RECENT security tensions are not helping the discussion in moving forward the ASEAN single visa scheme, but PATA CEO Mario Hardy maintains his support for it, saying the economic and social benefits of such a move far outweigh the security risk.
PATA, together with WTTC, UNWTO and five other international bodies, are of one mind in wanting the world to be visa-free, for everyone to be able to travel with ease.
Saying that the absence of an ASEAN common visa is “one of the greatest barriers to tourism”, Hardy remarked that the region’s tourism would have grown much more should tourists from outside of South-east Asia be allowed to travel here on a single visa similar to Schengen.
European travellers, for instance, want to explore multiple destinations here – not just a single country – but the complexity of multiple visa requirements is a deterrent.
A single visa scheme does not mean no visa at all, Hardy pointed out, because technology can be harnessed for an e-visa facility which is “alright to implement” and will not make it difficult for people to travel.
Hardy acknowledges that it is not the tourism office that makes the decision but the immigration and other government offices.
And as the influence of the tourism sector rises, “what we’re hoping to do is to offer and provide tools and enough information to tourism ministers so they can share that and put pressure on their governments” to accede to the single visa scheme.
He believes the ASEAN single visa scheme will happen but is unsure when. In the meantime, bilateral agreements on a single visa scheme between countries can provide temporary relief.
The usual dilemma against the single visa scheme is security concerns and immigration laws, the question of who will control and who to trust.
But Hardy reiterates that the benefits of having a simplified visa facility are huge. For example, Vietnam saw its arrivals improve when visa restrictions were eased.
He also expressed admiration for Indonesia which had unilaterally opened its doors to more foreign nationals.
Read more ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) 2016 stories in the digital edition of our Show Dailies here.
