Serious crimes against foreign tourists have been reported from various parts of India in recent days. A woman from Britain and another from Russia have alleged that they were raped in Gao. Two teenage girls were molested by the security guard of a hotel in “God’s own country” – Kerala. A few days earlier, a British woman was raped by the owner of a guest house in Udaipur and an American tourist molested in a temple at Pushkar. On New Year’s eve, a Swedish teenager was molested on a beach at Kochi. The government took some steps to address the problem. Obviously, these were not enough. Several governments including those of the US, UK, Australia, Canada and France have now issued advisories warning their citizens of the violence that they are vulnerable to at India’s tourist hotspots. This has finally stirred the Centre out of its slumber. The Ministry of Tourism has called for a meeting with state governments to discuss steps to improve security at tourist destinations. Tourism is India’s third largest foreign exchange earner and among the most important providers of employment.
The tourism ministry’s “Incredible India” campaign, built around stunning visuals of India’s natural beauty and promise of bliss, has been hugely successful at drawing tourists to the country. But once the tourists arrive here, their discovery of India is neither exciting nor pleasant. The harassment begins at the airport and persists right through their journey through India. For most foreigners, the idyllic holiday promised in the ‘Incredible India’ campaign never happens.
Indians often boast of their hospitality. Indeed, the slogan of the “Incredible India” campaign is Atithi devo bhava or “the guest is god”. But our treatment of our foreign guests is rather ungodly. A part of the problem lies in deeply entrenched patriarchal attitudes. There is also the problem of stereotypes. Indians often see western women as ‘fast’ and so deserving of sexual advances. When officials meet later this month to discuss ways to arrest crimes against tourists, they would need to do more than merely improve policing at tourist destinations. They would need to find ways to change the thinking of the average Indian male. A tall task, no doubt but one that has to be taken up if we hope to treat our guests as god.
