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Ministry reiterates warning as tourist group visits Iraq

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday renewed its advisory against traveling to Iraq as a group of 18 Taiwanese tourists became the first official Asian tour group to enter the war-torn country since 2003.

“We’ve issued the advisory against traveling to Iraq. For safety considerations, again we would like to urge our countrymen not to go there,” MOFA spokesman Henry Chen (陳銘政) said.

However, he said there was not an existing law barring travel to countries such as Iraq.

WEEK-LONG TOUR

Chen’s remarks came after the group of 18 people from Taiwan arrived in Baghdad on May 5 for a week-long tour of the country, the Iraqi tourism ministry said.

The Iraqi ministry said the tourists had visited sites in Baghdad, including the shrine of Imam Kadhim and the National Museum, which reopened in February after looting devastated many of its priceless relics.

Security in Iraq has improved dramatically since late 2007, although suicide bombings and other attacks remain a near-daily occurrence.

‘RED ALERT’

Tourism Bureau chief Wu Chao-yen (吳朝彥) said that though Mexico and Iraq were both on MOFA’s “red alert” travel list, there were different regulations for handling tour groups headed to the two countries.

“Mexico was listed because of H1N1 and the situation is constantly changing,” he said.

“The bureau has to comply with the government’s policy in curbing the spread of epidemic diseases and has the authority to order travel agencies to cancel tours to countries affected and give travelers a full refund,” he said.

“Iraq, on the other hand, is on red alert because of war, which also makes it inappropriate for tours. But in this case tourists get to decide if they really want to go. However, should something happen to the tourists, the travel agency will be held accountable for any loss,” Wu said.

The tour group’s visit follows on the heels of one in March by a Western tour group, which was the first since the overthrow of former president Saddam Hussein’s regime following the US-led invasion of 2003.

LOSS IN REVENUE

Tourism to Iraq was already much reduced under Saddam’s regime in the 1990s when the country was subject to crippling UN sanctions.

There are still no international hotel chains operating inside the country.

However large numbers of Shiite pilgrims, particularly from Iran, visit the country’s shrines each year despite the persistent threat of violence from Sunni extremists.

With the world’s third-largest known petroleum reserves, Iraq is trying to diversify its revenues and tourism is viewed as a key growth sector.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY SHELLEY SHAN

Also See: US forces shoot at 12-year-old boy in Iraq
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