Abstract
Tourism and terrorism is an unlikely combination that a country can have problems dealing with. Local authorities are the ones responsible for the management of tourism. These local authorities may have some methods or framework that they follow in order to counter terrorism threats and attacks. Information about their framework against terrorism will be sought and confirmed in this study. Then, in order to test their effectiveness, current tourists in the country will be asked with questions related to the local authority framework uncovered. The study will be based on the research philosophy of positivism because it will try to test a hypothesis, that tourists feel safe from terrorist attacks. The study will be exploratory as well because it aims to explore the current management strategies used by the local authorities, and at the same time explore literatures and the views of the tourists. This cross-sectional study will employ quantitative research, as it will statistically analyze the views of the tourist respondents. The study will use a structured questionnaire for the respondents to answer. The questionnaire should contain attitude statements, which they will respond through a 5-point Likert Scale. Tourism and it being managed well is an important task for a country and its government any wrong thing done on tourism management can affect the country economically. As mentioned earlier dealing with both tourism and terrorism at the same time can be a hard task and through proper coordination between the government, local authorities, and tourism institutions terrorism can be thwarted at the same time tourism for the country can increase.
Introduction
Tourism is a leisure activity which presupposes its opposite, namely regulated and organized work; tourism relationships arise from a movement of people to, and their stay in, various destinations; the journey and stay are to, and in, sites which are outside the normal places of residence and work; a substantial proportion of the population of modern societies engages in such tourist practices; places are chosen to be gazed upon because there is an anticipation, especially through day-dreaming and fantasy of intense pleasures, anticipation constructed and sustained through a variety of non-tourist practices, such as film, television, literature, magazines, records and videos, which construct and reinforce the gaze; an array of tourist professionals develop who attempt to reproduce ever new objects for the tourist gaze. Tourist fantasy permits the self to assume diverse social roles in exotic settings; tourism invents and demands empathy to play out short-term fantasy roles. Tourism tends to make cultures into museums, as cultural phenomena which can be viewed as quaint, peculiar and local. Tourism paradoxically is a quest for authentic local cultures, but the tourist industry, by creating the illusion of authenticity, in fact reinforces the experience of social and cultural simulation. The very existence of tourism rules out the possibility of authentic cultural experience.
Governments have become involved in tourism mainly because of its economic importance. In periods of industrial and economic decline, world recession, massive unemployment and a growing gap between the rich and poor, tourism is one of the few growth industries; it is also able to provide the scarce foreign currency which most governments desperately need. Tourism is one of the largest industries in the world and, according to the World Tourism Organization (WTO), tourism has replaced oil at the top of the list in terms of foreign currency movements, or at the latest it will do so by the year 2000. In 1995, there were a total of 567 million international tourist arrivals compared to 25 million in 1950.
The analysis of tourism provides an opportunity for applying economic concepts and theories using both conventional and alternative methodological frameworks. In this sense, tourism is a useful vehicle for evaluating the appropriateness of alternative schools of thought in the discipline and for testing the robustness of economic concepts and methods. On the other hand, economic analysis can also contribute to greater understanding of tourism since, as pointed out by those who have long worked in the field, a number of aspects of the subject suffer from a weak theoretical framework through lack of appropriate research. Similarly, concern has been expressed that much writing on the subject has no firm sense of direction and is methodologically unsophisticated, which can have detrimental consequences for management and development policies.
Terrorism is the deliberate creation and exploitation of fear for bringing about political change. All terrorist acts involve violence or equally important the threat of violence. These violent acts are committed by nongovernmental groups or individuals that is, by those who are neither part of nor officially serving in the military forces, law enforcement agencies, intelligence services, or other governmental agencies of an established nation-state. Terrorists attempt not only to sow panic but also to undermine confidence in the government and political leadership of their target country. Terrorism is therefore designed to have psychological effects that reach far beyond its impact on the immediate victims or object of an attack. Terrorists mean to frighten and thereby intimidate a wider audience, such as a rival ethnic or religious group, an entire country and its political leadership, or the international community as a whole. Terrorist groups generally have few members, limited firepower, and comparatively few organizational resources. For this reason they rely on dramatic, often spectacular, bloody and destructive acts of hit-and-run violence to attract attention to themselves and their cause. Through the publicity generated by their violence, terrorists seek to obtain the leverage, influence, and power they otherwise lack.
