OPENING ADDRESS BY THE HON. TONIO BORG, MINISTER FOR HOME AFFAIRS, DURING THE XXIII CONFERENCE OF THE CHIEFS OF POLICE OF EUROPEAN CAPITALS

Tourist related crime

Permanent Secretary, Police Commissioner, Mayor of Valletta, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen.

I welcome you to our capital City, Valletta for the twenty-third conference of the Chiefs of Police of the European Capitals to discuss a theme which is very important to our island country – tourism and tourist related crime.

Tourism, in all of its manifestations, is commonly described today as the world's largest industry. All indicators show that this industry will expand even further in the coming years. The World Travel and Tourism Council estimates that this global $ 4.5 trillion industry will grow to a $10 trillion in the next ten years.

Yet, as tourism emerges more as a global industry, concerns over visitor safety, crime and violence have become paramount as these can have very serious consequences for both individual holiday makers and tourist destinations. Every minute of every day a crime occurs at a tourist destination somewhere in the world. The reporting of such events by popular newspapers in tourist generating countries, particularly at the time of booking holidays, can adversely affect the level of bookings in tourist locations.

In Malta, the tourism industry is the life-line of our economy. With 9,659 people directly employed in hotels and catering establishments and gross earnings totalling Lm 271,383,000 (1999 statistics) tourism is vital to the well being and prosperity of the Maltese citizens. Thus we are very conscious that to maintain a successful tourism industry, safety and security are of paramount importance.

Luckily Malta is considered a safe and friendly holiday destination. Malta has no political violence and instability or acts of terrorism that may dissuade people from choosing our island for their break. However tourists are much more likely to be victimised by crime than by terrorist activity.

Perhaps the most effective way to ensure visitor safety is public education of both the tourist and the local community. The laudable initiative of the Malta Tourism Authority to issue brochures providing tips for tourists to enjoy their stay here without incidents is a step in this direction.

A fundamental question is whether in the summer months crime reaches its highest point during the year simply because of the increased population density or whether it is more specifically associated with tourism. With more than 1,200,000 tourists arriving annually in the fifth most densely populated country in the world, Malta becomes particularly crowded especially during the summer months when the tourist season is in its peak.

Crime statistics show clearly that during the summer months petty theft, particularly in tourist areas increases dramatically. The increased presence of tourists may increase the availability of targets for criminals. Tourists are considered as very easy targets and are obvious victims of crime. They are clearly identifiable by appearance, language, dress code and mannerisms and are expected to carry considerable sums of money with them.

This led the government to introduce for the first time two years ago, specific police groups to patrol public beaches and tourist areas during the summer months. The 50 strong Police Beach Patrol, quickly started to yield very encouraging results with a nearly 30 per cent drop in theft from beaches during July-August in 1999, and a further 11 per cent slump in the summer of 2000. Indeed, police presence is a very effective deterrent to criminal activity.

Apart from its vast cultural heritage and its sandy beaches, Malta is popular also for its night life especially by the 15 to 29 age group which constitute a healthy 20 per cent of tourist arrivals each year.

However tourists frequenting bars and night-clubs are much more prone to taking risks on vacation and are less likely to observe security measures they routinely adopt at home. Often, visitors escape for two weeks and indulge in anti-social and self-destructive behaviour that could lead to crime, unruly behaviour and drug taking.

This inspired the present government to tackle this pressing problem by issuing party regulations amidst controversy and great resistance especially from certain operators in the leisure industry. The new regulations imposed a moratorium on discos open-air after 2am and other parties between 4 a.m. and 9 a.m. and introduced stiffer fines and penalties to those proprietors of places of entertainment who abuse by letting persons under 16 years of age into places of entertainment.

1999 – the year the regulations were introduced, saw 14 persons arrested on charges of offences during parties. The following year, the number doubled totalling 32, due to more stringent and effective raids that were organised by the Police. After the dust settled, all parties involved came to realise that these regulations were introduced to protect people and not to harm the leisure industry.

I am sure that this conference will be a superb experience to facilitate the exchange of ideas and information, as well strengthen co-operation between the police forces of the different nations represented here.

A heartfelt world of gratitude goes to all the sponsors who made this unique event possible, to the Commissioner of Police for his continuous support of this initiative and to the organising team whose relentless efforts during the past days are now bearing fruit.

I wish you all every success during this conference.

Thank you.