PHILIPPINES: Moscow And Manila Sign Tourism Plan

A travel and tour operator in Russia expressed high praise for the Philippine tourism destinations, and underscored the growing number repeat-customers among Russian tourists.

In a news statement, the Department of Tourism (DOT) said, Svetlana Muromskaya, owner of VAND International, has visited the Philippines 11 times and noted how the country has been attracting a growing number of Russian tourists.

Our clients have very good opinion of the Philippines. The people, especially, are very nice. Fifty percent of Russians who go to the Philippines become repeat clients.

They go back after a year or two,Muromskaya said during a meeting with Tourism Secretary Wanda Corazon T. Teo.

Under the DOT’s National Tourism Development Plan for 2016-2022, the DOT is seeking an increase in Russian visitor arrivals from 25,000 in 2015 to 71,000 by 2022, the last year of Duterte’s term of office.

More than 28,000 Russians visited the Philippines in 2016, up 11.6 percent from 2015, despite the European Union trade sanctions that have impacted the Russian economy.

Before the ruble crashed in 2014, visitor arrivals from Russia in the Philippines were growing by 30 percent annually, which earned it a place in the DOT’s list of high-growth target markets.

From January to February 2017, visitor arrivals from Russia grew almost 30 percent to 9,152 ​arrivals, data from the DOT showed.

As this developed, the Philippines and Russia on Thursday signed a historic Joint Action Program of Tourism Cooperation, which was one of nine bilateral agreements inked by the two countries.

The Russians are coming, though they are very particular about safety and security in any prospective destination. The agreement signifies Moscow’s confidence in the Philippine government’s capability to resolve peace-and-order issues, Teo stressed.

The bilateral tourism agreement states that both parties will exchange, on a regular basis, information related to the safety of tourists in the country.

Both countries signified to carry out continuous monitoring of any situation connected with the safety of tourists, according to the DOT news statement.

The Joint Action Program, a follow-through of the two countries’ first agreement signed 11 years ago also in Moscow, is, likewise, expected to increase the tourist flow between them, as both parties agreed to assist each other in establishing contacts between Philippine and Russian national tourism organizations.

Once implemented, the program is expected to spur tourism exchange in education and training, as well as exchange of information and experts among tourist organizations of both countries.

Teo also disclosed that the Russian government is exploring the possibility of organizing a Russian language training program for Filipino tourism industry workers.

We will continue to promote the Philippines as a must-see destination, and I am confident that tourist influx into the country will continue, the DOT secretary said.

The interest is there, as evidenced by international events being held in the Philippines, like the Iron Man and the Miss Universe pageant. Promoters are approaching us, asking the Philippines to host these prestigious events again, she added.

DOT officials said Russians are mostly attracted to beach destinations in the Philippines, such as Boracay and Palawan, and usually stay about 10 days in each destination, especially when winter peaks in Russia.

Data from the United Nations World Tourism Organization in 2015 ranked Russia as the world’s sixth- biggest outbound market in terms of expenditure, spending $35 billion in travels abroad.

Russians spend more than others and they stay for an average of two weeks with their families in the Philippines, Teo added.

Teo is part of President Duterte’s official entourage in Russia, but the Chief Executive had to cut short his trip after clashes between the military and a local rebel group broke out in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.

Duterte responded by declaring martial law on the entire island-region of Mindanao. The DOT regional offices in Mindanao have been instructed by Teo to make sure tourists were kept out of harm’s way.

PHILIPPINES: The Armed Forces Of The Philippines Continues Striking Terrorists In Marawi City, Lanao del Sur

Cops on Sunday, May 28, entered ground zero of military clashes with local terrorist groups to finally retrieve dead bodies on the streets.

The military earlier said the terrorists have killed 19 civilians in Marawi City, Lanao del Sur.

Among the bodies recovered were those of 3 women and a child, said Al Sayyeed Alonto, who joined the retrieval operations in Barangay Basak Malutlut.

It signals the beginning of attempts by Marawi City to get a semblance of normalcy even as clashes continue for the 6th straight day. The fighting erupted last Tuesday, May 23, prompting President Rodrigo Duterte to declare martial law in the entire Mindanao.

There is division of labor, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). The AFP continues operations against the terrorists, police-assisted local government units (LGUs) lead the retrieval of bodies, volunteers rescue families trapped in combat zones, and so on.

Right now, the LGUs are the ones collecting dead bodies of civilians. Sa amin naka-focus pa rin kami sa,We're still focusing on military operations pertaining to clearing and security operations,said Lieutenant Colonel Jo-Ar Herrera, military spokesman on the Marawi crisis.

The retrieval operations come after 8 bodies were found in a ditch near a security checkpoint on Sunday morning. It is unclear if these 8 were included in the military's count of civilian deaths.

Trapped civilians

Herrera also said over 200 civilians trapped inside the combat zone have been "rescued" from their homes.

But 2,000 others remain trapped in areas controlled by the terrorists, according to Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesman for the Lanao del Sur crisis management committee.

They have been sending us text messages, calling our hotline, requesting us to send rescue teams but we cannot simply go to areas which are inaccessible to us, Adiong said.

They want to leave. They are afraid for their safety. Some are running out of food to eat. They fear they will be hit by bullets, by air strikes, he said.

Surgical air strikes

Air strikes had resumed on Sunday afternoon. The attack choppers could be seen from the provincial capitol.

Surgical air strikes resume in Marawi City Sunday afternoon.

Herrera said they are surgical attacks targeting fortifications of the local terrorist groups.

We are still using surgical air strikes dahil mayroon pa rin silang mga,because they still have fortifications. They are occupying buildings. They are using sniper rifles to inflict casualty on government forces, he said.

The military assures public that the air strikes are surgical, targetting fortifications of Maute.