Steps urged to ease tourists' fears after South attacks

Carbomb attacks in Yala and Hat Yai district in Songkhla have badly affected tourism and local businesses, and a quick recovery is important in salvaging plunging visitor confidence in Thailand, hoteliers and business operators said yesterday.

A large number of tourists from Malaysia and Singapore who remain in Thailand have been relocated to other lodgings. While the heavily damaged Lee Gardens hotel is being inspected for safety and security, visitors' luggage and travel documents are being collected and returned to them, said Suraphol Kamphalanonthawat, head of tourism business in Songkhla.

"Panic among tourists is apparent and inevitable. It depends on how quickly we can rebuild their confidence in Thailand," he added.

The head of hotel business in Songkhla and Hat Yai, Somchart Phimthanaphoonphorn, said measures to draw tourists for preSongkran celebrations were being readjusted to get them back in two weeks. He added that 25,000 tourists booked Hat Yaibased rooms last year from April 1 until after the end of Songkran in midApril, generating around Bt300 million in income for local businesses.

"I'm not sure the figure can reach half that amount this year," he added.

Songkhla governor Krissada Bunraj said that apart from the damage to property, the economy and tourism in Songkhla had been badly affected, the public's confidence hurt and business opportunities lost.

Praphas Inthanapasat, a senior local Tourism Authority of Thailand official, said the Hat Yai Songkran Midnight Festival would continue as planned, to boost tourist confidence. He expressed belief in the capacity of officials to maintain security during the Songkran holiday break, which falls from April 1316 this year.

The secretarygeneral of the Federation of Thai Industries, Sommat Khunset, called for tighter control authorities, saying security and counterinsurgency operations in the three southernmost provinces were not enough to ensure overall safety in areas at risk of insurgent violence.

"The authorities must realise and make sure that such violence will not recur and the security issue in the South should be handled with importance equal to the ongoing water management planning to cope with floods this year," he added.

The chairman responsible for policies at the Tourism Council of Thailand, Kongkrit Hiranyakrit, dubbed the multiple car bombs the worst incident, greater even than the past travel advisory against coming to Thailand issued by many countries.

The mayor of Hat Yai municipality, Phrai Phatthano, said that rebuilding tourist confidence would require at least two years and negative media coverage of the blasts and followups would keep the issue hot. He called on Hat Yai residents to watch out for clues and suspicious signs.