The issue of safety in tourism was first raised after the tsunami in Southeast Asia. The Russian State Duma then adopted an appeal to the government, which pointed out gaps in legislation on this issue. Representatives of the tourism industry also responded to the incident and proposed a number of measures to ensure the safety of travelers. But no real action followed from the state.
Now Russia may follow the example of developed countries that give their citizens and tour operators recommendations to refrain from traveling to certain countries. At a round table held last week at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, it was proposed to create an all-Russian information center under the Federal Agency for Tourism for promptly informing citizens about accidents and the rules for obtaining permits to visit restricted areas (border zones, nature reserves, dangerous areas). The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be tasked with informing the tourism market about countries to which Russian tourists are not advised to travel. The Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs is proposed to create a tourist police. Also, the project developers intend to include in the functions of the Ministry of Internal Affairs a clause on canceling the registration of foreigners in Russia for the period of traveling around the country.
Vladimir Minaev, Vice-Rector of the Russian International Academy of Tourism and one of the authors of the project, believes that creating a tourism safety system is absolutely necessary. "Tour operators cannot truly actively counter existing and emerging new threats," he explained to the newspaper.
The first recommendations for tour operators have already been prepared: they are advised to refrain from sending Russian tourists to Egypt until the relevant measures are taken by the national tourism administration and the business tourism community of Egypt. This is due not only to terrorist attacks in the country, but also to the increasing cases of death of Russian tourists on Egyptian roads.
Russian tour operators are bewildered by such a recommendation. "Terrorist acts are an international thing, and they can happen anywhere," Natalia Vorobyova, general director of Natalie Tours, explained to the newspaper. She believes that bans will not solve the problem of transporting tourists to Egypt either. "These measures are needed by officials to absolve themselves of responsibility in the event of terrorist attacks and accidents and shift it onto tour operators," suspects a representative of a large travel company who wished to remain anonymous.