it
NETWORK VI1=> trw/It' our reader.~ to conlrtbute to the Network Letter by
NEWS
shating their work Ideas and plans through these pages.
C'ommlll7icatiol7 /.'i vital to the Illp 0//1 Network espccia/~v when
ROUNDUP phY'iical distances cannot easily be bridged by closer contacts.
Inter-Cultural Travel Services. Sri Lanl<a
las is soon publishing a Tourist guide book: 'Meeting Sri Lanka and Yourself;
to be circulated among Alternates in Tourism (AIT) networks internationally.
They offer assistance to travellers in 5 categories: individualsrgeneral groups,
special groups, locallregional programmes and senior citizens. For details,
contact the 105, National Secretariat, 43 De Waas Lane, Colombo 14.
TW-MAE-W, Philippines
Third World Movement Against the ExplOitation of Women is
conducting a Campaign Against Military Prostitution (CAMP International)
especially in the 'rest and recreation' areas near US military bases in the
Philippines. To express your solidarity, write to Sr Mary Sol Perpinan,
TWMAE-W, PO Box 5M-366, Manila, Philippines.
TEN, West Germany
Tourism Ecumenical European Network, coordinated by Georg Pfafflin, has
evolved a criteria for tourism projects received by donor agencies. This will
be finalised in late 1987. They also plan to offer alternative consultancy studies.
NANET, United States of America
The North American Coordinating Center for Responsible Tourism is planning
a Consultation between I':ovember 13-19, 1987, primarily focusing on issues
related to Middle East, especially Holyland, tourism. For detail!>, contaci Virginia
Hadsell, CRT, 2 Kensington Road, San An~elmo, CA 94960, USA.
EQUATIONS and GRID. Goa
EQUATIONS and GRID (Goa Research Institute for Development) are planning
to publish a joint index of resources on tourism critiqUe/alternative tourism
available in India and elsewhere.. especially relating to Third World tourism.
If you have materials that could be included in the Index, such as reports,
articles, documents, research papers, graphics and so on, please write to
EQUATIONS early.
Published by: Equitable Tourism Options (EQUATIONS), 10, Heerachand Layout. Jeevanahalli, Cox Town, Bangalore 560005, INDIA.
Design and Phototypesetting: Revisuality Digitised Typesetting and Graphic Uesign, 4211 Lavelle Road, Bangalore, India.
RESOURCES
The Five Star Master Plan: An Assault on Goa's Culture/A Case for Concern,
(parts I & Ill, media backgrounders from lagrut Goenkaranchi Fauz (Vigiliant
Goans Army), Go Prof Sergio Carvalho, Opp. Revenue Office, Altinho, Mapusa
403507, Goa.
These media backgrounders consist of news clippings, critical articles, graphics,
photographs and other items detailing the basis of the JGF's formation and
ongoing activities. The JGF, formed as a response to the Goa Government's
announcement of a Master Plan for Tourism Development (see Editorial in this
issue), seeks solidarity and support from people concerned about the future
of India's most recent State, Goa, a former Portuguese
Towards Peoples' Tourism: A Workshop Report, EQUATIONS, Bangalore
and the Orissa !Jrban Rural Service (OURS), Faith Centre, Peyton Sahi,
Cuttack 753 001, Orissa.
This workshop, held on 20 & 21 June, 1987, at Cuttack, raised for the fi rst l
in Orissa, questions regarding the orientation of tourism in the state, the firSt
to declare tourism as an industry. The report gives a summary of the
proceedings, including presentations on Orissa tourism, as well as the
conclusions and recommendations which emerged. For acopy, contacteither
EQUATIO\JS or OURS.
Alternative Tourism: An Operations Manual for Third World Groups,
EQUATIONS, Bangalore.
Based on a participatory study by Paul Gonsalves of Life Travel Service, Bangkok,
and a visit to Village Stay Programme, Malaysia. this manual aims to provide
third world people with detailed guidelines.on operating and managing
alternative forms of tourism. Life Travel was the first alternative agency in Asia,
and is a model which can be readily adapted to third world situations elsewhere.
Write to EQUATIONS for a copy. Contributions of Rs. 15.00 in India, and
US $2.50 elsewhere, to cover costs and
ALTERNATIVE NETWORK LETTER
A Third World Tourism Communication
And Information Alternative
For Private Circulation Only
Two lessons in Public Protest
W
HEN the Goa government announced its Master Plan for Tourism at
a Panjim seminar on June 9, it hardly expected the kind of public
reaction it evoked. Demonstrators protesting against the plan being
'rammed down their throats' took over the stage, bringing the seminar to a
standstill for over an hour. 13 persons were arrested for - among other things
'prevention of damage to public propertY:
Condemning the demonstration as iundemocratic' - thus newly defining
public protest in an open society - the protagonists of the Plan probably
expected the police action to calm things down. Which it did not. Instead
the protest spread to the streets. Activists of various hues, women's and youth
leading citizens and opposition political par.ties were one in decrying
the Master Plan, demanding that the Plan be discussed in detail at tne local
level by Goan people most likely to be affected by it. A member of the
Ecological Council urged a moratorium on the clearance of any new hotels
unti I the Plan was itself cleared.
