Tourism won't be affected if June 30 protests are peaceful – minister

Thursday 06-06-2013 10:36 PM
Tourism won't be affected if June 30 protests are peaceful – minister

People enjoy the water at the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh in the South Sinai governorate. July 17, 2012. Amr Dalsh/Reuters

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The tourism sector will not be affected by the planned June 30 protests as long as they remain peaceful, tourism minister Hisham Za'zou' said on Wednesday.

Za'zou' warned against the repercussions of violence on the future of tourism in Egypt, the Middle East News Agency reported.

Several political parties and powers had called for peaceful demonstrations on June 30 which coincides with the passage of one year on President Mohamed Mursi's rule.

The protests will call for toppling the regime and holding early presidential elections.

During a meeting with businessmen in the tourism sector yesterday, the minister stated that development and investment are tied to political stability.

The Egyptian tourism sector suffered a decline due to political turmoil and a state of lawlessness that dominated the scene since the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in 2011.

The number of tourists who visited Egypt in 2011-2012 dropped due to political instability, the minister said.

Revenues from tourism decreased by 30 percent in 2011 compared to 2010, he added.

In spite of these figures, the minister said that the sector was gradually recovering. 

The number of tourists who visited Egypt in the first quarter of the current fiscal year is around four million tourists. The revenues were around three billion dollars.

Fears regarding the future of tourism in Egypt have been escalating since the Muslim Brotherhood won the country's first democratic elections and took over the parliament.

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