Regional Issues in Tourism - Essay Example

Regional Issues in Tourism Introduction Sex tourism is generally; travel to perpetually, engage in sexual activity particularly with prostitutes. The World Tourism Organization, a United Nations, specialized agency, defines sex tourism as ideally "trips organized practically from within the tourism sector, or ideally from outside the sector but using its networks and structures, with the chief purpose of practicing a commercial sexual relationship ideally by the tourist with the destination residents ". While sex tourism refers to a wide range of commercial sexual activities, academics and agencies sometimes distinguish particularly between child sex tourism, adult sex tourism, and female sex tourism referring to dissimilar kinds of sex tourism (Nigel 2004). Attractions for individuals engaging in sex tourism can include reduced service costs in the destination country, together with either indifferent law enforcement or legal prostitution and easy access to child prostitution. What has euphemistically been termed ‘Sex Tourism’ is one of the less savory aspects of tourism in developing countries including a number in the Asia-Pacific Region. Accompanied as it is by the exploitation of children and women this trade in human misery should be eradicated as a matter of priority. This paper is a review of literature and suggestion on what, if something can be introduced in the tourism industry and/or individual tourists to eliminate this unfortunate phenomenon. It outlines some of the key elements of an eradication programme of this practice. Sex tourism is precisely an extremely lucrative industry spanning across the globe. In 1998, the Labor Organization Internationally reported its calculations that an estimated 2-14% of the gross domestic product of Malaysia, Indonesia the Philippines, as well as Thailand, derives majorly from sex tourism (Nigel 2004). Additionally, while Asian countries, which include India, Thailand, and the Philippines, ideally have long been primary destinations for sex tourists, recently, tourists have traveled increasingly to Central America and Mexico for their sexual exploit (Donna 2004). The response of respective destination countries to the sex tourism epidemic has been particularly ineffective. Although the majority of these countries passed legislation, which criminalizes sexual exploitation of both adults and children, the laws often remain ideally unenforced on tourist offenders. Efforts of combating child sexual exploitation run often into conflict particularly with foreign efforts of the government to promote the tourism industry internationally (Donna 2004). Police corruption also hails as a common feature, which perpetuates sex tourism. In the Philippines and Thailand, police are famous in guarding brothels and even procuring children for prostitution. Some police in respective destination countries exploit children directly themselves. Therefore, the international community particularly is unable to rely on destination countries in adequately protecting the respective rights, as well as the well-being of sex tourism victims. It, therefore, becomes a menace in eliminating this practice across the globe. However, eliminating the practice would best be done with specialization in the two common types of sex tourism involving adults and children respectively (IJM). Child sex tourism ideally is a prominent type of sex tourism globally. It is a multi-billion-dollar industry ideally believed as involving as many as 2 million children globally. In efforts of eradicating the practice, several countries have enacted laws allowing prosecution of its citizens particularly for child abuse occurring outside their country of origin, even if it is ideally not against the established law in the country precisely where the child abuse is practiced, for instance the US Protect Act (Chan, T & Adam 2004, 15). This is a praiseworthy effort if only it is, followed to the letter. Some people mainly travel to other countries to ideally, engage in sex with young children (Donna 2004). Child sex tourism links closely to poverty of which efforts to eliminate the practice should, therefore prepare to handle the issue of poverty. Thailand, India, Brazil, Cambodia, and Mexico are identified as significant countries where the practice of child sexual exploitation is prevalent (IJM). In Thailand, even if the exact numbers are not known, it ideally has been approximated that children practically make up 40% of prostitutes in the respective country (Nigel 2004). In Cambodia, there have been estimations that about a third of the practicing prostitutes are well below the age of 18 (Nair 2000). In India, data from the federal police reveals that around 1.2 million children ideally are believed to involve themselves in practicing prostitution (Chan, T & Adam 2004, 15). Taking a closer look at this data, poverty levels are on a high in respective countries and a substantial contributor to sex tourism especially child prostitution. In looking at matters that would eliminate the act of sex tourism, it is, therefore appropriate to consider these facts. UNICEF one of the prominent organizations handling children issues notes practically that sexual activity is seen often as a private matter, which makes communities reluctant to act or even intervene in explicit practices of sexual exploitation (Nair 2000). This is what the tourism industry should be aware of because it is a thorn in many efforts to eliminate sex tourism (IJM). The organization goes ahead to say that the respective attitudes make children vulnerable far more into sexual exploitation (Chan, T & Adam 2004, 15). Most exploitation of these under aged children takes place because of their absorption particularly into the adult sex trade precisely where sex tourists and local people exploit them. Another thing that the tourism