NEWS OF the murder of a German tourist in Mpumalanga has once again shone the light of crime in SA.
A tourist was one of four travellers making their way to one of the country’s top tourism attractions in the province- Kruger National Park, on Monday.
The four Germans were hijacked and one was shot and killed on the spot. Police have launched a manhunt.
South African Tourism and the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA) are very concerned as this affect the reputation of the country.
“As a sector, we would like to convey our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the tourist who was killed in this incident. We call on law enforcement agencies to find the perpetrators of this violent crime as soon as possible.
South Africa receives a large number of tourists from Germany and this is one of the ways in which our tourism sector has been able to recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” read joint statements from both SAT and TBCSA.
The protection of all tourists is immensely important to us and therefore we continue to consult the South African Police Services and all related authorities in this regard,” said South African Tourism acting CEO, Themba Khumalo.
Khumalo’s sentiments have been echoed by the CEO of the Tourism Business Council of South Africa (TBCSA), Tshifhiwa Tshivhengwa who said “Violence against tourists is equivalent to economic crimes such as stealing copper cables and gold, and something must be done urgently.”
Our teams will meet with our colleagues in the security cluster to discuss ways in which plans to ensure tourist safety are fast tracked ahead of our very busy summer holiday season, continued the media statement.
At a recent gathering of tourism industry leaders the sector called for South Africa’s security cluster to help in bolstering tourism safety and acting fast against acts of criminality that affect the sector’s potential.
Meanwhile, the German ambassador to SA, Andreas Peschke, has also lamented the incident and said it will have negative impact on German’s and tourists alike.
He cautioned that Police must work tirelessly to arrest the perpetrators.
Image (Themba Khumalo- SAT acting CE).