Caught in the crossfire, the Government and especially the
unflappable Tourism Minister, Dr Proto Barbosa - did a quick about turn.
No, it was not the Master Plan, only a draft plan. No, we don't know how
many 5-star hotels will come up, we haven't received even 17 applications
till today (so the number must be 16). We don't do the
They are cleared by an all-lndiC! inter-ministerial committee.
ad infinitum. ad nauseum.
The embers had, however, been set alight. An united citizens' front the
Jagrut Goenkaranchr Fauz (Vigilant Goans Army) emerged from among those
III
EDITORIAL
who had been arrested. The Fauz aims to mobilise the Goan people to
for a total ban on new 5-star hotels, calling for the withdrawal of industry
status to tourism and the maintenance of a strict code of condud in advertising
Goa, especially its 'wine and women' culture.
As a result, the Government which had hoped to push through the Master
Plan in 30 days time, now finds itself sitting pretty. Nearly 3 months later,
in late August, copies of the Plan were finally released to the public. And
it will take yet longer to get it legitimised. So much the better.
One lesson that governments - whether Goan or otherwise - seem slow
to understand, is that the foundations of tourism are shaky. Should there be
widespread public protest, travel agents and individual tourists alike will give
Goa a hasty by-your-Ieave. As happened during the Konkani agitation last
Christmas. This factor alone should be reason enough to take the peoples'
of view rather more seriously.
And the second lesson a more severe one is that the people will sooner
or later put their point anoss, in every which way, if it was not sought originally.
It has happened before in Tahiti, in Hawaii, in Manila, in Seoul, in Bangkok,
in Penang, in Mombasa, in Jamaica and in Mexico. It is happening today
in Goa. It might happen tomorrow anywhere. The voice of the people is
paramount. In tourism, as in all things.
As Remo, popular Goan singer puts it, 'watch it now:
Paul Gonsalves
Vol. 3 NO.3 September 1987
Lifting Lhasa's veil
hundred years ago, a visit to Lhasa took stamina, nerve, and a good
A deal of luck. Geographic barriers and governmental xenophobia had
isolated the Tibetan capital to such an extent that Europeans called
it "The Forbidden City': The Chinese occupation in 1951 sealed Tibet's borders
even more firmly, and for th~ nextthree decades the Himalayan region remained
a tantalising mystery.
Today, however, all it takes to reach Lhasa is a Chinese visa and a plane ticket.
The lure of foreign currency has persuaded China to open one of the few
remaining bastions of the mysterious to tourists, and the outside influences
excluded for so long are spurring a rapid metamorphosis of the city.
Lhasa is already far different from seven years ago when it was without a single
hotel, restaurant or transport facility, making tourism impossible. Now at least
a half-dozen inexpensive hotels cater to travellers flocking overland from
Kathmandu and in restaurants like "The Merry-Making Dining Room", high
altitude renditions of Western fare including "Yak" burgers, top the menu.
On the opposite side of town is the other end of the spectrum, the 1,000
bed, $lOO·a-night Lhasa Hotel, a joint venture undertaken by China and Holiday
Inn International. The hotel's opening in September 1985 signalled a new era
in Tibet's infant tourist industry that began in 1979 with a few carefully selected
groups paying up to $300 a day per person. By 1984, restrictions had eased
to allow a trickle of independent travellers and last year, after several preliminary
border openings, the overland trip from Nepal to Lhasa became possible­
and the trickle turned into a flood.
In 1986 nearly 30,000 tourists visited Tibet and Chinese officials predid that
by 1990 the figure will rise to 100,000 a year. They will be a welcome source
of income but Tibetans themselves view the influx with mixed emotions. Many
feel China's tourism campaign is simply another attempt at exploitation. ''They
cut our trees, mined our gold, and took our grain. Now that there is nothing
left, they are selling our country to the foreigners;' is how one Tibetan bitterly
summed up his feelings.
On the other hand, some view the presence of tourists as insurance against
a recurrence of the violence and destruction which marked the first decades
of Chinese rule. And many Tibetans, including the Dalai Lama, the country's
exiled spiritual and political leader, have expressed the hope that the tourists
will leave with an increased awareness of the suffering Tibet has experienced
under Chinese occupation.
The extent to which casual visitors follow the political intricacies of the
situation remains questionable, but by their very presence tourists are having
an impact on Lhasa. In some ways the changes are beneficial. Tourism is the
contd O'>.'erleaf
INSIDE
Cattle cars for the Jumpen ............ ,.......... ,....... ,.~, .... 2
Indian Theologians Meet ................................ ;., ..•,.3
The India Connection ............................................. 3
Network News Roundup ...................... ;.......... ~ ....... 4
 2 3
("oold. from page r
A New Internationalist Traveller's Code
major motivating fador of government efforts to restore some of the thousands
of temples and monasteries destroyed during the occupation. As one Tibetan
remarked: "The Chinese can't bring tourists here unless there is something to
show them:' Of Tibet's estimated 6,254 religious buildings, 160 have been
restored so far. Frequently, the only modern touch to their traditional splendour
is a prominent sign stating "Photos 30 Yuan Each" (about $8).
