The SA regime’s claims of ‘overwhelming growth in tourism’ are grossly misleading.

The February issue of ‘Tourism Update’ magazine said the ‘celebration of the 8.3 million tourists to the country in 2006 and the 13.9% growth was not so impressive for the industry when it was explored.’

The report said that in the past year, of the 6.6 million ‘visitors’ to South Africa:

* 1.6 million came from Lesotho, (pop.: 2,6-m!)
* 820,921 from Mozambique,
* 774,026 from Swaziland,
* 599,421 from Botswana and
* 700,439 from Zimbabwe.
* “Seventy-nine percent came from near neighbors.”

Cape Town-based tourism expert Peter Koblmiller, editor of the German tourist magazine Kaapstadt.com, said most of these ‘8.3-million tourists’ were refugees from neighbouring countries, yet were automatically included in SA national tourism statistics.

Refugees and increasingly desperate, hungry job-seekers do not contribute anything to the economy - on the contrary they put a tremendous strain on it.

“This is very unfortunate,” said Koblmiller. “Every day we read reports that nearly nine million tourists are coming to South Africa every year.

“79% of all the ‘tourists’ to South Africa are job seekers and refugees from neighboring countries. The ‘real tourists’ (who bring cash into the economy) from Europe, Asia and the Americas are declining.”

German research company G&J International revealed that 257,018 German tourists visited South Africa in 2003 but two years later that statistic had dropped to 164,424. And Koblmiller said this statistic still declines each year.

“Just a few weeks ago a Dutch woman was found raped and murdered in a Somerset West hotel. That story made headlines in Europe and is definitely affecting tourism in South Africa. Tourists want to visit countries where they feel safe and where they are not mugged, stabbed or pistol whipped on every second corner.

“Something needs to be done about the crime situation, because people are simply not coming to South Africa any more. Every day we hear about good tourism figures and the good tourism growth rate, but it is not true.

“The ‘tourists’ they are talking about come from Lesotho, Zimbabwe and other neighboring countries looking for jobs here. They don’t come to spend and stay in our hotels. The government and these tourism bodies need to do proper research and unpack who the actual visitors and tourists are.”

Alvin Kushner, chairman of the Tour Operators Association of Cape Town, echoed Koblmiller’s views.

He said the tourism figures ‘included anyone from any other country who spent the night in South Africa.

“By their definition a tourist is anyone who stays overnight.”

Instead there are many booking cancellations over recent months mainly due to the economic situation and crime. “The energy crisis is having a negative impact on industry as well.

“People read newspapers and they watch the news to see what’s happening in South Africa before they leave their countries.

“We are getting a lot of bad publicity and it’s not good for tourism.
“Crime is an issue. People want to feel safe and that is another reason why a lot of tour groups are cancelling.”

He still believed however that ‘tourism was set to boom shortly before, during and after the 2010 Soccer World Cup.’

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=13&art_id=vn20080330083759210C538777

Article from:

http://groups.msn.com/crimebustersofsouthafrica/

http://www.thetimes.co.za/News/Article.aspx?id=737659