[GJM] [GRASSROOTS-in-action] Campaign against STZ - Kerala endorsed with more arguments
Muhammad Mukhtar Alam
mukhtaralam2000 at yahoo.com
Fri Feb 23 08:39:21 MST 2007
We need to stop all the SEZ for the following reasons:
there is no energy security for the habitations and transportation systems as we still have vision for energy secure India 2010 and energy independant India 2020. President APJ Abdul Kalam has no guaruntees for same only appeals to the R&D establishment of the country
there is no guaruntee either for nuclear enegy
we can not seek multiplication of energy intensitive habitiation considering the Kyoto Protocol emission targets..No amount of marketting of the carbon credits is going to help us in getting rid of impact of climate change. The Hindu editorial today presents a bleak scenario as we are not sure to what extent the binding UN framework in post Kyoto regime of 2012 will be really binding ..
we must halt the loss of ecologically sustainable and socially sustaianble habitats and consumption patterns in India and all over the world
we must call for end for the creation of interest bearing debts by the private banks and all banks..we must call for public creation of interest free money
we must see the reasons for addressing the challenge of climate change across the organisations and call for denunciation of the arguments of competetive advantage..we are witnessing a closure of ecologically sustaianble habitats with expansion of petro-modern habitats ,trnasportation systems
we need to see that tourism itself is highly ecologically hostile though in the short term it is associated with rise in the number of jobs and foreign earnings...we must protect protect the ecologically sustaianble livelihoods ..we need to survive the exhaustion of petro-modern systems that form the core of 'development paradigm' economic growth"..and all.
With warm regards
Dr.Muhammad Mukhtar Alam
http://muhammad_mukhtar_alam.tigblog.org
.
GAIA <info.gaia at gmail.com> wrote:
Reply to: forumkerala at movingrepublic.org
===============================
Dear friends and colleagues,
The Kerala Tourism Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan recently announced that the creation of Special Tourism Zones (STZ) would be considered if private parties having large tracts of land approach the State Government. He also declared that government would change the rules relating to acquisition of land for tourism projects in the State.
The government's plan to announce STZs in Kerala has to be challenged because it will augment the pressure over the natural and other resources such as land, water, forests and will lead to environmental destruction, revenue losses and lack of real economic development of the state, breakdown of governance systems especially of the Panchayats with the creation of enclaves and lack of equal and non-exploitative employment opportunities for local communities in STZs.
Now Kerala Tourism seems to be using "Responsible Tourism" for it's marketing, especially in the UK market. The recent workshop organised by Kerala Tourism mainly dealt with the responsibility of various stakeholders in further development of tourism within the state. But at the same time, they became mute on issues such as the constitutional rights of the Panchayat Raj Institutions, Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violations by hotels and resorts, backwater pollution by the houseboats and tourism industry and various social issues. Who is responsible for these damages? And for effectively addressing these problems?
The need of the hour is the proactive involvement of the civil society against these malpractices. We request you to support our call for a larger debate on the true nature of tourism development in the state, on its questionable economic contributions and its negative impacts upon vulnerable communities and Kerala's fragile environment.
If you can agree with the points we raised in our letter to the Chief Minister (attached), please get back to us by 25th Feb. (Please E-mail your endorsement to forumkerala at movingrepublic.org ) and by signing the letter, support it as it is. Or if you do not agree with all the points or want to raise additional points of your own, additional initiatives supporting the cause are also welcome.
In solidarity
Forum KERALA
For more details please contact: Forum KERALA, C/o TC 354, Muttada.P.O, Thiruvananthapuram 25, Kerala.
Phone Numbers: Ajayan – 9895007171, Anivar Aravind – 9446545336, Santhosh Kumar K.C. – 9447375708, Sumesh Mangalassery - 9388402948
About Forum KERALA
The Forum KERALA, a platform of civil society movements, people's groups and individuals who are sharing a common vision and mission related to Kerala Society – its developmental, environmental, social-cultural and political issues – at various levels. The Forum will take up research, campaign and mobilisation. We hope this will facilitate a creative space for the civil society groups and concerned individuals to come together and working for a better future.