The golden-roofed jokhang Temple in the heart of Lhasa was one of the few
sites not requiring complete restoration, but even it did not escape the Cultural
Revolution: at one point, it housed Red Guard factions and a pigpen in the
front courtyard. Today, dozens of worshippers prostrate themselves day and
night in front of the temple's closed doors, and on the few mornings in a week
that Jokhang is open, devotees wait in long lines to bow before 7th century
statues, the holiest in the land.
The worshippers crowding the Jokhang are only one example of the apparent
religious freedom visible everywhere In Lhasa. Until recently Tibetans went
to prison for the crime of reading Buddhist scriptures.
But some feel the current display of religious freedom is superficial. The
Chinese may be encouraging the Tibetans to preserve their lifestyle as a tourist
attraction. This view echoes the fears expressed by the Dalai Lama in aMarch
speech regarding restridions on the study and teaching of Buddhist philosophy
in Tibet. Historically, Tibetan Buddhism has been an intellectual pursuit, at
least in the monasteries. By allowing only the external manifestations of religion,
it has been reduced to little more than a form of blind faith which is what
the tourists see.
Another concern is how the vitality and integrity of religious rituals can be
preserved in front of crowds of curious onlookers. A recent example is the "sky
burial" site near Lhasa, where Tibetans condud traditional funeral rites in which
The current display of religious freedom is superficial.
The Chinese may be encouraging the Tibetans to preserve
their lifestyle as a tourist attraction.
corpses are dismembered and fed to vultures. Sensation seeki ng tourists became
so intrusive that by 1985 the government was forced to ban onlookers.
The most significant threat to Lhasa's Tibetan identity comes from recent
government efforts to increase the number of Chinese settlers in Tibet - an
expansion made possible by the new tourism revenues.
Tourism threatens Lhasa's culture in yet another way: the city's remaining
wealth of old religious and art objeds, already decimated by the Cultural
Revolution, is vanishing as the demand for souvenirs increases. Meanwhile,
both Tibetans and professional art dealers are smuggling out artifacts that bring
high profits in the West. "In three years there's not going to be asingle old thing
left in Lhasa;' predicts a Tibetan art dealer in Idthmandu, who has seen prices
double in the past year.
Chinese customs restrictions prohibited the export of uncertified antiques,
but some professional exporters avoid"customs inspections by having their
purchases carried by porters or yaks over unguarded Himalayan passes into
Nepal. Although commercial dealing in religious images is traditionally
considered a sin - "How can you pray to a god one day and then sell him
the next?" asked one indignant Tibetan the lure of cash sometimes overcomes
religious scruples.
In this respect, Tibet may be no different from many othertraditional cultures,
which under the pressures of modernisation, have replaced their old values
with economic ones. The Chinese understand this point well: it is the basis
of their new liberal policy in Tibet. Chinese officials believe that the "problem"
of religion cannot" be solved by administrative measures but rather by
development and improving people's living standards. The final irony will be
if economic improvements do more to undermine Tibetan culture than all the
violence of China's earlier attempts to destroy it.
From an article by kERRY MORAN in the INDIAN EXPRESS 26 July 1981.
Tourism: cattle cars for the lumpen
by Hugh & Colleen Ganlzer
Tourism in India is rapidly becoming an activity which is speeding far out of
the reach of the common Indian and the greater mass of international travellers.
Nowhere is this obsession with catering to the rich more apparent than in
the Indian Railways.
On March 4 we travelled AC First Class on the Taj Express from Agra to Delhi.
The standard of service and level of comfort on that trip were impeccable. They
matched anything that we have experienced in Europe's famed TEE and
Britrail's excellent First Class.
Then, from Cochin to Delhi we travelled in AC sleeper mach No. 7072 on
the Kerala Express leaving Ernakulam on March 27. The train ran over an hour
late. Fellow passengers V PJoseph and Chandrasekhar held first class tickets
from Ernakulam, boardetl the train at that station, but were compelled by the
railway authorities to travel in an ordinary Second Class coach from Ernakulam
to Renigunta. They were told that no AC second class sleeper berths were
available. In fact, in our bay, berths No.9, 11 and 12 remained unoccupied
from Ernakulam to Renigunta. We will not blame anyone for believing that some
railway employees somewhere down the line hoped to peddle these berths
to affluent travellers prepared to pay for the privi lege of getti ng out-of-turn
accommodation.
As for the trip from Delhi to Ernakulam on the Kerala Express leaving Delhi
on March 6: It was a nightmare.
Our train left Delhi over 1Yz hours after the scheduled time of departure and
was late all down the line. On that journey, we were doing our yearly long
trip by second class which we do as a matter of experience: a practice which
we strongly recommend to Madhavrao Scindia. *
We were travelling in a reserved second class sleeper, coach No. 5877. The
compartment was built to seat 72 and sleep 72. At 10-55 on March 7, when
we were able to walk, with difficulty, down the length of the compartment,
we counted the number of passengers that had been crowded into it. There
were 126 of us. People and their belongings were packed like animals in the
upper berths, the lower berths, the floors, the corridors, and jammed into the
spaces in front of the toilets. No cleaners visited our coach at any time. It is
difficult to imagine the state of the train, its compartments, and its passengers
after such a harrowing two-day-two-night journey.
