Paradise: A Nice Place to Visit... Maybe
Thursday, 10 June 2010 11:57
By W. E. Gutman
TThe late prime minister of a small Carribean nation once told me off the record: “Come now, you can’t expect us to survive on sugar cane, rum, nutmeg and an occasional goodwill visit by the Queen Mum, can you? “We have no choice but to invite the world. And the world invades us by the planeload. And with every cruise ship full of chic bleached blondes and white-shoed tycoons coming down the gangplank, we put on our affable, soft-spoken, happy native faces. They all head for gated, ‘all-inclusive’ resorts. They see neither the grinding poverty nor hear the unremitting murmurs of discontent. Word gets around that the natives are smiling. Seduced, they keep coming back. We just can’t do without these part-time interlopers. Our very existence belongs to them. If this goes on, we may never learn what it is we can do without them.”
A Maya tribal chieftain recently echoed a now familiar grievance. “Since colonial times, foreigners have usurped our national patrimony, plundered our resources and deprived us of our hereditary rights. Not only did they snatch and parcel out among themselves gold, arable lands, wells, water rights and large stretches of pristine coastal areas -- they also gained political clout, a status that empowers them to further steal and exploit our people.”
The Maya have only grudgingly endured the passive role imposed on them by tourism, something they characterize as “a mercenary commerce.”
“Tourists trudge up the hill and gawk at the ‘quaint Indians’ and take photos of our grass huts and womenfolk and children. Or they marvel, for an hour or two, at the tattered vestiges of the ‘mighty Maya’ before retiring to air-conditioned hotels -- none of which we own -- and dining in eateries none of us can afford to patronize. We’ve never seen a centavo from the proceeds collected at our historic sites or a fraction of the tourist dollars spent in local establishments.”
This familiar and recurring cry of the heart is reprised and telegraphed with poignant resonance in Rethinking Tourism & Ecotravel, an anthology that explores the history and development of tourism.
Edited by Deborah McLaren, a columnist and the director of Indigenous Tourism Rights International, this powerful exposé brings to light how mass tourism erodes local economies, degrades the environment and sucks local people into a global economic maelstrom from which they can never escape.
With annual revenues exceeding $US3 trillion, the economic impact of tourism is second only to that of the weapons industry. If tourism is good for tourists and the industries that serve them, how good is it for the host?
What we learn from this highly readable and disturbing collection of case histories, now in its second edition, is that tourism has brought about “very stark and painful consequences for host communities. Developers fill in swamps, mangroves and coral reefs, causing a chain reaction that hurts fishing, reduces the supply of fresh water for irrigation, and shrinks the land base. Local people are relegated to infertile lands or degraded settings in nearby cities while the environment and artificial “cultures” are recreated atop the ruins of the real thing.
Tourism relies on powerful marketing strategies -- not always principled. It subsidizes biased journalism, rewarding writers who focus on the positive and steer clear of critical analysis. Travel brochures weave magical dreams of paradise in countries that the mainstream media and relief organizations consider destitute and dangerous. Ads gloss over the economic, environmental and social problems in the areas they promote. Travel agents, a dying breed, add to the conspiracy by recommending destinations they know little about. Amateur travel writers, often more interested in self-promotion or currying favor with the cruise lines and resorts they patronize than in legitimate journalism, usually distort the truth or ignore it altogether. Last, tourists unwittlingly abet human rights abuses by overlooking corrupt or oppressive governments that salivate for the almighty tourist dollar.
Costa Rica, considered the ecotourism model of the world, is a prime example of a nation that exploits nature and locals by selling lands, building megaresorts and otherwise paving over paradise. Costa Rica, which runs a great public relations engine, has become the ultimate ecotourism lie that its neighbors are now trying to emulate.
Samantha Brown (The Travel Channel) recently painted an incomprehensibly idyllic portrait of Honduras. Focusing on Copán, the small, quaint village that survives on the ghostly remains of its glorious Maya past, the program said nothing about the crime, gang violence, kidnappings, armed assaults, burglaries, ghastly vehicular accidents, day-long power outages, and the ever-present threat of mosquito-borne diseases.
Ms. Brown’s other sorties in "developing nations" have been equally flamboyant and slapdash in their seemingly premeditated silence on poverty, urban violence, human rights abuses, political corruption and gross government ineptitude.
I wrote the Travel Channel. Their answer was filled with public relations doublespeak. I was assured that my concerns would be addressed. That was not to be. Ms. Brown continues to create mythical locales credible only to the blind or the supremely uninformed.