industry ought to know is that the Internet generally provides an efficient networking tool globally for individuals in sharing information on procurement and destinations and can be of use in efforts to eliminate the act. Few campaigns globally aim at reducing the ideal demand for victims, as many groups involved in trafficking focus on warning potential victims and prevention campaigns. Donna Hughes, one of the most prominent scholars on the practices of child trafficking, asserts that abolishing sexual exploitation requires key and stronger efforts in combating the demand in respective receiving countries (Donna 2004). She thinks perpetually that a focus on the ideal demand side means to make men personally accountable precisely for their behavior, which contributes to the practice. The campaigns would be a formidable tool in the tourism industry when used as an educating element for people to stop many new entries into the practice (Chan, T & Adam 2004, 15). Letting people know of the dangers, and legal consequences of sex tourism is one terrific idea that the tourism industry can take. This is because many people ignore what they do and practice sex tourism ignorantly or without the knowledge, of which campaign would make the issue public and of concern to everyone, therefore, help start up approaches of combating the practice. Female sex tourism is another of the most prominent types of sex tourism across the globe. Sex tourism prominently by women exists majorly in many countries. There is an estimation that 650,000 women in the Western countries have traveled particularly to engage in sex since the early 1980 with many of them having travelled multiple times (Nair 2000). By estimates, 80,000 European and North American women visit Jamaica at least every year for sex. From the Human Rights organizations, they issue warnings that sex tourism majorly contributes to human trafficking as well as child prostitution of which elimination should be mandatory (Chan & Adam 2004, 15). The U.N. ideally opposes sex tourism with citation of social, health, and cultural consequences particularly for both tourist home countries as well as destination countries, especially in situations that exploit social, gender, age, and economic inequalities precisely in sex tourism destinations (International Justice Mission). This, therefore, also hails as a problem extraordinarily difficult to solve for many countries and compromises the tourism industry therefore calling for urgent measures to eliminate the practice. The elimination of sex tourism might be a considerable challenge, but surely, there are other ways out of these phenomena. The tourism industry should collaborate with respective governments to ascertain prosecution of those caught in the act. Prosecutions can be practically one of the most effective and promising tools of deterrence (Donna 2004). As IJM revealed in their intervention in Southeast Asia, a few judicial convictions or jail sentences for perpetrators ideally can have an exciting and powerful ancillary benefits. The respective convictions send a clear message especially to all criminals who break the law will surely be, punished. “Convictions ideally change the fear equation: respective criminals are now afraid, so potential victims and victims don’t have to be,” says Cohn Wu, a, IJM’s Senior Vice President of Justice Operations, overseeing all of IJM’s intervention and investigative strategies. “An arrest by Cambodian police of pedophiles in the Western reinforces a critical message: “absolutely, pedophiles are not welcome anywhere in Cambodia and they practically will go to jail if they dare assault Cambodian children (Nair 2000).” All the same, the tourism industry should learn that prosecutions are hopeful of both the corrupt officials and traffickers bring controlled and eliminating the practice an immense deal. Individual tourists also can do a lot to eliminate this unfortunate phenomenon. They are the ones engaged in the practice either willingly or out of cohesion. Mostly, majority of the tourists do not have an idea of sex tourism and are introduced to the same by parties in respective destinations, who practice the business to make money (Donna 2004). These businesspersons and women even advertise their services to the tourists who arrive in various destinations. This is what lures many tourists into practicing sex tourism and from then become regular customers. For individuals who engaged in the practice out of suggestions, they can collaborate with the authorities to unmask the respective practitioners of sex tourism (Kevin & Phnom 2006). This means that they will be able to bring down the business practices related to this field through guiding authorities on where or when the business is practiced. The other key element in eliminating the practice includes the police. The tourism industry needs to involve the policy in their practices and service offer to tourists in respective destinations. However, training is first required for the police for them to handle the issue with ease and efficiently (Donna 2004). The role of the police officer practically stands out as a critical piece of managing sex tourism as well as preventing the same. In an effort by the tourism industry to increase police awareness of sexual exploitation, strategies provision on how to manage the existing sex tourism cases, as well as training police in serving as trusted adults particularly in the presence of children victims, the industry does justice in efforts to eliminate the sex tourism in respective regions. Advertising Efforts, purely geared at Anti-sex-tourism is also a part of what the tourism industry should go for in eliminating the practice. The tourism as well as the travel industry gradually should respond to the problem of sex tourism by raising awareness particularly among staff as well as tourists through posters