How to build tourism

Arguably Pakistan is a prime destination for tourism. This has been promoted by various governments, including the recent government of the PTI.

There is some sense in this. With its age-old sites at Mohenjo Daro, Harappa, Taxila, and Mughal architecture to compete with that which can be seen in India, Pakistan has a huge deal to offer everyone. Apart from its history, it of course has places of such immense natural beauty that they leave the average onlookers stunned. Why then do we not get more people visiting the country and bringing in the dollars we so badly need? After all, income from tourism is an important part of India’s resources as it is of Nepal and other states in the region.

There are several reasons that need to be considered. In the first place, tourism cannot be built on beauty alone. Along with this needs to go to entertainment of various kinds that tourists can enjoy as is the custom in all Western countries, and a better run hospitality industry, offering housing at various rates to people who wish to visit as well as well-organized transport services. At present, we lack this. The ‘influencers’ who appeared on YouTube notably during the Imran era, promoting the country, may have made some point. But there were others who challenged them even if they were not allowed to do so in public under the PTI government, with Western women and local ones too complaining of harassment and other problems. The fear of terrorism also remains high with the massacre of nine girls and their guide in 2013 at Fairy Meadows, at the foot of Nanga Parbat still fresh in the memories of many.

We also need to ask why we are so bent on destroying the scenic beauty that has been allocated to us by nature. The ugly, grotesque hotels which have cropped up around the Attabad lake in Hunza, completely destroy this wonder site and very little has been paid out to the people of the village destroyed by the creation of this lake. The same monstrosities in the form of architecture stand in other hill stations leaving places like the Galyat area look like something borrowed from a particularly unattractive street in one of the country’s larger towns. In fact it is worse than that with pink bathroom tiles appearing outside buildings and huge houses standing where you would imagine smaller cottage-like structures to be present, with guidelines set on the lines of say Switzerland or France where only certain kinds of buildings can be put up in various places.

The idea is to protect natural beauty and keep things uniform. This adds to the attractiveness even of places such as the sprawling city of London where there are dictates on the kind of housing that can go up in various localities.

We also need to find some way to control the menace of litter and huge piles of waste by tourists, notably local tourists who have found their way into Gilgit and Hunza now that the road network is better. Their presence is a good omen for local people who can earn income from their spending in these areas. But, people from Gilgit-Baltistan and Hunza as well as the Galyat area, one of the most easily accessible tourist spots, have all complained about litter and about the harassment of their women who are accustomed to wandering outside their houses without any immediate danger.

The presence of tourists who insist on attempting to take pictures of them, or worse still with them, makes things extremely uncomfortable for these persons. The question of the clash of more modern methods of celebrations and a traditional culture has crept up in other places. But certainly, the use of drugs and large amounts of alcohol, as well as loud music, will not be palatable to locals who live there.

There is a need to keep in mind that Pakistan has immense potential to bring in tourists now for a cheaper, arguably better alternative to even India, though of course we will not be able to compete with the diversity. However, to achieve this, we must create pristine beaches along the Karachi coast, such as those which exist in Goa and close to Bombay. We must also build places where tourists feel safe and where it is easy for them to visit local sites and watch local tradition. If Pakistan can do this, it would add a huge amount to its resources and its ability to generate the revenue it so badly needs.

In this sense, the tiny state of Dubai sets an example we should be attempting to emulate, even though it has a limited amount to offer in terms of history and cultural diversity. It has managed to turn the state into a place which tourists and those who have chosen to take it up as a place of residence see as a kind of paradise. Festivals are organized regularly, food and beverage from across the world is available, and at least in the posh malls of the city which compete with those anywhere in the world, women dress more or less as they please keeping within certain cultural limits. Other states such as Bahrain and nations everywhere across the world are now following the example set by Dubai. We need to do the same and seek help from that country in creating the kind of tourist heaven Pakistan is capable of hosting.

To do this, we need to be certain about what we need and how to bring it about. This must come one step at a time. People visiting areas notably local tourists need to be trained in how to respect culture and the national heritage of a place by not littering meadows or leaving waste in the open. At the same time, we need to educate local tourists on respecting local habitats and ensuring they do not in any way damage them.

This could be a difficult task but should begin at school level and has to be undertaken for the sake of a successful tourist industry within the country. This would be a starting point. We also need to make places safer and ensure that Pakistan, one day, is seen as a tourist spot rather than a place which can endanger the life of tourists. This perhaps is the most important quest of all.

The writer is a freelance

columnist and former newspaper editor. She can be reached at:

kamilahyat@hotmail.com