The railways carryover 90 percent of the domestic tourist traffic. If the
Government has decided that only affluent, foreign-exchange-spendi ng tourists
need to be looked after, it should spell out its policy frankly and expli~itly.
But then it should also admit that it has, quite frankly, opted for cattle 'tars
for the lumpen.
• Indian Railways Minister INDIAN EXPRESS 14 April 198
otltJey .peqle ~L.( l\3ue d1ffereJ ~e.u rof ~l1cflfa~r'1 (.ti1.d
wa~5 ofTkif\b~. ~~ does hot wtak:e yfM ri3"t
- Oh ~ d4{feYM:
Workshop for Indian Theologians
A workshop on 'Theology and Tourism in India' was organised at Baga, Goa,
between August 24-27, 1987. Jointly sponsored by Equitable Tourism Options
(EQUATIONS), Bangalore, and the Board ofTheological Education ofthe Senate
of Serampore College (BTESSC), in collaboration with the Ecumenical Coalition
on Third World Tourism, Bangkok, the participants ir.lcluded church leaders,
theologians and others from India and abroad.
Expressing their concern over the negative effects of international tourism in
1 hird World destinations such as Goa, t~e participants unanimously agreed
that such tourism is a distortion of the theological vision of an integrated
humankind, violating principles of social and economic justice, freerlom and
human rights.
They called upon churches and others to testify to a new form of tourism, one
which respects and strengthens existing sodal and cultural practices and
institutions.
The participants listened to the experiences of people affected by tourism, in
Goa, Orissa and in other parts of the Third World. They also learnt of the
responses by ecumenical European partners to the issues and concerns thus
raised. During an exposure visit to Sinquerim (near Candoliml, local residents
narrated their experiences of tourism's effects, and their fears that the industry
would completely destroy their traditions and livelihood.
Affirming their faith in principles of justice and human dignity, the participants
expressed their solidarity with the struggles of local communities against the
onslaught of tourism.
Resource people at the workshop inc! uded members of the Jagrut Goenkaranch
Fauz (Prof Sergio Carvalho, Albertina Almeida, Roland Martins, Mario Almeida),
Dr Thomas Thangaraj (Professor of Systematic Theology, Tami Inadu Theological
College, Madurail, Dr Koson Sri sang (Executive Secretary, EQWT, Bangkok)
and Rev Georg Pfafflin (Coordinator, TEN, and Director, Centre for
Development Education, Stuttgart, W Germany).
A full report of the workshop will soon be available from EQUATIONS and
BTESSC
Learning from Bhopal
"Tell me;' says an official in the tourism department, lido we give up
heavy industry because of one Bhopal?"
But what do we learn from a Bhopal? Merely saying that every industry
has its disadvantages is not good enough. And it has to be followed up
with active steps to both mitigate the disadvantages of aggressive tourism
and ensure that the locals do really benefit.
Ayesha Kagal in THE TIMES OF INDIA, 26 luly 1987
The India Connection
On February 12th this year, 14 of us left Vancouver bound for Hong Kong and
India for the Naramata Centre sponsored Study Tour. The Tour was the
fulfillment of two years of dreaming and planning and included four days in
Hong Kong, three days in Bombay and twelve days at the Ecumenical Christia.n
Centre near Bangalore, South India. We heard about and experienced a
complex nation of paradox and struggle. India is acollage of beauty, generosity,
warmth, high intellect, religious tolerance, faith, music, dance, literature, high
technology, history, grandeur, political awareness and plenty alongside poverty,
malnutrition, disease, negled, illiteracy, political apathy, religious extremism,
superstition and primitive work methods.
Bombay, a city of 9 million people, is trying to assimilate 1,500 newcomers
every day. Thousands are livi ng in the streets because housi ng is too expensive
or not even available at any price. At the same time, people share what they
have, look for ways to earn a living, use precious water very carefully, maintain
fami lies and carry on religious practices and festivals in the midst of their lack
of material goods. We experienced friendly, beautiful people who responded
to us graciously and warmly.
During the 12 days at the Ecumenical Christian Centre near Bangalore, we
had excellent resource people on subjects that included: Understanding the
Joint Family, the Caste System, Hinduism, the Dalit Movement (Untouchable
Movement), India's relationship with the super powers, India as a Political
Democracy, Development Education Work in the Villages, the Peace
Movement, Nuclear Issues, Women's Issues. We also learned something of the
Indian Women's Movement.
On route home, we stopped for aday in Bombay where vve took time to reflect
on what we'd seen and heard and tried to analyze what it meant for us where
we live.
We were encouraged to seek information and do information sharing and
to write letters of protest about economic and political injustice. We were
encouraged to be part of a Two-thirds world network and to hold study groups
on multi-national business practices, ecological imbalance, nuclear issues and
to practice alternate life styles. We were reminded that our part of the world
presently consumes 83 % of the world's resources with only 17% used by the
Two-thirds world,
Marion Best in THE GOOD NEWS, Vol IS No 2
'Dr Lut. Proto Barbosa. Goa T()unsrrt~iiriister, while announdngthe
ToufislnMast~t Plan
Ow 6overnmentwantsa/}(3pa11s (0 fill their bellies,.. it is nola ;shame
fot Goons to Qecooks; butJers,wailers,elc. What were ourGoans doing
in 'the Oulf anyway'?' "
 2 3
("oold. from page r
A New Internationalist Traveller's Code
major motivating fador of government efforts to restore some of the thousands
of temples and monasteries destroyed during the occupation. As one Tibetan
remarked: "The Chinese can't bring tourists here unless there is something to
show them:' Of Tibet's estimated 6,254 religious buildings, 160 have been
restored so far. Frequently, the only modern touch to their traditional splendour
is a prominent sign stating "Photos 30 Yuan Each" (about $8).
