Women question sexism in tourism industry

Women question sexism in tourism industry

JAKARTA (JP): Women leaders from around Asia and the United
States ended their three-day convention yesterday hoping to draw
greater attention to the sexual discrimination that still
prevails in most industries, especially tourism.

A researcher at Gadjah Mada University's Women's Studies
Center in Yogyakarta said on Saturday that despite their
increasing contribution to developing the tourism industry, women
are still discriminated against in the industry.

Dwita Hadi Rahmi said women both here and in other countries
are having to deal with discrimination in the tourism industry
not only because of their gender but because of differences in
education and skills. The condition is aggravated by the belief
that women are only accessories or a lure in the industry, she
pointed out.

"These (attitudes) hamper women's efforts to gain access and
obtain benefits from the tourism industry," she told the 15th
Convention of the Federation of Asian Women's Associations.

For instance, there's a widespread belief that it's not
appropriate for women to work in the tourism sector, she said.

"Many families are reluctant to let their daughters or wives
work in hotels because the job is considered degrading," she
said. "There's this image that women's work in tourism is nothing
but prostitution, or that it exposes them to the risks of sexual
harassment."

A 1995 study conducted by the center showed that although
women are considered to have strong potential for success in
travel bureaus, restaurants and other tourism sectors, their
number is only a third of the number of men working in the
industry.

Rae Sita Supit, vice president of the Indonesian Tours and
Travel Agency, criticized the public prejudice. "Those people who
hold such a negative view of women's roles in tourism should
examine how the sector can boost economic growth and ease the
unemployment problem," she said.

Another speaker, Wiendu Nuryanti from Gadjah Mada University's
Center for Tourism Research and Development, suggested that the
prejudice against women could be countered by controlling
advertisements which exploit women.

"Sexually-offensive images of women in materials such as
posters and brochures should be eliminated," she said.

Representatives from nine countries, Guam, India, Indonesia,
Japan, Pakistan, Singapore, Sudan, Taiwan and the United States
attended the convention, which was opened by First Lady Tien
Soeharto on Friday.

An activist from Taiwan, Ping Lee, agreed that lack of gender
equality is still the major problem confronting women.

"Women in most Asian countries still suffer from gender
inequality," she said. "Men are given better wages and positions
even if they are not better educated or skilled." (31)