=============
Open Letter to Kerala CM
To
Sri. V.S. Achuthanandan
Honourable Chief Minister of Kerala
Thiruvananthapuram.
Sub: Appeal against the approval of Special Tourism Zones within the state.
Dear Sir,
We express our serious concern regarding the proposal for the new Special Tourism Zones on the lines of Special Economic Zones within the state. We are writing this letter to you in the context of Honourable Kerala Tourism Minister's statement on Special Tourism Zone during the inauguration of the recent workshop on Responsible Tourism organised by Kerala Tourism. Minister announced that the creation of STZs would be considered if private parties having large tracts of land approach the State Government. He also declared that government would change the rules relating to acquisition of land for tourism projects in the State.
The proposal for Special Tourism Zones has to be dropped because it will increase the pressure over natural and other resources like land, water, forests and will lead to environmental destruction, revenue losses and lack of real economic development of the state, breakdown of governance systems especially of the Panchayats with the creation of enclaves and lack of equal and non-exploitative employment opportunities for local communities in STZs. Government should withdraw this move especially in the context of the recent controversies on Special Economic Zones (SEZ).
Currently Kerala Tourism and industry says that Kerala has an upper hand in tourism since it is now a much sought after destination. So it is in the profiteering interest of the tourism industry to set up projects in Kerala. The state should not provide further incentives and subsidies to attract investments. Instead, the state should cut down existing incentives and subsidies and introduce new taxes for the people of Kerala to benefit from tourism.
Kerala Tourism has a strong record of proving that planning, policies and regulations to date have not effectively addressed major problems caused by tourism. These include the unsustainable extraction of ground water in tourism spots such as Kovalam, which is causing a serious lack of drinking water for local communities. Problems also include the land speculation activities related to tourism especially in the coastal and backwater areas, and pollution of the backwaters by the tourism industry. The tourism industry has a significant role in spoiling the mangrove belt and the breading areas of fishes in the Vembanad Lake. Sustainable waste management systems are lacking in the state.
The Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violations by hotels and resorts are a serious concern in the state, and so is the uncontrolled tourism development in Kovalam and Kumarakom, which has lead to many environmental and social problems. There are disturbing indications that prostitution including the commercial sexual exploitation of children is happening in tourist destinations in Kerala.
Here, we request you to appoint a commission, where representatives of civil society organisations and people's groups should be part, to assess the environmental, social and economic damages done by tourism industry within the state before initiating new projects, plans and marketing strategies.
We would like to bring to your attention to amend the Kerala Tourism (Conservation & Preservation of Areas) Act 2005, passed by the previous UDF government, which effectively strips Panchayats of their powers by constituting a committee dominated by bureaucrats.
We also appeal your intervention to stop Kerala Tourism's move to use "Responsible Tourism" for its marketing. Foreign consultants with dubious credentials have either been approached by the government or have volunteered to showcase Kerala as an example of "Responsible Tourism" while no serious steps have been taken to even remedy the environmental and social damages created by irresponsible tourism development in State in the past four decades. We request you to stop the involvement of these industry-biased consultants in the development of tourism within the state.
Copy to:
Honourable Minister of Home Affairs and Tourism Sri. Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.
Honourable Minister of Finance Dr. Thomas Isaac.
Media Release
===========
Government should not allow Special Tourism Zones (STZ) in Kerala.
Thiruvananthapuram, 12/2/2007. Forum Kerala, A collective of civil society movements, people's groups and individuals urged Kerala Government to withdraw its move to introduce Special Tourism Zones within the state. The group also asked Kerala Government to appoint a commission, where representatives of civil society organisations and people's groups should be part, to assess the environmental, social and economic damages caused by the tourism industry within the state before initiating new projects, plans and marketing strategies. The forum also demanded that the tourism industry should give compensation to the affected people in the tourist destinations for its damages.
The Kerala Tourism Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan recently announced that the creation of STZs would be considered if private parties having large tracts of land approach the State Government. He also declared that government would change the rules relating to acquisition of land for tourism projects in the State.
According to The Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, the STZs will be on the line of Special Economic Zones (SEZ) and also offer the same facilities and incentives to the investors. The STZs are proposed to be located in the major tourist destinations, cities as well as along the coastline.