Winter is a great time for snowbirds to head for the sunwashed shores of a distant atoll. Next time you book passage to some exotic destination, bear in mind that tourism doesn’t just package and sell products and services. It also sells beaches, mountains and other natural sites, as well as cultures and people. Remember that these businesses do not own what they sell. As the saying goes, paradise is a nice place to visit. Maybe. But you wouldn’t want to live there. This is a conclusion even the natives have since sadly reached. (6/10/10)
Rethinking Tourism & Ecotravel, 240 pages, $23.95. Available from Kumarian Press, 1294 Blue Hills Ave., Bloomfield, CT 06002 (800) 289-2664. Fax (820) 243-2867 or www.kpbooks.com.
Note: W. E. Gutman is a veteran journalist. From 1991 to 2006 he covered politics, the military and human rights in Central America. He was a frequent contributor to Honduras This Week. His column reflects his own views and not necessarily those of Honduras Weekly.
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
News Categories
Latest Press Releases
-
Conference on Honduras 2010 Set for Copán Ruinas in October
...
Readmore... -
Volunteers Needed to Teach at Jungle School in La Ceiba
...
Readmore... -
Hondurans Charged in Miami With Cocaine Trafficking
...
Readmore... -
Physicians in Georgia Raise Funds for Medical Mission to Guaimaca
...
Readmore... -
Radio Reporter Israel Zelaya Killed Near San Pedro Sula
...
Readmore...
Follow us on Twitter
Join our Facebook groupGold Sponsor
| |
Silver Sponsor
| |
Mr. Rosenzweig, whose establishment and entrepreneurial spirit I lavished with praise several years ago, is splitting hair and indulging in tricky talk strategy -- in this case the artful dodging or denial of verifiable assertions while conceding facts too blatant to ignore.
The purpose of my article was to review a book that forcefully articulates realities that cannot be adequately detailed within the confines of a magazine column. It is up to readers to decide whether my observations match those outlined in this very serious scholarly work. That's one.
Two, Mr. Rosenzweig incorrectly and somehow patronizingly assumes that a member of an indigenous tribe, in this case a Maya-Chorti, cannot elegantly articulate the sentiments that I attribute to him. While it is true that I took the liberty to freely translate from Spanish and embellish in English what I found to be a touching and eloquent statement, I neither changed nor distorted his words.
Three, the Maya-Chorti I quote -- and whose name shall remain unuttered for reasons that Mr. Rosenzweig, a long-time resident of Honduras, should understand, is an old friend, a respected tribal counselor and activist who earned a PhD. and does not at this time reside in any of the outlying communities surrounding Copan Ruinas.
Four, while I endorse it -- and the book argues it in far greater and compelling detail, the statement that "tourists help to contribute in some way to human rights abuses," is not mine but the author's. I will simply say that wide-eyed backpackers and uninformed tourists thrilling for “adventure” unwittingly aid and abet undemocratic states -- of which Honduras is notoriously one – by spending money that is first filtered by tourism concerns before it ever trickles down to the people who need it most.
Five, anyone reading my article without prejudice or preconceived notion will note that the catalyst of this short essay is a famous TV travel personality who, unwisely and for reasons that can only be considered suspect, paints shimmering portraits of travel destinations that are less than idyllic and often either unhygienic or downright dangerous, or both.
Last, my frustration and displeasure was never meant to be aimed at legitimate businesses, whatever sector they may operate in, or to impugn the integrity of savvy, imaginative, hard-working businessmen, least of all Mr. Rosenzweig, whose lovely bed-and-breakfast I’ve patronized in the past.
I’m surprised and somewhat disappointed that he has resorted to impugning both my integrity as a journalist and my motives. But this is not the first time that the messenger is pilloried for the unpalatable message he delivers.
I stand by my article.
Lets start off with the quote by the Maya Chieftain, after 15 years of living in Honduras I have never heard any of the Maya leaders speak with such eloquence and deft usage of
words,syntax and grammar, I find the quote to be suspect, if only for that reason alone, as well as the fact that the quote is not attributed to a specific name of person being quoted and place of residence which makes the veracity of the quote even more suspect. Writers often try to justify such unattributed quotes by stating that the person being quoted preferred to remain anonymous for security or other reasons - but remember that no serious journal or editor of record would print such a quote without attributing it to a specific source. In regard to the statement by the writer that local indigenous Maya have no stake in tourism and see nothing from tourism, I would point out the following. The Maya Chorti who live in a dozen villages in the area surrounding Copan Ruinas opened a hotel and cyber cafe a number of years ago in the village of Copan Ruinas with funding provided by donors. Today the hotel and cyber cafe sit abandoned - little wonder as the occupancy from Day 1 was pretty close to zero and business at the cyber cafe was not much better.
