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THK
Tourism Awards receive WTO Endorsement
Following
three days of discussions ending on the
6th October, the World Committee on Tourism
Ethics of the World Tourism Organization
(WTO’s) headquarters in Madrid Spain
officially endorsed the Tri Hita Karana
(THK) Tourism Awards as an important criteria
in classifying international hotel standards.
Dr.
Ir. Agung Suryawan Wiranatha, MSc who represented
Bali Travel News (BTN)—the organizer
of the THK Awards—from Madrid, recounted
that it was Indonesia that brought the proposal
of the THK Tourism Awards following intensive
discussions at the meeting of WTO’s
East Asia and Pacific forum in Cambodia
last June. Prof. Dr. Emil Salim and Agung
Suryawan represented the Indonesian delegates.
Emil Salim represented the East Asia and
Pacific region, whilst Suryawan was the
representative of Bali Travel News. “The
WTO recognition has immensely pleased us
as the organizer,” said Suryawan on
Thursday (7/10) from Madrid.
The meeting agenda discussed 10 main areas,
and one of them was the proposal of the
Regional WTO Commission for Asia-Pacific
on the THK Tourism Awards with participants
paying serious attention. The World Committee
on Tourism Ethics appointed a team member
of the THK Tourism Awards, Dr. Agung Suryawan
Wiranatha, MSc., as the delegate of the
Republic of Indonesia to present the THK
Tourism Awards accompanied by Sritomo Wirodihardjo,
an economic counselor with the Indonesian
Embassy in Madrid. Following several critical
responses delivered by some 20 committee
members Emil Salim’s expertise in diplomacy
in his capacity as member of the Committee
of Tourism Ethics, the delegate team of
the Republic of Indonesia was able to convince
all members of the committee and WTO parties,
to extend endorsement towards the carrying
out of the THK Tourism Awards as an implementation
endeavor of the Global Codes of Ethics for
Tourism that has been declared for so long
by WTO,” described Wiranatha.
In addition, WTO also recommended that in
order to implement the Global Code of Ethics
for Tourism in the form of Tourism Awards
like that of THK. They should be performed
in other countries in the East Asia and
Pacific Region along with other world regions
as well. To be able to realize this recommendation
in these regions, Agung Suryawan met and
talked with Mr. Xu Jing, Director of the
WTO Region of East Asia and Pacific about
what steps should be taken for the future.
Mr. Xu Jing promised to be present at the
presentation of the THK Tourism Awards 2004
as support of WTO to the performance of
the THK Tourism Awards, “as a step
forward accomplished by Bali and Indonesia
in the world tourism forum it should be
given appreciation and coincidentally become
a great challenge for the team of the THK
Tourism Awards,” affirmed Agung Suryawan.
(BTN/*)
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