Terrorism has existed for at least 2,000 years and is likely to remain a fixture on political agendas, both domestic and international, for years to come. Terrorism provides a means by which the weak can confront much stronger opponents. It therefore has an enduring appeal to the alienated and the disenfranchised, the aggrieved and vengeful, the powerless and the would-be powerful. In addition, it is relatively inexpensive to conduct while offering a vast potential payoff: the ability to evoke fear and alarm and inflict pain and suffering in the hope of compelling agreement to demands made. Terrorism, moreover, is evolving constantly to overcome governmental countermeasures designed to defeat it. Terrorism thus involves an ongoing search for new targets and unidentified vulnerabilities in its opponents. This quest also raises the possibility that terrorists may pursue unconventional means of attack, such as chemical, biological, or radiological weapons, or nuclear weapons. Future terrorist tactics could include cyber-terrorism or electronic warfare that targets critical infrastructure, such as communications and power facilities, or societies in general. Throughout the world, terrorism reinvents itself in new and more dangerous forms. As older groups are defeated or exhausted, more radical and more violent successors often take their place. Although terrorism likely can never be completely eradicated, countering its threat requires continuing vigilance. The highly individual nature of terrorism’s causes, the diversity of its perpetrators, and the complexity of its fundamental characteristics present enormous challenges to those who must effectively counter this menace.
The study will try to discover the different things done by the local authorities to counter terrorism so that the country’s tourism will not be affected. The study will consist of discussions on what method of research will be used, related literature that can help furthering the study, discussion on the findings, and through these information a related conclusion and feasible recommendations. Through the research questions knowledge about the terrorism and how it can be prevented can increase, the research questions can also assist by distinguishing what methods done to prevent terrorism are useful for the benefit of tourism and what methods are irrelevant. The study not only wants to focus on the what local authorities do to counter local tourism but it also wants to find out what caused terrorism. The study also aims to distinguish the different effects of the methods used in countering terrorism. Moreover the study aims to distinguish how badly terrorism affects economy and tourism of a country. Lastly the study aims to create suitable recommendations and conclusions for the study.
Methodology
The descriptive approach was used in this study, a descriptive research tries to explore the cause of a particular phenomenon. It also intends to present facts concerning the nature and status of a situation, as it exists at the time of the study. In addition, such approach tries to describe present conditions, events or systems based on the impressions or reactions of the respondents of the research. The study will be based on the research philosophy of positivism because it will try to test a hypothesis, that tourists feel safe from terrorist attacks. The study will be exploratory as well because it aims to explore the current management strategies used by the local authorities, and at the same time explore literatures and the views of the tourists. This cross-sectional study will employ quantitative research, as it will statistically analyze the views of the tourist respondents. The study will use a structured questionnaire for the respondents to answer. The questionnaire should contain attitude statements, which they will respond through a 5-point Likert Scale. The scale will help measure their degree of agreement on the corresponding attitude statements relating safety from terrorist attacks. The respondents of the study are the tourists. For the convenience of the researcher, fifty (50) respondents were considered for the study. The convenience sampling technique was imposed in the study to pick up the 50 respondents. This part of the study is important because the most important data needed to fulfill the objectives of this study will only be supplied by the said tourists.
