Crimes vs tourists dropping — Gordon

Is the police force doing its job well or are there just too few foreign tourists in the country?

The Department of Tourism has reported a continuing decline in the number of crimes against foreigners visiting the Philippines in the last few months.

In fact, Tourism Secretary Richard Gordon claimed there were absolutely no crimes reported in Intramuros, a favorite destination of foreigners staying in Metro Manila.

"Crimes against foreign tourists are going down and the operation of the Ativan Gang has been neutralized," Gordon said, referring to the criminal group that befriends foreigners before drugging and robbing them.

He lamented, however, that the misconception that the country was not a safe place for foreigners remained despite the dropping crime rate.

"We are trying hard to erase this misconception of the Philippines," Gordon said.

Efforts made to improve the image include the deployment of additional policemen in various areas frequented by tourists, including Intramuros, shopping centers in Makati and Ortigas and the airport.

Metro police chief Deputy Director General Reynaldo Velasco said maximum police visibility is necessary to ensure the safety of the country’s visitors.

The DOT has pointed out that foreign tourist arrivals have dropped significantly in the last two months, owing to the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) scare.

The number of tourists went down by 24.4 percent in April and 33.1 percent in May compared to arrivals last year.

"We have lost 190,000 foreign tourists as a result of SARS," Gordon said.

The DOT chief said the tourism industry is slowly recovering, with the number of foreign tourists expected to post positive growth in July.