upsurge in rebel violence will only keep tourists away and push the country into a very difficult position," said Khadka.

There are tens of thousands of Nepalis like Khadka in the tourism industry whose livelihoods are on the line. The slump that began after the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight to New Delhi in December 1999 has been worsened because of serious violent incidents. The sharp fall in tourists from India after the hijacking worsened by days of street violence triggered anti-Nepal remarks attributed to Indian movie star Hrithik Roshan, which he denied making.

Frequent bouts of politically inspired strikes and work stoppages, interspersed with labor unrest in the hotel industry, prevented Nepal's tourism industry from making a recovery. Just when some signs of an improvement were becoming visible, the June 1 massacre at the Royal Palace brought another blow.

In 2000, tourist arrivals declined by 25 percent, rattling the entire travel trade. Despite some disturbances in January, the first five months of 2001 were very encouraging in terms of arrivals. After the palace tragedy, arrivals plunged again. But things started to look better when the government and Maoists announced a cease-fire in July after Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba assumed office.

The September 11 terrorist attacks in New York City and Washington DC again hit Nepal's tourism sector. The violence unleashed by the Maoists, shattering the four-month truce, has come as a further setback to an industry that once was hailed as the engine of Nepalís quest for modernization and prosperity.

"Our livelihood is once again under threat following the resurgence of Maoist violence," says Khadka, who failed to get even a single trip for two successive days this week. According to airline sources, renewed Maoist violence has badly affected reservations.

Although terrorism activities are confined to remote parts of the country, including far-eastern and far-western districts, hotels and airlines have been received a stream of cancellations from various parts of the world.

"If situation does not improve soon, Nepal's tourism sector will have to face dire consequences," says a private airline operator. "We have already reduced the number of mountain flights and scheduled services to Pokhara and other hilly areas. The upsurge in Maoist violence has frightened the entire world and many tourists, needless to say, will cancel their travel plans."

The Maoist violence has taken a heavy toll on the economy. Tourism is the hardest hit sector because of a confluence of a series of national and international factors. The country primarily needs peace and tranquillity for tourism to recover. With law and order taken care of, entrepreneurs could then seek specific policy support for the government and the cooperation of political parties. With help from all vital quarters becoming elusive by the day, the tourism industry can only reminisce about its glory days and hope the present phase of uncertainty ends soon. n