Revised literature review
The September 11 attacks in the United States a few years ago are being pointed as the cause why tourist spots are now the best locations for terrorists to attack. Stated that the Counter Terrorist Solution or CTS believes that the September 11 attacks strengthened the security concentration on embassies and military facilities making them hard targets, while leaving tourist locations as ‘soft spots’ for terrorist attacks. The logic is that extensive traffic in hotels such as human, material and vehicles, inside and outside the buildings is usually unprotected and unregulated. Such weak points are especially true for larger hotel chains that incorporate bars, restaurants, clubs, shops and other public facilities – all turn security into a much more complicated matter. Basically, the logical assumptions of CTS pose new security challenges within the hospitality industry and whole tourism industry. Despite the reports that tourism locations are now soft spots for terrorist attacks, tourist spots - in fact are already soft spots for terrorists as early as the 1980s. Stated that there was a rash of terrorist incidents in 1985 that made an increase in terrorism-related inquiries and purchases of travel insurance. Some examples of terrorism attacks on travel in the mid-eighties include the December 27 attacks on the Rome and Vienna airports in which 20 were killed and 100 injured, began to affect both seasoned vacation travelers and business travelers. Such incidents and other made overall traveler concern more confined to areas associated with terrorism rather than travel per se. Concerns for terrorism in travel were even heightened by media coverage, leaving travel agencies with no choice but to take terrorism in stride.
In the aftermath of 9/11, the World Tourism Organization (2001) stated that the first reactions of tourists were to return home, and for others who did not travel yet, to cancel their travel bookings. Of course, the logical explanation is that people do not want to risk their lives on dangerous place or places that are perceived dangerous. Safety is basically one of the major dimensions of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory. The most basic theory of motivation is Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. The theory consists of five sets of goals, which are physiological, safety, love, esteem and self-actualization. Safety in this theory means protection from danger. Basically, if a person feels that there is no security in a particular, that person will not be motivated to go to that place; or in danger erupted in a particular place, definitely tourist will quickly look for the fastest way to get out of the place. One example of a country that suffers a decapitated tourism industry is Kenya, mainly because of the notorious terrorist attacks that hit the country. Incidents that can be added on the list are the bombing of the U.S. embassy in Nairobi in 1998 and of a beach hotel in Mombasa in 2002, and the unsuccessful missile strike against an airplane chartered by Israeli tourists. Those incidents forced governments around the world to warn their citizens that Kenya is unsafe for tourist travel, which by some accounts is costing Kenya at least one million dollars per day”. Of course, the same logic can be applied to Iraq, Afghanistan and other terrorism attack hotspots. Terrorism affects greatly the tourism in a country. As shown in the literature countries that have terrorist problems lose tourists easily. The effect of terrorism on tourism can be traced not only during the September 11 attacks but it can be traced long before the said tragedy came into existence. Terrorism not only affects the country’s tourism but in the process it affects the country’s economy. It makes not only tourist but potential investors to leave the country.
The Importance of Tourism
Tourism is one of the world’s chief economic activities. As a global industry, tourist business activities bring substantial impacts on local government trends. These impacts are diverse and are often exceptional to the tourism sector. The tourism industry defines tourist activities as essentially involved in the transportation and hosting of the tourism consumer in a local community. Tourism is the only global industry structure that brings the consumer directly to the product.
Local authorities play a key role in the tourism industry. They provide funds to the area tourism boards, and offer a buffet of services to businesses and visitors. Their major responsibilities include transportation, planning, tourism signposting, health and safety, and licensing. These things have a direct impact on the potential success of an area to become a tourist destination. They also control the main public facilities such as museums and galleries, theatres, parks, sporting facilities, and conference facilities. Other local authorities have their own tourism officers who will take charge of the issues concerning to tourism within their respective local authority areas.
