Tourism promotion best ‘bridge’ to strengthen ties

TEHRAN: Promotion of tourism between countries is the best “bridge” that can be built to foster good understanding, friendship and peace amongst peoples and nations, said Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Iran M.M. Zuhair.

He was addressing the World Tourism Day ceremony organised by the Iranian Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organisation and held at Homa Hotel, Tehran last Thursday.

The programme commenced with the message of Secretary-General of the United Nations - World Tourism Organization Francesco Frangiali, who was in Sri Lanka to participate in the main World Tourism Day celebrations at Bentota, followed by speech by Dr. M.S. Malekzadeh, Deputy of Tourism Affairs and the address of Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to Iran, the programme concluding with a performance of Persian Music by the well- known Tanzila Group followed by dinner.

Zuhair referred to President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s speech at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday September 25 quoting the immortal words of Sir Isaac Newton, “we build too many walls and not enough bridges”.

Quoting further from the President’s UN speech, he said, “We all became members of an organisation that was created to let all our voices be heard, to avoid trying to resolve problems - through violence, revenge and blame. And yet we see a trend to find fault to place countries in the dock and penalise those who do not fall in line. Instead of seeking solutions through cooperation, we have often created suspicions and build walls between ourselves through double standards.

The promotion of tourism, particularly cultural, ethical and ecological between countries and peoples, Zuhair said, can help break through some of these man-made walls and barriers.

“The Government of Iran has been giving commendable boost for promotion and investments in the tourism sector, notwithstanding its huge earnings from oil and gas, with Iran having the world’s second largest reserves of oil and gas,” Zuhair said.

This positive support is evident from the extensive empire of historical and cultural sites, monuments and museums, spread throughout the 30 provinces of the Iranian Republic, which are being visited every year by more than 10 million people, of which close to two million are foreign tourists. Indeed Iran, he said, can boast of many wonders equivalent to the Pyramids of Egypt, some of which are ancient citadels recognised by UNESCO as heritage sites, coming down from pre-Islamic times and protected to this day.

However, the great Persian civilisation that had existed throughout the past 6,000 years is yet to be seen or comprehended by the world at large and tourism can perhaps be the best bridge not only between nations and peoples but also between the present and past, he said.

“Tourism, for Sri Lanka, is the fourth largest exchange earner with nearly a million people in my country being the direct beneficiaries.

“My Government is keen to promote Sri Lanka tourism worldwide, with special emphasis being given to encourage middle-east tourism.

“We are working on closer cooperation for promoting Sri Lanka - Iran Tourism, with several new programmes including exchange of visits of electronic and print media personnel and travel trade from both countries being worked out.”

The Tourism Ministry and the Sri Lanka Tourist Board have scheduled a Road Show in Tehran and Isfahan in November this year to promote tourism, he added.