The golden-roofed jokhang Temple in the heart of Lhasa was one of the few
sites not requiring complete restoration, but even it did not escape the Cultural
Revolution: at one point, it housed Red Guard factions and a pigpen in the
front courtyard. Today, dozens of worshippers prostrate themselves day and
night in front of the temple's closed doors, and on the few mornings in a week
that Jokhang is open, devotees wait in long lines to bow before 7th century
statues, the holiest in the land.
The worshippers crowding the Jokhang are only one example of the apparent
religious freedom visible everywhere In Lhasa. Until recently Tibetans went
to prison for the crime of reading Buddhist scriptures.
But some feel the current display of religious freedom is superficial. The
Chinese may be encouraging the Tibetans to preserve their lifestyle as a tourist
attraction. This view echoes the fears expressed by the Dalai Lama in aMarch
speech regarding restridions on the study and teaching of Buddhist philosophy
in Tibet. Historically, Tibetan Buddhism has been an intellectual pursuit, at
least in the monasteries. By allowing only the external manifestations of religion,
it has been reduced to little more than a form of blind faith which is what
the tourists see.
Another concern is how the vitality and integrity of religious rituals can be
preserved in front of crowds of curious onlookers. A recent example is the "sky
burial" site near Lhasa, where Tibetans condud traditional funeral rites in which
The current display of religious freedom is superficial.
The Chinese may be encouraging the Tibetans to preserve
their lifestyle as a tourist attraction.
corpses are dismembered and fed to vultures. Sensation seeki ng tourists became
so intrusive that by 1985 the government was forced to ban onlookers.
The most significant threat to Lhasa's Tibetan identity comes from recent
government efforts to increase the number of Chinese settlers in Tibet - an
expansion made possible by the new tourism revenues.
Tourism threatens Lhasa's culture in yet another way: the city's remaining
wealth of old religious and art objeds, already decimated by the Cultural
Revolution, is vanishing as the demand for souvenirs increases. Meanwhile,
both Tibetans and professional art dealers are smuggling out artifacts that bring
high profits in the West. "In three years there's not going to be asingle old thing
left in Lhasa;' predicts a Tibetan art dealer in Idthmandu, who has seen prices
double in the past year.
Chinese customs restrictions prohibited the export of uncertified antiques,
but some professional exporters avoid"customs inspections by having their
purchases carried by porters or yaks over unguarded Himalayan passes into
Nepal. Although commercial dealing in religious images is traditionally
considered a sin - "How can you pray to a god one day and then sell him
the next?" asked one indignant Tibetan the lure of cash sometimes overcomes
religious scruples.
In this respect, Tibet may be no different from many othertraditional cultures,
which under the pressures of modernisation, have replaced their old values
with economic ones. The Chinese understand this point well: it is the basis
of their new liberal policy in Tibet. Chinese officials believe that the "problem"
of religion cannot" be solved by administrative measures but rather by
development and improving people's living standards. The final irony will be
if economic improvements do more to undermine Tibetan culture than all the
violence of China's earlier attempts to destroy it.
From an article by kERRY MORAN in the INDIAN EXPRESS 26 July 1981.
Tourism: cattle cars for the lumpen
by Hugh & Colleen Ganlzer
Tourism in India is rapidly becoming an activity which is speeding far out of
the reach of the common Indian and the greater mass of international travellers.
Nowhere is this obsession with catering to the rich more apparent than in
the Indian Railways.
On March 4 we travelled AC First Class on the Taj Express from Agra to Delhi.
The standard of service and level of comfort on that trip were impeccable. They
matched anything that we have experienced in Europe's famed TEE and
Britrail's excellent First Class.
Then, from Cochin to Delhi we travelled in AC sleeper mach No. 7072 on
the Kerala Express leaving Ernakulam on March 27. The train ran over an hour
late. Fellow passengers V PJoseph and Chandrasekhar held first class tickets
from Ernakulam, boardetl the train at that station, but were compelled by the
railway authorities to travel in an ordinary Second Class coach from Ernakulam
to Renigunta. They were told that no AC second class sleeper berths were
available. In fact, in our bay, berths No.9, 11 and 12 remained unoccupied
from Ernakulam to Renigunta. We will not blame anyone for believing that some
railway employees somewhere down the line hoped to peddle these berths
to affluent travellers prepared to pay for the privi lege of getti ng out-of-turn
accommodation.
As for the trip from Delhi to Ernakulam on the Kerala Express leaving Delhi
on March 6: It was a nightmare.
