Harmony brings good fortune, while discord leads to misfortune.
By Wu Yuehe
Tourists always expect a good
environment in the destination countries so that they could have more memorable
travel experiences there. Travelling to the US, however, has aroused
the feelings of uneasiness and anxiety among Chinese citizens.
Recently, Chinese citizens
traveling to the US were harassed, interrogated, and even interviewed by US law
enforcement agencies. Meanwhile, rising extremism and deteriorating public
security in the US have also added risks to traveling to the US.
These factors, obviously, have
hurt Chinese citizens’ desire to visit the US for relaxing and knowing more
about the world.
China has expressed its concerns
to the US many times, hoping that the latter could take more active measures to
facilitate bilateral personnel exchanges and create better conditions for
bilateral exchanges and cooperation in all fields.
On June 4, China’s Ministry of
Foreign Affairs reminded Chinese citizens and companies in the US to raise
their security awareness, step up precautions and contact the Chinese embassy
or consulates if they’re in need of emergency assistance.
On the same day, the Ministry of
Culture and Tourism also issued a safety alert, noting the high frequency of
shootings, robberies and theft in the US. The ministry warned Chinese citizens assess
the risks before traveling to the US, learn about the public security
situation, laws and regulations of the tourist destinations, and stay alert for
personal safety.
Harmony brings good fortune,
while discord leads to misfortune.
Maintaining people-to-people and
cultural exchanges is the foundation for the exchanges and cooperation in all
areas between China and the US. The China-US exchanges and cooperation conform
to the common interests and aspirations of the two countries.
Regrettably, apart from the
escalating economic and trade frictions, some US politicians attempted to
pressure and even contain China’s development from all aspects, which added
uncertainties and unpredictable risks to bilateral exchanges in all areas.
Harmony brings good fortune. In
2017, Chinese travelers created total revenue of $32 billion for American air
lines, hotels and tourist agencies, twice the sales of US aircrafts to China,
according to the official data from the US Department of Commerce.
But the situation changed after
the US initiated trade disputes with China. According to US media, the flight
bookings from China to the US saw a 42-percent decrease during the 2018
week-long National Day holiday, which commonly sees a surge in outbound
tourists.
Furthermore, the US dropped by
five places in the ranking of the most popular destinations for outbound
Chinese travelers, said Ctrip, an online travel agency in China.
In 2018, about 3 million Chinese
tourists visited the US and spent roughly $30 billion there, according to the
U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office. It indicates that if the trade
frictions escalate, the tourism service industry in the US will inevitably
continue to lose income as the number of Chinese tourists to the US drops.
Tourists choose destinations
based on their own will and the design of tour products. A safe and friendly
country which provides convenient customs clearance services is the most
desirable tourist destination.
The US has had 150 mass shootings
in 2019 so far. It’s not safe to go out at night in the US and troubles may
occur at the customs out of no reason. Considering this, Chinese citizens would
not go thousands of miles over the Pacific Ocean for a not-so-beautiful memory,
unless they want to take an adventure.
Chinese government has been
encouraging people from all walks of life to have frequent exchanges with the
US side. As a Chinese saying goes, “Friends and relatives become closer when
they visit each other more.” This is true for Chinese and Americans, as
exchanges bring deeper friendship and more vigorous practical cooperation.
However, some US politicians act
against common sense by launching the trade dispute, cracking down on Chinese
companies, harassing Chinese nationals and causing troubles for bilateral
people-to-people exchanges.
Tourism could promote the economic
development by driving the aviation, catering and hotel industries, and also
influence related manufacturing industries. Some foreign media noted that as
fewer senior managers of Chinese enterprises, travelers and students come to
the US, the trade frictions between Washington and Beijing will expand in an
unpredictable and costly way.
The US faces a mathematical
problem which is far from complicated. Washington will never get a positive
solution on trade balance according to its calculation method. The US tourism,
seeing a modest decline in tourist revenues, will definitely cause job losses
when the revenues reduce substantially. Is it what the US really wants?
Harmony brings good fortune, while discord leads to misfortune.
Reviewed by PEOPLES MAIL
on
05:10
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