Tourism is thriving in Colombia but instead of celebrating, people should be asking themselves whether this is really a positive development. There is no denying that tourism is a blessing for any country. Not just for the hard cash that it generates, but also for the pressure it puts on the government to clean up its act. Unfortunately, this is not exactly what is happening in Colombia. The selective tourism is failing to aid the country's social and economic development.
The government appears to be successful in the public relations campaign – euphemism for propaganda – of luring international tourists to the country as the latest data shows. Slogans such as “the only risk is wanting to stay” and “Colombia is passion” have not only being promoted internationally, but also nationally. Of course this is understandable because this propaganda sends the subliminal message that the government has solved the problems that plagued the country in previous years such as rampant crime, kidnappings and a general state of insecurity.
The government has provided security but the places where this has occurred becomes evident when one investigates where the well-off tourists and Colombians spend their holidays. Foreigners and Colombians would obviously want to visit the main cities and specific places within those cities such as the old city in Cartagena, the Zone Rosa in Bogota and parque Lleras in Medellin.
But how many would actually visit the outskirts of Cartagena where a quarter of the population live in hunger, the south of Bogota where many of the victims of state crimes lived or the neighborhoods in the north east of Medellin where paramilitary groups have taken control again?
The hard cash that tourism generates is not actually helping Colombians that really need it. The record number of cruise passengers that arrive in Cartagena barely leave the old city before returning to their comfortable bunk beds. Others, like RCN News in English anchor Brian Andrews, are happy to spend their days in the international hotel’s swimming pool because the hassle of starving beach hawkers "completely destroys the beach experience"
Unfortunately for Andrews, and luckily for sex predators, the revenues of the hotels and shops have not been invested in social and educational programs that seek to eradicate poverty, which in turn could end the poor people's desperate search for income on the beach or in the hotel rooms of gringos.
This new found tourism only highlights that it is safe to travel to the main cities especially those where the business community have interests in. However, this “security” only come at the expense of state crimes and government neglect of other regions and cities in the country. In other words, tourism, national and international, may only be legitimizing the means taken by the government to achieve this apparent sense of security enjoyed by only a lucky few.
Perhaps the Colombian tourism board is correct. The only risk is wanting to stay (in some places) in Cartagena, Bogota and Medellin. That is, if a glimpse of the absolute poverty people around you live in, doesn't ruin your holiday.
Author Sebastian Castaneda is Colombian and studies psychology and political economy at the University of Hong Kong
andrew
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... Taking the bus into Cartagena is a much different experience from flying in. The cab ride from the bus station to downtown helps put Colombian tourism in perspective. Nice article! |
gringo michae
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... I am curiuos as to the State crimes the writer keeps talking about and what they have to do with tourism I don't see the connection he is trying to make. Other then a a backdoor slam at the current goevernment. He also seems to think a 3 to 4 year increase in tourism is some how going to undo what 30 ... 40 years of neglect and war. there is a saying " Rome wasn't built in a day" nor will Colombia see any major impact from tourism in such a short period of time. |
seattlesounder
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... Ok, anyone who has watched RCN News in English knows that it is ridiculous, but this article really implies that Brian Andrews is a sex predator. I would have to agree with the article. Crime is skyrocketing again in Colombia and tourism has benefitted very few. The Uribe government is so corrupt, the para's (who never really went away) are now back and stronger than ever, and the FARC have begun to reorganize and operate within a new structure. With almost all crime going unpunished, I think the days of a "scary" Colombia are right around the corner. The appetite gringos have for cocaine is certainly not going to change which all but guarantees Colombia's return to the dark days. |
cococo
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... I can assure you that many tourists do not restrict themselves to the "safe cities". There are many independent travellers from Europe and the America's exploring far and wide and learning that the only thing to fear is fear itself. I am British and arrived in Colombia as a tourist travelling the length and breadth of your beautiful country and now 3 years later I have set up my own tour operator in Colombia and preparing to emigrate. I truly believe in the future of Colombia, its beauty and its people. Tourists in Colombia make great ambassadors and their positive stories give hope for the future in a hostile World. . Let me tell you that if nothing else Colombia IS passion, good and bad, and that passion will one day allow Colombia to realise its full potential. Yours respectively a tourist who has spent a lot of money at the peajes and buying delicious food from roadside food vendors and very little in 5 star hotels! A naive and badly researched article |
JMB
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... Seems to me cococo that you have written a review to sell your upcoming business endeavor. As for the article it is correct in its assessment that tourists do not venture outside of the major attractions. They're on vacation and don't want to be bothered seeing the whole country, they want to relax, enjoy themselves, and be pampered. Tourists stay in tourist areas. The only people who go outside of the zones are backpackers and adventure seekers. |
cococo
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... I have written a review as I disagree with the article and assure you I can think of far better ways to promote my business, Colombia and the many Colombians who earn a living from tourism. You seem to think that back packers are not tourists and therefor discount them. They travel widely and have a lot of spending power purchasing lots of goods and services during their travels. Many backpackers travel by bus, stay in hostels but will often splash out on a nice hotel or go horse riding or taking river trips etc. The article is incorrect in its assessment and actually is wrtten by someone who has absolutely no understanding of the tourist industry in Colombia. I have worked in the tourist industry all of my working life in many different countries and the current approach to the industry in Colombia, whilst not perfect, is intelligent and professional and has the capacity to provide employment for Colombians from all sections of society. |
cococo
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... In addtion Adventure Seekers are also worthy tourists, infact they are a growing market with a lot of disposable income and Colombia is a fantastic destination for them: Rafting and paragridling in San Gil and mountaineering and trekking in the Coffee Region. There are also tourists who like fishing & birdwatching but then you probably discount them too! |
Adam
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... I wouldn't say it's a poorly researched article, as it is under the Opinion section however I do think that more often than not, tourists money doesn't benefit the country as a whole. It's a bit of a circular effect when the money coming in is put back into promoting the very thing that made the tourists come in the first place and in that sense, I wouldn't say more is being spent but rather it stays level while the extra cash goes into the hands of those at the top of the totem pole. I'd like to see a community effort in all cities to improve their surroundings, not for tourisms sake but for their own. There's a common belief in S. America and I'm sure other parts of the world, that if everyone else does something, then it's okay for me to do it. Wrong. No one is going to change the world by their actions but they can change their own world, their own surroundings. Brazil, for example, shares similar problems as Colombia and from that, great ideas come about, such as the Palmares currency in Fortaleza and Participatory Budgeting in Porto Alegre...to name a few. Perhaps I've strayed from the main topic but in terms of monetary systems and dispersement of city budgets, there is hope via innovation in those things. |
tomtom33
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... Tourism cannot be expected to fix any social ills. I personally know workmen who have worked on buildings on the Bocagrande Penninsula who are from the poorest barrios in Cartagena like Foco Rojo. They and their families do, in fact, put food on their tables because of the tourists in the estrato 6 areas. And the vendedores who boat over from Tierra Bomba every day do manage to put some food on the table selling to visitors in the tourist zone. Ask these people if they are benefiting from tourism. It is not necessary for the tourists to visit Foco Rojo or Tierra Bomba for the residents of those areas to benefit from tourism. |