The state government's move to introduce Special Tourism Zones has to be opposed because it will increase the pressure over natural and other resources such as land, water, forests and it will lead to environmental destruction, revenue losses and lack of real economic development of the state, breakdown of governance systems especially of the Panchayats, with the creation of enclaves and lack of equal and non-exploitative employment opportunities for local communities in STZs. Kerala Government should withdraw this move especially in the context of the recent controversies on SEZs.
Currently government and tourism industry says that Kerala has an upper hand in tourism, since it is now a much sought after destination. It is in the profiteering interest of the tourism industry to set up projects in Kerala. The state should not provide further incentives and subsidies to attract investments. Instead, the state should cut down existing incentives and subsidies and introduce new taxes for the people of Kerala to benefit from tourism.
Kerala tourism has a strong record of proving that planning, policies and regulations to date have not effectively addressed major problems caused by tourism. These include the unsustainable extraction of ground water in tourism spots such as Kovalam, which is causing a serious lack of drinking water for local communities. Problems also include the land speculation activities related to tourism especially in the coastal and backwater areas, and pollution of the backwaters by the tourism industry. The tourism industry has a significant role in spoiling the mangrove belt and the breading areas of fishes in the Vembanad Lake. The Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violations by hotels and resorts are a serious concern in the state, and so is the uncontrolled tourism development in Kovalam and Kumarakom, which has lead to many environmental and social problems. Sustainable waste management systems are lacking in the state. There are disturbing indications that prostitution
including the commercial sexual exploitation of children is happening in tourist destinations in Kerala.
Forum Kerala asked Government to amend the Kerala Tourism (Conservation & Preservation of Areas) Act 2005, passed by the previous government, which effectively strips Panchayats of their powers by constituting a committee dominated by bureaucrats.
The statement issued by the forum also strongly criticised Kerala Tourism's move to use "Responsible Tourism" for its marketing. The forum views it with concern that in the recent workshop organised by Department of Tourism discussing the responsibilities of various stakeholders in further development of tourism within the state, issues such as the constitutional rights of the Panchayat Raj Institutions, Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violations by hotels and resorts, backwater pollution by the houseboats and tourism industry, child abuse and child labour in service industries in the state and various other social issues have been completely ignored. "Who is responsible for these damages? – And for effectively addressing these problems?" the Forum asked.
Recent media reports revealed that "success stories" of responsible tourism in Kerala would be presented at the World Travel Mart, London. Foreign consultants with dubious credentials have either been approached by the government or have volunteered to showcase Kerala as an example of "Responsible Tourism" while no serious steps have been taken to remedy the environmental and social damages created by irresponsible tourism development in State in the past four decades. It has a come as a surprise to us that Mr. Harold Goodwin is announcing through the media that cases of "Responsible tourism" exist in the state!" Harold Goodwin, faculty at the Britain-based International Centre for Responsible Tourism, reportedly announced to the press in Thiruvananthapuram that "Since the World Travel Mart 2007 is being held (in London) in November, the biggest beneficiary would be Kerala tourism because there would be a separate session on responsible tourism and a few success stories
of Kerala in this aspect would be showcased" (Source: Indo-Asian News Service, 3/2/07).
How can he announce the presentation of such case studies now? If he can, he should reveal which are the case studies. The Forum asked Harold Goodwin that he should make clear how governments' proposal for the STZ would match with his theory of "Responsible Tourism"? The forum pointed out that neither the Tourism Department nor industry lobbyists can use such ploys to undercut the growing resistance to indiscriminate tourism projects and irresponsible tourism practices that negatively affect the local communities and their livelihoods in Kerala. The forum decided to continue the campaign to democratise tourism practices to ensure people's participation in the decision making process and to seek compensation for the victims of displacement, environmental destruction and loss of livelihood systems caused by tourism industry practices and policies in the state.
For more details please contact:
Forum KERALA, C/o TC 354,Muttada.P.O, Thiruvananthapuram 25, Kerala.
Phone Numbers: Ajayan – 9895007171, Anivar Aravind – 9446545336,
Santhosh Kumar K.C. – 9447375708, Sumesh Mangalassery - 9388402948
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