Copan Ruinas receives some 150,000 tourists per year, so there is plenty of market share to go around for a well run hotel or cyber cafe such as the one opened by the Chortis. The tourism sector is a great leveler, anyone can participate, be they foreigner townsfolk or indigenous group from the villages - everyone is welcome and competes on a level playing field. Some may say that the Maya Chorti cannot operate on a level playing field as they face racism, discrimination and oppression - others take the 'glass is half full ' view that the tourism sector is the great equalizer where anyone with the brains and guts and a few bucks can compete in the free market of ideas and services. In the case of the Maya Chorti hotel in Copan Ruinas, why did it fail? Was it discrimination? Racism? A ' system ' which doomed it to failure? Or was it a simple lack of business know how and lack of business sense?
Another note, I have never heard anyone here in Copan Ruinas or the nearby indigenous communities term tourism as a " mercenary commerce" ... the writer may believe this to be true of tourism, but in plain fact - this is an idea shared by nobody I have ever come into contact with in this area. The fact that tourism does not benefit the majority of Chorti Maya is absolutely true, but the commentary gives the not so subtle impression
that this lack of participation in the tourism sector has been " imposed " on the Chorti, which is not true. One must only look to the state of the Chorti start up business here in Copan Ruinas mentioned above. Many tourists in Copan actively seek out cultural experiences with the Maya Chorti by visiting local Chorti communities such as La Pintada, where they purchase crafts made by women in the village as well as soft drinks, food, etc. A couple of years ago a hotel was started up in La Pintada to take advantage of this cultural tourism - with money going directly to the community - the project no longer exists. As well a horseback riding project was also started a number of years ago by the Chorti. Horseback riding is a big industry in Copan, with each tourist paying $15 per 3 hour ride. A guide who takes an avg of 3 riders per day, plus a $5 tip per group - which is about avg, would bring in some $50 per day, lets say they work 5 days per week (the work week is 6 days here), thats 15 riders per week or $250 per week or $1,000 per month, the current minimum wage in Honduras is $238 per month in the rural area and most Chortis don't make anything even close to the minimum wage. Thus tourism in this form could directly affect the lives in a positive way for many Chorti - unfortunately the horseback riding project folded after a couple of months.
The writer correctly points out that the Chorti Maya have never seen a cent from the admissions charged at the archeological site, but it must be remembered that the ruins are a National Monument, and all proceeds go to the upkeep and maintainance of the ruins, the salaries of the ruins staff which is very large - with the remainder going to the Ministry of Anthropology and History which uses funds from Copan to support a myriad of excellent projects in the entire country. And it must be said that the national law requires that this money goes to the national government - not to private local groups.
The statement that tourists help to contribute in some way to human rights abuses is quite absurd. Heavy handed, dictatorial governments of all ideological stripes do an (unfortunately) wonderful job on their own in the area of human rights abuses - this has been going on for time in memorial. How the arrival of foreign tourists seems to foster this abuse is a mystery to me. It would seem that the opposite should be true, as most countries desperately seek to foment tourism for its economic benefits, then human rights abuses become a serious impediment to the arrival of more tourism as many would be tourists are turned off by governments where human rights are blatantly violated. I don't see for example huge inflows of tourism to countries of the likes of Venezuela, Nicaragua, Cuba, North Korea, Afghanistan, Syria, Sudan, Iraq, etc. I would venture to say that tourism in fact serves to keep many countries under a blanket of increased care, as most logical countries seek to foment tourism and blatant rights abuses are a sure fire ticket to kissing that tourism business goodbye. One must only look to the Honduran experience of late, when ex President Zelaya was booted from the country in his PJ's - tourism went to heck in proverbial hen basket. The writer sums up by stating that " paradise is a nice place to visit .. but most foreigners do not want to live there" ... correct .. most American, Europeans, Canadians prefer to reside in their home country for a myriad of reasons, but we should also not belittle foreigners who do chose to take up expat residence in far way developing nations, many of whom contribute greatly by founding NGO's, and opening start up businesses. For my part, I have pumped millions of Lempiras into the local economy where I live in Honduras over the past years, the product of entrepreneurial projects. Our workers receive a decent wage, benefits, job stability, excellent tip income - all of which is used to support their extended families, educate their children, pay for food, lodging, transport, etc and I am very proud of the expat community here in Honduras that strive every day to make this country a little less poor, a little more educated, a bit better place to live - for all Hondurans, be they Ladinos, a member of an indigenous minority or whatever.