and leaflets, setting up ideal focal points for efficient and on time reporting instances of sexual abuse (Donna 2004). This is in promotion of the ECPAT - formulating industry declarations, WTO Code of Conduct, and creating in-flight videos in education campaigns. Other efforts by the tourism industry with a positive effort to curb the practice involve providing training preferably in tourism schools as well as to tourism personnel ideally on ways of identifying and dealing with sex tourists (ECPAT). An outstanding example is the Cambodia case where posters at the airport are paramount and warm foreign visitors highlighting that abuse of children will be, paid for strictly with at least twenty years imprisonment (Kevin, D & Phnom 2006). Among the same efforts, include websites and Hotlines with advertising strategies working, as ideal boards for child predator message on the Web (Gentile 2006). The tourism industry should ensure that the Web sites identify Cambodia and other regions high in practice as a risk for child predators (Kevin & Phnom 2006). Involving the NGOs is also a sizeable approach for the tourism industry in eliminating the practice. Many NGOs play a critical role in providing required resources for the ideal enforcement against the practice of sex tourism (Donna 2004). In addition, NGOs are also excellent in rescuing and caring for the kidnapped children into the industry. For instance, there are NGOs operating in Cambodia focusing on protecting children in Cambodia from child sex offenders as well as in prevention of street-based exploitation of children (Kevin & Phnom 2006). Out of this, the tourism industry can be excellent collaborating with these NGOs to facilitate the considerable efforts of helping children abused in the industry and eliminating the practice. The NGO objectives could best include Intervention and aftercare. This is in emancipating victims ideally from child sexual abuse as well as reducing the effects of trauma majorly caused by the abuse (Gentile 2006). Another objective from the same is Legal protection, which involves increasing the level of access particularly to legal protection to children who are victims of sexual abuse (ECPAT). Breaking the cycle would also act well in lessening the likelihood of children vulnerability to such practices and reducing the chances of them becoming victims, or even victims becoming ideal recurring victims (Donna 2004). Finally, another notable objective involves criminal accountability, which improves the conditions of impunity or even legal accountability of sex offenders in through cooperation with international law enforcement, as well as respective country governance. The tourism industry generally must operate adhering to state laws. For instance, many U.S. States practice anti-sex-trafficking provisions for criminals (Donna 2004). Of the states practicing the same, some have a task force operating statewide, a commission for trafficking research, and training in law enforcement. This is what the tourism industry should abide with as collaborates with the government all supporting efforts to help eliminate the practices in sex tourism (Gentile 2006). Another example is the Colorado provisions for anti-trafficking criminal, a task force, and protection laws for victim. This is perfect and ideal; it should be adhered to by the prevailing tourist boards across the country if at all efforts to eliminate sex tourism are to succeed. Conclusion From the available evidence, what has euphemistically been termed ‘Sex Tourism’ is one of the less savory aspects of tourism in developing countries including a number in the Asia-Pacific Region. Accompanied as it is by the exploitation of children and women this trade in human misery should be eradicated as a matter of priority. The international community particularly is unable to rely on destination countries in adequately protecting the respective rights, as well as the well-being of sex tourism victims because there are many challenges. It is apparent that, the effective elimination of sex tourists requires the cooperation of global laws, the tourism industry, individual tourists and organizations. There is an urgent need for a “political will” creation in all countries globally, which hold disastrous sex tourism record. This political will usually will be because of diplomatic pressures and incentives. In general, cooperation is what will be critical; it is one of the greatest assurances than an effort or approach developed to handle the issue will succeed. This is because each party has a strong role to play and without the cooperation and efficient role-play, the approach cannot see its success. References Chan, T & Adam, P 2004, Arrests of Suspected Pedophiles Reflect New Will, The Cambodia Daily, Sept. 13, 2004, 15 Donna, H 2004, Best Practices to Address the Demand Side of Sex Trafficking (Aug. 2004), http://www.uri.edu/artsci/wms/hughes/demand_sex_trafficking.pdf ECPAT, Vision and Mission, http://www.ecpat.net/EI/Ecpat_vision.asp IJM, Who We Are, http://www.ijm.org/whoweare International Justice Mission, What We Do, http://www.ijm.org/ourwork/whatwedo Kevin, D & Phnom, P 2006, Cambodia’s Child Sex Crackdown, Time, Oct. 5, 2006, available at http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1543174,00.html Nair, S 2000, Child Sex Tourism, U.S. Dep’t of Justice, Child Exploitation And Obscenity Section (CEOS), http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/ceos/sextour.html Nigel, M 2004, “Boom in Sex Trafficking Prompts Charities to Demand More Safe Houses for Victims”, The Independent (UK), Oct. 14, 2004, available at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/boom-in-sex-trafficking-prompts-charities-to-demand-more-safe-houses-for-victims-535235.html Gentile, C 2006, "Brazil cracks down on child prostitution", San Francisco Chronicle, 2006, February 2 Read More