SE Asia, a safe tourism destination

SE Asia, a safe tourism destination

Associated Press, Phnom Penh

Southeast Asian tourism ministers kicked off a four-day conference Friday aimed at drawing up plans to promote the region as a safe tourism destination.

Regional tourism has taken a hit since October's terrorist attacks on the Indonesian island of Bali, which killed nearly 200 people. In the attacks' aftermath, foreign governments, including the United States, the UK and Australia, issued travel advisories to the dismay of Southeast Asian nations which rely heavily on tourism revenues.

Hoping to counteract negative foreign assessments, the ministers said they plan "to create a Web site on tourism safety and security to provide precise and timely information for travelers, public, media as well as foreign governments in response to travelers' concerns over safety and security."

The plan was in a draft joint statement obtained by the Associated Press before its scheduled release later Friday.

Ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) were participating in the conference.

ASEAN comprises Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore and Vietnam.

The ministers were scheduled to hold talks later Friday with counterparts from China, Japan and South Korea.