Self-policing is ineffective

TRAVEL agents and tourist guides haveresumed compelling mainland visitors to makepurchases after a period of restraint. In thelatest case, a death occurred. Former national tabletennis player Chen Youming died of a heart attack.Some facts of the case (such as the illegal status ofthe tourist guide in question) show the situation isworse than it was.

Under a rule of the travel industry, no tourist guidemay take any visitors to a shop in which he has a stakeor with which he does business. The rule is aimed atpreventing conflicts of interest. However, we gatherthat a major shareholder in Win's Travel Agent ownsthe jeweller's where Chen Youming had a heart attack.The shareholder has opened three outlets. If visitorsknow that and they buy things in those places, they doso willingly. If they are in the dark and a guide takesthem to those outlets, one may suspect he hoodwinksthem. Clearly, a conflict of interest arises in such asituation, which is by no means fair to visitors.Therefore, the authorities should have the TravelIndustry Council (TIC) require its members to informtheir customers how they are connected with theoutlets they are taken to and allow them choice.

Apart from Chen Youming, the tourist guide inquestion is a principal of the "death from infuriation"case. It has been established that she is unlicensed.She held another's licence and passed herself off asthe other. How is she connected with Win's? How isshe connected with the woman to whom the licencebelongs? These are questions to which not only theindustry but also the police should find out the answers.

According to some in the industry, "illegal workers"have guided tours without a licence in the territory.They are paid less than licensed guides. Not bound byany licensing conditions, they may fleece visitors moreferociously to earn themselves and their employersmore commission. Furthermore, illegal tourist guidesare mostly mainlanders. They may just go home ifanything happens. It is not easy for the TIC to look intocomplaints against them. For example, the touristguide who allegedly enraged Chen, who subsequentlydied, is a mainlander. She is nowhere to be found. Shehas probably returned to the mainland.

The incident shows again the TIC is an ineffectivewatchdog. It shows self-policing is not sufficient toensure the healthy operation of the tourist industry,one of the major pillars of the economy. The TIC'swebsite says at the outset the body was set up in 1978to protect the interests of travel agents. What theunlicensed guide did in the case is not hard toascertain. It is not hard for Win's to make an account ofit. However, the TIC has asked Win's to submit a reportto it in two weeks. It appears to outsiders that it hasgiven Win's ample time so that it will have greaterleeway. There is suspicion that the TIC hopes thepassage of time will calm thing down. Furthermore,there is suspicion that it tries to protect its members asit refuses to reveal the subjects of the twenty-fourcomplaints against Win's it has received since 2006.

It gives no cause of much criticism for the TIC, anorganisation of the travel industry, to advance travelagents' interests. However, travel agents' interests donot coincide with visitors' interests or with Hong Kong'soverall interests. We therefore do not think it adequateto rely solely on the ineffective TIC to police travelagents. Furthermore, that ill becomes the industry'simportance to Hong Kong's economy.

In our view, the TIC must be drasticallyreorganised. At least the body (comprising totally ofpeople in the industry) should no longer be allowed todeal with visitors' complaints or discipline travel agents.The government should consider having anindependent body deal with such matters.

Unscrupulous travel agents and shops against whichmany complaints have been made should be named.The authorities should join forces with the media toexpose unscrupulous businesses. Only by taking thiscredible step can travel agents be deterred fromfleecing their customers.

明報英語網「雙語社評」english.mingpao.com/critic.htm

明報社評

2010.06.03

劏客團死灰復燃旅遊業自律失效

旅行團、導遊強迫內地旅客購物的做法，沉寂一段日子之後，死灰復燃，今次更是搞出人命，導致前國家隊乒乓球選手陳佑銘心臟病突發死亡。今次事態一些情節，例如事涉「黑工導遊」等，顯示情况較以往更加嚴重。

現在業界規定，導遊不能帶旅客到自己開設或有生意關係的商舖購物，目的是防止出現利益衝突，不過，陳佑銘出事的珠寶店，據知是由永盛旅遊大股東所開設。據知這位大股東共開設了3 家商舖，團友若在知情下到其商舖購物，那是你情我願，若團友根本不知情，整個行程被安排到這3 家商舖購物，團友就有被蒙在鼓裏之嫌，選擇權被剝奪。這個情况，明顯存在利益衝突，對於團友而言絕不公平。所以，當局應該要求旅遊業議會對旗下旅行社明確規定，一定要披露旅行社與商舖的關係，讓團友知情和有選擇權。

今次「激死」事件的主角，除了陳佑銘，就是那位導遊。現已證實這位導遊原本無牌，她是持另一位導遊證件，冒充其身分帶團。這名冒牌導遊與永盛旅遊是什麼關係，與證件上的「真身」導遊又是什麼關係，不但業界關注，警方也應該查個究竟。

據業界人士透露，業內一直存在沒有持牌的「黑工導遊」，他們的薪金較持牌導遊低，又不受牌照規管，可以「更狠地」宰客，為本身和旅行社掙取更多佣金。還有一種情况，是這些「黑工導遊」，許多時都是內地人士，一旦出事，他們就可以返回內地，旅遊業議會要調查也有一定難度。正如這次被指「激死」陳佑銘的冒牌導遊，就是內地人，事發後已失蹤，猜測可能返回內地。

發生這件事後，再一次暴露旅遊業議會未能善盡監管功能，說明單靠自律，不可能讓本港重要經濟支柱之一的旅遊業健康地運作。其實，旅遊業議會在其網頁的自我介紹，開宗明義就說「香港旅遊業議會（議會）成立於1978 年，以保障旅行社的利益為宗旨」，這次「激死」事件，關於那位導遊的情况並不複雜，永盛旅遊應該不難交代，但是旅遊業議會卻給兩周時間交報告，外界看來，這是議會以更多時間給永盛旅遊迴旋，有讓時間冲淡事態之嫌。另外，議會對永盛旅遊2006 年迄今被投訴24 宗的內容，不予透露，也有保護其成員之嫌。

作為業內組織，議會為旅行社的利益服務，完全無可厚非，但是旅行社的利益，肯定與旅客的利益不一致，與香港整體利益也不盡相同。因此，單憑監管效益不彰的旅遊業議會，以自律為主的「管理」旅行社，我們認為絕不足夠，與其對香港經濟的重要性也不相稱。

我們認為，旅遊業議會必須大改組，起碼對旅客投訴，不能再由旅遊業界人士主導的旅遊業議會負責處理，政府應該委任業界外的獨立人士，處理投訴和懲處事宜，公布屢遭投訴的旅行社及商舖名字，匯聚媒體與制度的力量，使黑店現形，這樣的處理才有公信力，宰客歪風才可望遏止。

Glossary

hoodwink /'h ʊdwI ??k/deceive, delude.

choice

right to choose.

fleece /fli:s/

To fleece a person is to take a lot of moneyfrom him, especially by charging him too much.