Tourists picnic while Iraq burns
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www.kurdishmedia.com Families picnic beside a foaming waterfall in the Kurdish mountain resort of Behal, where only the watchful presence of plainclothes security men reminds visitors of the violence raging elsewhere in Iraq.
The natural beauty of the Kurdish mountains makes them a prime summer destination for tourists from all over Iraq, though few foreigners are yet tempted to join them.
Security is tight here, even for holidaymakers, after the February 1 suicide bombings that killed more than 100 people in the Kurdish capital of Arbil, 60 miles to the south.
Wahid Tahir, in Kurdistan for the first time since the fall of Saddam Hussein a year ago, has just had his car searched again after security officers noticed his Mosul number plate.
"I'm uncomfortable about this because I'm with my wife and kids," said Tahir, 21. "We've been searched many times. It will discourage people from coming. We just want to relax."
Kurdish authorities expect to host 200,000 to 300,000 tourists over the summer, many of them from Arab regions.
"It's not a good way," said Saba Hassan, a 40-year-old father of seven, also from Mosul. "They searched all our things and were asking my children if I was really their father.
"I wouldn't think of coming back again because of the difficulties at the checkpoints. They said if we wanted to stay we needed permission from the local security office."
Kurdish officials have to stay on high alert without unduly disrupting the lucrative influx of tourists.
Traffic already has to wait at checkpoints along the informal border separating Kurdistan from the rest of Iraq. Cars with "foreign" number plates are thoroughly searched and identity papers are scrutinised before entry is permitted.
"We have no choice but to check people when they are coming into our region. We know terrorists have tried to cross our border," said Isman Argushi, general director of security for the Kurdistan regional government in Arbil.
Argushi said he was trying to improve efficiency at the checkpoints before the tourist season gets into full swing. Proposed measures include using sniffer dogs and metal detectors, and issuing security passes for Kurdistan.
"The tight security makes terrorists think twice before entering," he said. "I don't believe it will have a negative effect. If there's an attack it is bad for everybody."
Last year's tourist season was a washout following the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, but this year many of the 100 hotels in Arbil province are already fully booked for the school holidays, according to the head of the state board of tourism.
"We have rich places for tourism here in Kurdistan. In the summer the roads leading north from Arbil into the mountains will be packed," said Sarkwat Rawanduzi, adding that thousands of people will simply camp out in the countryside.
"We get a few tourists from Turkey, Iran and also Europe, but they are expatriates accompanied by family members," he said. "Security is not a bad problem here. There hasn't been a shooting (in our tourist areas) for more than 14 years."
Rawanduzi said he was frustrated that Iraq's U.S.-led authorities were not supporting tourism projects.
"Tourism could be as important as oil for this area," he said, explaining that Kurdish authorities rely on private investment to fund new tourist projects.
Foreign companies have helped build several luxury hotels, but bigger projects, such as a planned $20 million (11 million pounds) tourist village near the Iranian and Turkish border, complete with golf course, hotel, shopping mall and restaurants, are rare.
"We always try to attract tourists from other countries, but (Iraq's U.S. administrator Paul) Bremer only thinks about oil," Rawanduzi said. "Hundreds of companies come to Iraq for reconstruction contracts, but they never think about tourism."
For many Iraqis, a holiday in Kurdistan is a tradition.
"There's no safety in Baghdad, so it's great to get away from home and come here," said Ghaith Mustafa, 53, a regular visitor to the same guest house in Behal for decades.
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Baghdad Office / Agents
Mr. Walid Abdul-Amir Alwan
Bab Al-Mudham
P.O. Box 489, Baghdad - Iraq
Mobile: +964 790 183 1726,
E-mail: itmbaghdad@tcph.org
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