Our train left Delhi over 1Yz hours after the scheduled time of departure and
was late all down the line. On that journey, we were doing our yearly long
trip by second class which we do as a matter of experience: a practice which
we strongly recommend to Madhavrao Scindia. *
We were travelling in a reserved second class sleeper, coach No. 5877. The
compartment was built to seat 72 and sleep 72. At 10-55 on March 7, when
we were able to walk, with difficulty, down the length of the compartment,
we counted the number of passengers that had been crowded into it. There
were 126 of us. People and their belongings were packed like animals in the
upper berths, the lower berths, the floors, the corridors, and jammed into the
spaces in front of the toilets. No cleaners visited our coach at any time. It is
difficult to imagine the state of the train, its compartments, and its passengers
after such a harrowing two-day-two-night journey.
The railways carryover 90 percent of the domestic tourist traffic. If the
Government has decided that only affluent, foreign-exchange-spendi ng tourists
need to be looked after, it should spell out its policy frankly and expli~itly.
But then it should also admit that it has, quite frankly, opted for cattle 'tars
for the lumpen.
• Indian Railways Minister INDIAN EXPRESS 14 April 198
otltJey .peqle ~L.( l\3ue d1ffereJ ~e.u rof ~l1cflfa~r'1 (.ti1.d
wa~5 ofTkif\b~. ~~ does hot wtak:e yfM ri3"t
- Oh ~ d4{feYM:
Workshop for Indian Theologians
A workshop on 'Theology and Tourism in India' was organised at Baga, Goa,
between August 24-27, 1987. Jointly sponsored by Equitable Tourism Options
(EQUATIONS), Bangalore, and the Board ofTheological Education ofthe Senate
of Serampore College (BTESSC), in collaboration with the Ecumenical Coalition
on Third World Tourism, Bangkok, the participants ir.lcluded church leaders,
theologians and others from India and abroad.
Expressing their concern over the negative effects of international tourism in
1 hird World destinations such as Goa, t~e participants unanimously agreed
that such tourism is a distortion of the theological vision of an integrated
humankind, violating principles of social and economic justice, freerlom and
human rights.
They called upon churches and others to testify to a new form of tourism, one
which respects and strengthens existing sodal and cultural practices and
institutions.
The participants listened to the experiences of people affected by tourism, in
Goa, Orissa and in other parts of the Third World. They also learnt of the
responses by ecumenical European partners to the issues and concerns thus
raised. During an exposure visit to Sinquerim (near Candoliml, local residents
narrated their experiences of tourism's effects, and their fears that the industry
would completely destroy their traditions and livelihood.
Affirming their faith in principles of justice and human dignity, the participants
expressed their solidarity with the struggles of local communities against the
onslaught of tourism.
Resource people at the workshop inc! uded members of the Jagrut Goenkaranch
Fauz (Prof Sergio Carvalho, Albertina Almeida, Roland Martins, Mario Almeida),
Dr Thomas Thangaraj (Professor of Systematic Theology, Tami Inadu Theological
College, Madurail, Dr Koson Sri sang (Executive Secretary, EQWT, Bangkok)
and Rev Georg Pfafflin (Coordinator, TEN, and Director, Centre for
Development Education, Stuttgart, W Germany).
A full report of the workshop will soon be available from EQUATIONS and
BTESSC
Learning from Bhopal
"Tell me;' says an official in the tourism department, lido we give up
heavy industry because of one Bhopal?"
But what do we learn from a Bhopal? Merely saying that every industry
has its disadvantages is not good enough. And it has to be followed up
with active steps to both mitigate the disadvantages of aggressive tourism
and ensure that the locals do really benefit.
Ayesha Kagal in THE TIMES OF INDIA, 26 luly 1987
The India Connection
On February 12th this year, 14 of us left Vancouver bound for Hong Kong and
India for the Naramata Centre sponsored Study Tour. The Tour was the
fulfillment of two years of dreaming and planning and included four days in
Hong Kong, three days in Bombay and twelve days at the Ecumenical Christia.n
Centre near Bangalore, South India. We heard about and experienced a
complex nation of paradox and struggle. India is acollage of beauty, generosity,
warmth, high intellect, religious tolerance, faith, music, dance, literature, high
technology, history, grandeur, political awareness and plenty alongside poverty,
malnutrition, disease, negled, illiteracy, political apathy, religious extremism,
superstition and primitive work methods.
Bombay, a city of 9 million people, is trying to assimilate 1,500 newcomers
every day. Thousands are livi ng in the streets because housi ng is too expensive
or not even available at any price. At the same time, people share what they
have, look for ways to earn a living, use precious water very carefully, maintain
fami lies and carry on religious practices and festivals in the midst of their lack
of material goods. We experienced friendly, beautiful people who responded
to us graciously and warmly.
During the 12 days at the Ecumenical Christian Centre near Bangalore, we
had excellent resource people on subjects that included: Understanding the
Joint Family, the Caste System, Hinduism, the Dalit Movement (Untouchable
Movement), India's relationship with the super powers, India as a Political
Democracy, Development Education Work in the Villages, the Peace
Movement, Nuclear Issues, Women's Issues. We also learned something of the
Indian Women's Movement.
On route home, we stopped for aday in Bombay where vve took time to reflect
on what we'd seen and heard and tried to analyze what it meant for us where
we live.
