Turist american răpit în Uganda: Consiliul turistic african în acțiune cu expertul dr. Peter Tarlow

Uganda
Uganda

Not only leopards were roaming Queen Elizabeth National Park today, but criminals who kidnapped an elderly American tourist in the park today, and put the well-organized travel and tourism industry in Uganda on edge.

The Uganda Ministry of ICT & National Guidance issued this statement:

Yesterday, Tuesday 2nd April 2019 four armed men not yet identified between 5,00pm and 7,00pm staged an ambush and kidnapped an American Tourist with his Ugandan driver near Katoke gate in the Queen Elizabeth National Park.

Four other four tourists who were left abandoned and unharmed later contacted the base (lodge) and were quickly moved to safety.

A joint operation by the Uganda Police, Uganda Peoples Defense Forces (UPDF) and Uganda Wildlife Authority Game Wardens is underway to locate and rescue them.

The priority at this point is to locate, rescue and bring them back safely.

Lilly Ajarova | eTurboNews | eTNeTN talked to Lilly Ajarova. She is a Ugandan conservationist and tourism expert. She is the Chief Executive Officer of the Uganda Tourism Board, the Ugandan government agency that is charged with promoting the country as a tourism destination. She was appointed to that position on 10 January 2019.

When asked why an American Tourist was picked by the kidnappers, Ms. Ajarova thinks the selection was based on the age and not the nationality.

eTN reached out to Dr. Peter Tarlow, head of safetourism.com 

petertarlow | eTurboNews | eTN

Dr. Peter Tarlow

Dr. Peter Tarlow is also the security and safety expert for the newly-founded Consiliul African de Turism and will be speaking at their launch event in Cape Town next week. Peter is scheduled to meet with UTB CEO Lilly Ajarova to discuss any assistance the Africa Tourism Board can give in this situation.

Dr. Tarlow told eTurboNews: “The tragic kidnapping that recently occurred in Uganda should not be seen as indicative of overall safety in Uganda.

“Very much to the contrary, Uganda has been known over the decades to be a safe and secure destination. Unfortunately, there are bad people in every part of the world and travel implies risk.

“However, Uganda cannot afford to rely on its recent past but must show the world what it is doing in the future.

“Despite the fact that the situation is very fluid and the facts, at midnight Uganda time is still unclear, there are a number of things that Uganda can do immediately and in the short and long term to mitigate the damage to its reputation.

“We will make suggestions to Uganda Tourism based on my long-term work with Aruva after the Natalie Holloway case and with kidnapping issues both in Mexico and in Latin America.”

StAngeALain | eTurboNews | eTNJuergen Steinmetz, the interim chair of the African Tourism Board, said: “We are standing by to assist Uganda and are in touch with UTB and our security expert Dr. Peter Tarlow. We will be meeting with Lilly next week in Capetown and hope this crime will be resolved at that time and that our fellow American tourist is returned safely. I am confident Dr. Tarlow can be of great assistance to Uganda Tourism and for the African continent when it comes to safety and security.”

African Tourism Board Interim Chairman Juergen Steinmetz, reached out ATB board member and founder of the Global Tourism Resilience and Crisis Management Centre, Jamaica Minister of Tourism, Hon. Edmund Bartlett, to discuss the possibility of assistance should Uganda Tourism ask for help during this difficult time.

Mai multe informații despre Consiliul turistic din Africa: www.africantourismboard.com
More information on Safer Tourism: www.safertourism.com

Despre autor

Avatarul lui Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen T Steinmetz

Juergen Thomas Steinmetz a lucrat continuu în industria turismului și turismului de când era adolescent în Germania (1977).
El a gasit eTurboNews în 1999 ca primul buletin informativ online pentru industria turismului turistic global.

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