Tourism is important to the economy. Before the September 11 attacks, tourism produces eight percent of all annual export earnings worldwide, making it the world’s largest industry.. International tourism receipts including those generated by international fares amounted to an estimated 532 billion U.S. dollars in 1998, higher than any other trade category. According to the World Travel and Tourism Council, tourism was currently responsible then for 8.2 percent of employment worldwide, and projections indicate that it will be responsible for indirectly producing 5.5 million jobs per year during the next decade. In 2001, worldwide growth in tourism took a downturn for only the second time since 1980, with tourist arrivals dropping by 1.3 percent to 689 million arrivals. Some factors to which this downturn is attributed include: a slowdown in growth of the global economy; the September 11 attacks in New York City; and growth in worldwide terrorism and political unrest. Other factors include outbreak: of foot and mouth disease in Europe and the economic crisis in Argentina . This part of the literature provides the importance of tourism to a country. Tourism proves to be a vital factor in the development of the country. It does many things for the country. It provides a bigger chance for the country to grow and develop. Tourism’s downfall can be attributed to other factors in the society and environment but it can be greatly affected by terrorism.
The Threat of Terrorism
Terrorism is defined as the premeditated use, or threat of use, of extra-normal violence to obtain a political objective through intimidation or fear directed at a large audience. Terrorist attacks are characterized by political objectives, otherwise they are cannot be considered as terrorist acts but criminal acts. Terrorists often direct their violence and threats toward a vulnerable target group, not immediately involved with the political decision-making process that they seek to influence.
From the article, Terrorists seek out tourist destinations for a variety of reasons First an attack on a tourism center is an attack on that nation's economy. For instance, fear of flying after September 11 hurt not only the airline business, but also the local economies of air travel-dependent destinations. Another impact is a decrease in foreign currencies and investments. To illustrate the importance of foreign currency to tourism, 48.5 million international visitors spent $95 billion in the US at the end of the twentieth century. That money helps the American tourist industry employ some 18 million people with a payroll of more than $160 billion. Second terrorism is highly media-oriented. Terrorism seeks publicity, and tourist attractions like sporting events and festivals are likely to have media already at the site. Third tourist attractions like museums, historic sites, and beautiful sceneries represent the spirit and essence of a nation. Fourth Tourist spots provide terrorists relative anonymity. Police and security professionals rarely know the identities or motivations of visitors at sites and events. Most democratic nations pride themselves on the right to travel freely. Yet this freedom of travel has become a tool in terrorists' hands. The twenty-first century will have to find a way to permit freedom of personal travel while still protecting people from those who would seek to harm them. Clearly, increasing security will be a must for air carriers, hotels, restaurants, and other services. Salad bars and buffets in hotel restaurants may become a thing of the past as risk managers begin to assess the possibility of terrorism and bioterrorism in their dining rooms. Security experts in the travel industry must also address the possibility of a suicide disease carrier purposefully infecting whole populations. Such a planned attack would send an infected person by airplane to another country for the purpose of becoming a human biological weapon .
The literature regarding the reasons why terrorist strike on tourist destinations, gives the study more importance. Through the said study ways to improve the current measures to protect tourists from terrorism can be formulated. The literature regarding the reasons why terrorist strike on tourist destinations can be used as a basis for the improvement in the defense against terrorism.
Discussion of research findings
Exploration of the research question
The research question includes what are the management strategies used by the local authorities to ensure that tourists are safe from terrorist attacks, what do tourists in the country think about their safety or how safe do they think they are, and lastly what are the standards can the tourists suggest for a terrorist free country. The management strategies used by the local authorities can be in means of beefing up the tourists’ security, it can also be in the form of improved or upgraded intelligence that can prevent such events to happen, additionally a management strategy that can be used by the local authorities is a faster and more efficient way of responding to a terrorist attacks. Another research question focuses on the tourists’ ideas on their safety in the country. This rates the effectiveness and reliability the country uses. Through this research question analysis on the country’s situation from a tourist’s viewpoint can be given. This also helps in determining which of the strategies used by the country is acceptable to the tourists. Lastly one of the research questions focuses on the standards the tourists may suggest for a terrorist free country. Through this research question the ideas, feelings, and the different opinions that the tourists may have can come out. Through this research question the standards of the tourist regarding a terrorist free country can be known.