We were encouraged to seek information and do information sharing and
to write letters of protest about economic and political injustice. We were
encouraged to be part of a Two-thirds world network and to hold study groups
on multi-national business practices, ecological imbalance, nuclear issues and
to practice alternate life styles. We were reminded that our part of the world
presently consumes 83 % of the world's resources with only 17% used by the
Two-thirds world,
Marion Best in THE GOOD NEWS, Vol IS No 2
'Dr Lut. Proto Barbosa. Goa T()unsrrt~iiriister, while announdngthe
ToufislnMast~t Plan
Ow 6overnmentwantsa/}(3pa11s (0 fill their bellies,.. it is nola ;shame
fot Goons to Qecooks; butJers,wailers,elc. What were ourGoans doing
in 'the Oulf anyway'?' "
 it
NETWORK VI1=> trw/It' our reader.~ to conlrtbute to the Network Letter by
NEWS
shating their work Ideas and plans through these pages.
C'ommlll7icatiol7 /.'i vital to the Illp 0//1 Network espccia/~v when
ROUNDUP phY'iical distances cannot easily be bridged by closer contacts.
Inter-Cultural Travel Services. Sri Lanl<a
las is soon publishing a Tourist guide book: 'Meeting Sri Lanka and Yourself;
to be circulated among Alternates in Tourism (AIT) networks internationally.
They offer assistance to travellers in 5 categories: individualsrgeneral groups,
special groups, locallregional programmes and senior citizens. For details,
contact the 105, National Secretariat, 43 De Waas Lane, Colombo 14.
TW-MAE-W, Philippines
Third World Movement Against the ExplOitation of Women is
conducting a Campaign Against Military Prostitution (CAMP International)
especially in the 'rest and recreation' areas near US military bases in the
Philippines. To express your solidarity, write to Sr Mary Sol Perpinan,
TWMAE-W, PO Box 5M-366, Manila, Philippines.
TEN, West Germany
Tourism Ecumenical European Network, coordinated by Georg Pfafflin, has
evolved a criteria for tourism projects received by donor agencies. This will
be finalised in late 1987. They also plan to offer alternative consultancy studies.
NANET, United States of America
The North American Coordinating Center for Responsible Tourism is planning
a Consultation between I':ovember 13-19, 1987, primarily focusing on issues
related to Middle East, especially Holyland, tourism. For detail!>, contaci Virginia
Hadsell, CRT, 2 Kensington Road, San An~elmo, CA 94960, USA.
EQUATIONS and GRID. Goa
EQUATIONS and GRID (Goa Research Institute for Development) are planning
to publish a joint index of resources on tourism critiqUe/alternative tourism
available in India and elsewhere.. especially relating to Third World tourism.
If you have materials that could be included in the Index, such as reports,
articles, documents, research papers, graphics and so on, please write to
EQUATIONS early.
Published by: Equitable Tourism Options (EQUATIONS), 10, Heerachand Layout. Jeevanahalli, Cox Town, Bangalore 560005, INDIA.
Design and Phototypesetting: Revisuality Digitised Typesetting and Graphic Uesign, 4211 Lavelle Road, Bangalore, India.
RESOURCES
The Five Star Master Plan: An Assault on Goa's Culture/A Case for Concern,
(parts I & Ill, media backgrounders from lagrut Goenkaranchi Fauz (Vigiliant
Goans Army), Go Prof Sergio Carvalho, Opp. Revenue Office, Altinho, Mapusa
403507, Goa.
These media backgrounders consist of news clippings, critical articles, graphics,
photographs and other items detailing the basis of the JGF's formation and
ongoing activities. The JGF, formed as a response to the Goa Government's
announcement of a Master Plan for Tourism Development (see Editorial in this
issue), seeks solidarity and support from people concerned about the future
of India's most recent State, Goa, a former Portuguese
Towards Peoples' Tourism: A Workshop Report, EQUATIONS, Bangalore
and the Orissa !Jrban Rural Service (OURS), Faith Centre, Peyton Sahi,
Cuttack 753 001, Orissa.
This workshop, held on 20 & 21 June, 1987, at Cuttack, raised for the fi rst l
in Orissa, questions regarding the orientation of tourism in the state, the firSt
to declare tourism as an industry. The report gives a summary of the
proceedings, including presentations on Orissa tourism, as well as the
conclusions and recommendations which emerged. For acopy, contacteither
EQUATIO\JS or OURS.
Alternative Tourism: An Operations Manual for Third World Groups,
EQUATIONS, Bangalore.
Based on a participatory study by Paul Gonsalves of Life Travel Service, Bangkok,
and a visit to Village Stay Programme, Malaysia. this manual aims to provide
third world people with detailed guidelines.on operating and managing
alternative forms of tourism. Life Travel was the first alternative agency in Asia,
and is a model which can be readily adapted to third world situations elsewhere.
