Maltese holidaymakers have struck Tunisia off their destination list following the recent terrorist attack by a gunman in the popular resort town of Sousse that left 39 people dead.
Most travel agents operating to the North African country said all their bookings had been cancelled out of security fears since June 26. “This terrible incident has killed tourism in Tunisia,” Joe Caruana, of Jac Travel Bureau, said.
The fear of a repeat attack is one of the reasons why 3,500 British tourists decided to cut their holidays short after the Sousse attack. But some have declared in interviews and on social media they were determined to see their holiday through to the end to defy the terrorists.
Tunisia’s Ambassador to Malta, Zohra Ladgham, is greatly encouraged by this defiant attitude.
“It is an act of symbolism against terrorism. It shows we will not cower in front of terrorism,” she said, adding that Tunisia was very appreciative of international solidarity.
She was grateful to Algeria, Morocco and EU countries, in particular the UK. The majority of the 39 people killed in the attack were Britons.
The Tunisian government, she said, had already tightened security, deploying more than 1,400 armed officers at hotels, beaches and other touristic places.
She pointed out that Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi had declared a month-long state of emergency, giving security forces more powers and limiting the right of public assembly.
Since the attacker, Seifeddine Rezgui, had been trained in neighbouring Libya, she hoped the North African country would find a political solution. “This is very important for the Libyan people, for our frontiers and for our national security. We have to give it some time but we are not fatalistic,” she said.
“We are already in full control,” she said, conceding that this “horrible event” had delivered a blow to the country’s vital tourism industry.
This is a situation tour operators are grappling with.
“Travel operators in Tunisia have sent me packages of special offers for the month of July. This is very, very rare,” Mr Caruana said. “But I know it’s useless. For visitors it’s not a matter of money but a matter of safety,” he added, pointing out that travellers might even have problems with holiday insurance.
He said business this summer had already been slow because of the Bardo Museum Islamic State attack in March, which killed 21 European tourists in Tunis.
As the leading travel agent for Tunisia, Mr Caruana said: “This attack on the Imperial Marhaba Beach Hotel dealt a death blow to tourism. Tunisia was a big part of my operation. I am still in shock.”
He is hopeful that the situation will recover by next summer “unless, something else happens”.
Yvonne Ellul, director of Amphora Travel Ltd, concurred and said the Bardo attack had already put people off, although regular travellers had been undeterred.
“We have some clients who are so keen on Tunisia that most could not bring themselves to cancel, so they postponed the trip to December. People want to play it safe, although at the moment it is ironically at its safest.”
She said Tunisia was a very convenient destination for the Maltese because “there is a bit of everything”, from beaches, to shopping, archaeology and a laidback life.
“The government has to work really hard to make it safe and to make people feel they’re safe,” Ms Ellul said.
According to Colin Aquilina, Rocs Travel’s head of finance, people would rather head to Cyprus for a vacation instead of Tunisia. It was unlikely that tourists would choose Malta as an alternative.
“Malta is more expensive and there is no availability. It’s almost at full capacity at the moment. Plus, the beaches are larger than those in Malta,” Mr Aquilina said.
Notwithstanding, he said, business travellers were still flying out from Malta to Tunisia: “People who have businesses in Libya fly to Djerba and then drive to Libya; it’s safer.”
Tunisair Express is still flying from Malta to Tunisia three times a week, although there have been some changes.
Zoubeir Ben Attaya, general manager of Tunisair Malta branch, said: “To be honest, the last two terrorist attacks – Bardo and Sousse –deeply affected tourism in general and, consequently, air transportation.” However, he refused to be downbeat. “Tunisair Express started air operations in Malta 20 years ago and has never stopped its activity. It will continue to serve for at least the next coming 20 years.”
Tourism in Tunisia
The attack will have a big impact on the economy as Tunisia expects to lose at least €466 million this year; about a quarter of its estimated annual tourism earnings.
The North African country earned €1.7 billion in revenue from tourism last year.
The industry makes up seven per cent of its gross domestic product and is a major source of foreign currency and employment for the country.