Toxic tourists

Hordes of toxic Israeli tourists are reportedly wreaking havoc on surfing paradise Siargao Island.

And local residents of the high-profile tourist destination have been loudly complaining and fighting back against this toxicity for more than a year now, prompting recent explicit official warnings from local executives, immigration officials, and the Israeli Ambassador.

Following social media reports on the misconduct and bad behavior of young Israelis on the island, the Bureau of Immigration early this month sternly warned vacationing foreigners found violating immigration laws they will face sanctions.

“They may face deportation and blacklisting,” the bureau said.

Even Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines Dana Kursh said Israel won’t object if the government firmly enforces Philippine laws against misbehaving Israeli tourists.

“We want to say this loud and clear: If there is an Israeli tourist who is misbehaving, the relevant Filipino authorities should enforce the law — because they need to enforce the law,” Kursh told reporters last week.

Before this, regional news outfit MindaNews reported that last 10 April, the municipal government of General Luna on Siargao warned errant tourists they faced dire consequences.

“We are proud to share our beautiful islands, culture and hospitality. However, all tourists are expected to respect local laws, customs and communities at all times,” local officials said following a brawl at the Siargao Beach Club between American and Israeli tourists.

Besides hooliganism, the local government warned tourists damaging the environment, doing illegal activities, or disrespecting locals they “will be dealt with seriously.”

“Sentiments on social media also mention Israeli nationals allegedly abusing and ‘exploiting’ locals,” MindaNews reported.

News reports indicated that noise pollution, loud parties, dangerous driving, failure to observe modest dress codes, littering on beaches and conservation zones and aggressive responses when asked nicely to respect the rules were among the specific grievances local residents had.

At any rate, the emerging picture is that Siargao is not at all the idyllic, laid-back island it is often painted to be. And the ugly and unsavory things happening definitely constitute another serious headache for senior national government officials.

In any case, the government has no choice but to seriously address the brewing issue since Siargao, as tourism news site Travel Daily Media (TDM) put it, “is the perfect case study for a disturbing trend referred to as invasive tourism.”

Invasive tourism, says TDM, occurs when “foreigners come to locations in droves, essentially taking over local communities, imposing their own rules and customs and compromising local culture and security.”

The invasive tourism phenomenon, TDM says, is related to another serious concern at popular destinations across the world — overtourism. Some experts suggest invasive tourism has its roots in overtourism.

Siargao, however, hasn’t yet triggered overtourism concerns, unlike for instance Boracay. But judging from Siargao’s fast-growing paradisiacal reputation, it may yet join Boracay’s ranks and thus need intervention now rather than later.

But before any interventions are undertaken, Siargao does need to do something first about its toxic tourists.

Among the proposals that can be done immediately are an increased surveillance of unruly tourists, imposing party curfews, conducting immediate arrests and meting out heavier fines and penalties for disruptive behavior, before deportation.

Broader government policies, meanwhile, could consider imposing higher taxes on goods and services availed of by tourists to attract higher-quality tourists rather than the mostly young travelers flocking to destinations like Siargao and re-examining the visa-free policy for tourists from certain countries.