Write to EQUATIONS for a copy. Contributions of Rs. 15.00 in India, and
US $2.50 elsewhere, to cover costs and
ALTERNATIVE NETWORK LETTER
A Third World Tourism Communication
And Information Alternative
For Private Circulation Only
Two lessons in Public Protest
W
HEN the Goa government announced its Master Plan for Tourism at
a Panjim seminar on June 9, it hardly expected the kind of public
reaction it evoked. Demonstrators protesting against the plan being
'rammed down their throats' took over the stage, bringing the seminar to a
standstill for over an hour. 13 persons were arrested for - among other things
'prevention of damage to public propertY:
Condemning the demonstration as iundemocratic' - thus newly defining
public protest in an open society - the protagonists of the Plan probably
expected the police action to calm things down. Which it did not. Instead
the protest spread to the streets. Activists of various hues, women's and youth
leading citizens and opposition political par.ties were one in decrying
the Master Plan, demanding that the Plan be discussed in detail at tne local
level by Goan people most likely to be affected by it. A member of the
Ecological Council urged a moratorium on the clearance of any new hotels
unti I the Plan was itself cleared.
Caught in the crossfire, the Government and especially the
unflappable Tourism Minister, Dr Proto Barbosa - did a quick about turn.
No, it was not the Master Plan, only a draft plan. No, we don't know how
many 5-star hotels will come up, we haven't received even 17 applications
till today (so the number must be 16). We don't do the
They are cleared by an all-lndiC! inter-ministerial committee.
ad infinitum. ad nauseum.
The embers had, however, been set alight. An united citizens' front the
Jagrut Goenkaranchr Fauz (Vigilant Goans Army) emerged from among those
III
EDITORIAL
who had been arrested. The Fauz aims to mobilise the Goan people to
for a total ban on new 5-star hotels, calling for the withdrawal of industry
status to tourism and the maintenance of a strict code of condud in advertising
Goa, especially its 'wine and women' culture.
As a result, the Government which had hoped to push through the Master
Plan in 30 days time, now finds itself sitting pretty. Nearly 3 months later,
in late August, copies of the Plan were finally released to the public. And
it will take yet longer to get it legitimised. So much the better.
One lesson that governments - whether Goan or otherwise - seem slow
to understand, is that the foundations of tourism are shaky. Should there be
widespread public protest, travel agents and individual tourists alike will give
Goa a hasty by-your-Ieave. As happened during the Konkani agitation last
Christmas. This factor alone should be reason enough to take the peoples'
of view rather more seriously.
And the second lesson a more severe one is that the people will sooner
or later put their point anoss, in every which way, if it was not sought originally.
It has happened before in Tahiti, in Hawaii, in Manila, in Seoul, in Bangkok,
in Penang, in Mombasa, in Jamaica and in Mexico. It is happening today
in Goa. It might happen tomorrow anywhere. The voice of the people is
paramount. In tourism, as in all things.
As Remo, popular Goan singer puts it, 'watch it now:
Paul Gonsalves
Vol. 3 NO.3 September 1987
Lifting Lhasa's veil
hundred years ago, a visit to Lhasa took stamina, nerve, and a good
A deal of luck. Geographic barriers and governmental xenophobia had
isolated the Tibetan capital to such an extent that Europeans called
it "The Forbidden City': The Chinese occupation in 1951 sealed Tibet's borders
even more firmly, and for th~ nextthree decades the Himalayan region remained
a tantalising mystery.
Today, however, all it takes to reach Lhasa is a Chinese visa and a plane ticket.
The lure of foreign currency has persuaded China to open one of the few
remaining bastions of the mysterious to tourists, and the outside influences
excluded for so long are spurring a rapid metamorphosis of the city.
Lhasa is already far different from seven years ago when it was without a single
hotel, restaurant or transport facility, making tourism impossible. Now at least
a half-dozen inexpensive hotels cater to travellers flocking overland from
Kathmandu and in restaurants like "The Merry-Making Dining Room", high
altitude renditions of Western fare including "Yak" burgers, top the menu.
On the opposite side of town is the other end of the spectrum, the 1,000
bed, $lOO·a-night Lhasa Hotel, a joint venture undertaken by China and Holiday
Inn International. The hotel's opening in September 1985 signalled a new era
in Tibet's infant tourist industry that began in 1979 with a few carefully selected
groups paying up to $300 a day per person. By 1984, restrictions had eased
to allow a trickle of independent travellers and last year, after several preliminary
border openings, the overland trip from Nepal to Lhasa became possible­
and the trickle turned into a flood.
In 1986 nearly 30,000 tourists visited Tibet and Chinese officials predid that
by 1990 the figure will rise to 100,000 a year. They will be a welcome source
of income but Tibetans themselves view the influx with mixed emotions. Many
feel China's tourism campaign is simply another attempt at exploitation. ''They
cut our trees, mined our gold, and took our grain. Now that there is nothing
left, they are selling our country to the foreigners;' is how one Tibetan bitterly
summed up his feelings.
On the other hand, some view the presence of tourists as insurance against
a recurrence of the violence and destruction which marked the first decades
of Chinese rule. And many Tibetans, including the Dalai Lama, the country's
exiled spiritual and political leader, have expressed the hope that the tourists
will leave with an increased awareness of the suffering Tibet has experienced
under Chinese occupation.
The extent to which casual visitors follow the political intricacies of the
situation remains questionable, but by their very presence tourists are having
an impact on Lhasa. In some ways the changes are beneficial. Tourism is the
contd O'>.'erleaf
INSIDE
Cattle cars for the Jumpen ............ ,.......... ,....... ,.~, .... 2
Indian Theologians Meet ................................ ;., ..•,.3
The India Connection ............................................. 3
Network News Roundup ...................... ;.......... ~ ....... 4