THAILAND`S TOURISM AUTHORITY EXPECTS INDUSTRY TO REBOUND QUICKLY

From Tengku Noor Shamsiah Tengku Abdullah

KUCHING (Malaysia), April 27 (Bernama) -- The Tourism Authority of Thailand
(TAT) is
optimistic that the country's tourism industry will bounce back quickly despite
the current dispute among its political leaders.

"Tourist arrivals in Bangkok, yes there is a slight problem. But in
Thailand, we have seen tourism going up and down in the past but the industry as
a whole will bounce back very quickly," said TAT adviser Phonsiri Manoharn.

"This is because the fundamentals are there. We have a lot of hotels and
attractions and so on. When we have some political disputes like this, they
don't disturb the tourists. The tourists are safe to travel," she told Bernama
when asked about the current tourism situation in Thailand.

Anti-government protesters were reported to be shutting down Bangkok's
shopping district as Thailand's political impasse continued.

The protesters, known as the Red Shirts, are calling for the government to
step down and hold fresh elections. They have been demonstrating in the Thai
capital for almost a month and over the weekend moved their protest to its
commercial hub.

Phonsiri, who was here to attend the just-concluded Pacific Asia Travel
Association (PATA) annual meeting together with over 160 delegates from 25
countries, described the current dispute as between current Prime Minister
Abhisit Vejjajiva and former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

"Actually, the situation there is not really dangerous. We have a lot of
visitors from Europe and the United States coming to Thailand, and some of them
go directly to the south, like to Phuket Island and Koh Samui, while Hatyai is
still full of Malaysians," she said.

"In the north, we have direct flights from Taiwan and other destinations to
Chiangmai, and so it's still okay," she added.

Phonsiri, who is the PATA immediate past chairman, did not rule out a slight
drop of tourist arrivals in Bangkok.

"I hope the situation is clear soon. Besides, we still have a lot of
tourists coming in," she said.

Phonsiri said some of the PATA board members who came from Canada mentioned
to her that before coming to Kuching, they had stopped for six days in Bangkok
for a holiday.

"The members said they even walked into the Red Shirt area and still felt
comfortable. They (the demonstrators) don't harm any tourist and welcome them as
usual," she said.

"You see we have still have our Thai spirit (of welcoming tourists), we
don't harm anyone, particularly the tourists," she added.

-- BERNAMA