Presentation of the findings
This part will present the results of the study Data was collected from fifty randomly selected respondents using structured questionnaire. After data collection the next thing to be done is data presentation, then interpretation and then analysis. It is important that the research output be presented in an organized, coherent and understandable manner so that those who will read the research can propose important decisions about the results of the study. In preparation of the research output the things that should be considered includes the purpose, target reader or target end-user, clarity, appropriate words style, graphic aids. Primary research was done using structured questionnaire; the structured questionnaire will be given to the participants, which compose of the tourists in the country. The questionnaire had two sections: the first part intended to acquire the demographic profile of the participants, and the other section comprised of a set of attitude statements that intends to determine the level of agreement or disagreement using a five-point likert scale. Secondary research was done through collecting data from Academic books from leading writers on terrorism, economy, and tourism; other academic books for the basic theory; online journal articles of the research area for the basic theory from the journals; online articles; and from research methodology books.
The age bracket of the respondents is divided into 6 groups. The first group belongs to the 52 up bracket, the second group belongs to the 46 to 52 age bracket, the third group belongs to the 39 to 45 age bracket, the fourth group belongs to the 32 to 38 age bracket, the fifth group belongs to the 25 to 31 age bracket, the sixth group belongs to the 18 to 24 age bracket. The first figure shows that majority of the respondents were those 52 up. They were 36% of the respondents. A part of the respondents were those that were aged 46 to 52. They were 24% of the total number of respondents. A part of the respondents were those aged 39 to 45. They were 18% of the total number of respondents. Moreover a part of the respondents were those aged 32 to 38. A smaller part of the respondents were those who belong to the 25 to 31 age bracket. They were 6% of the total number of respondents. Lastly the smallest parts of the respondents belong to the 18 to 24 age bracket. They were 4% of the total percentage of respondents.
The second thing given attention is the gender of the respondents. The respondents can be either male or female. Majority of the respondents were female. They were 66% of the total percentage of respondents. The other part of the respondents were male they were 34% of the total number of respondents.
The next thing given attention is the civil status of the respondents. The respondents civil status may be either single, married, separated or widower. Majority of the respondents are married. They are of the total percentage of respondents. A part of the respondents are those that are separated. They are 22% of the total number of respondents. A part of the respondents are those that are divorced. They are 20% of the total percentage of respondents. Lastly the smallest part of the respondent those that are single. They are 14% of the total number of respondents.
The next thing given attention is how frequent the respondents travel. The respondents’ frequency of travel is divided into monthly or once in a month, within 6 months, once every year, or within 2 or more years. Majority of the respondents travel within 6 months. They were 42% of the total percentage of respondents. Some of the respondents travel monthly. They were 34% of the total number of respondents. A small part of the respondents travel yearly. They were 14% of the total number of respondents. The smallest part of the respondents travel within 2 or more years they are 10% of the total percentage of respondents.
Part 2 Ideas of the respondents with regards to safety of tourists
In this part of the study the responses of the respondents will be presented and be given attention and analysis. All of the respondents’ responses are based on whether they agree, disagree, strongly agree, strongly disagree, and neutral with the questions stated. The participants’ responses are vital and much needed to achieve the objective of the study. The participant’s responses will give the necessary information to find a logical solution for the study’s problem, it can also assist in providing a reachable recommendation and course of action. Such responses will be represented by figures or graph to make it clear and to achieve greater understanding. Lastly these graphs helps in making the study more visual oriented for greater appreciation by the reader.
In the first question the respondents were asked if they believe that the strategic management the local authorities are using was enough. Majority of the respondents agreed. They were 66% of the total number of respondents. Some of the respondents strongly agree to the statement. They were 22% of the total number of respondents. Moreover a small part of the respondents disagreed with the statement. They were 11% of the total number of respondents.
In the fifth question the respondents were asked if they were satisfied with the safety measures the local government uses to prevent terrorists from attacking them. Majority of the respondents are neutral or undecided. They were 62% of the total number of respondents. Some of the respondents are agree with the statement. They are 22% of the total percentage of respondents. A small part of the respondents strongly agree with the statement. They are 16% of the total percentage of respondents.
