 
Bangkok, 15 November, 2013 - The Thai
Government has placed tourist safety and security on a high national
agenda, especially during the next few years, as the Kingdom is moving
towards the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC),
according to Tourism Authority of Thailand’s (TAT) Governor, Mr. Suraphon
Svetasreni.
Delivering closing remarks at the Thailand Tourism
Marketing Safety and Security Forum on 14 November, 2013, Mr. Suraphon
expressed his sincere appreciation to Thai stakeholders in organising the
two-part discussion which led to findings in the form of a written
declaration submitted to the Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MoTS).
“This move by the private sector is very important.
One word I have heard during the forum is that we need to create a safety
culture,” said Mr. Suraphon. “On the public sector front, we are already
providing tourist assistance through the TAT Call Centre 1672, Tourist
Police Hotline 1155 and tourist courts in key Thai destinations.”
Thailand opened the first tourist court in Pattaya
- the first of its kind in Southeast Asia - in September 2013, to provide
a one-stop service for local and foreign tourists seeking justice for
unfair practices from scams, thefts, conflicts and accidents. The second
tourist court was opened in Phuket in late September, and there are plans
to open similar courts in Bangkok, Ko Samui and other major tourist
cities in the near future.
Mr. Suraphon said, “Tourist safety and security is
high on the national agenda, and the Minister of Tourism and Sports is
very much looking forward to receiving these recommendations from the
private sector.”
Supported by MoTS and sponsored by TAT, the
Thailand Tourism Marketing Safety and Security Forum was organised on 15
October and 14 November by the Joint Foreign Chambers of Commerce in
Thailand, Skal International and Pacific Asia Travel Association Thailand
Chapter.
Findings from four workshops held on 15 October
were formulated into a written declaration through collaborations with
two crisis management academic experts, Mr. David Beirman, Senior
Lecturer in Tourism at the University of Technology in Sydney and Dr.
Alexandros Paraskevas, Senior Lecturer in Strategic Risk Management at
the Oxford School of Hospitality Management in the UK.
The recommendations call on all concerns to work
together to mitigate risks and promote safety, using all possible
resources; such as, airlines serving Thailand, online booking websites,
social media tools, online bloggers, local and foreign tour companies,
mobile phone service providers, travel insurance providers and the like.
Safety messages, brochures and signage in several languages are suggested
to be readily available to tourists pre- and during trips.
Dr. Paraskevas said government, tourism related
operators and tourists all have to be involved in risk awareness and
crisis management. “If standards are improved and enforced by all
parties, then more tourists will enjoy Thailand and costs overtime will
be lower.”
Bert van Walbeek, Chairman of the PATA Thailand
Chapter, is confident that a series of realistic and practical measures
concluded at the two-part safety and security forum is to start creating
awareness of the risks facing Thailand’s tourism industry and to prepare
the industry’s readiness to address problems should they occur.
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