KUCHING, Jan 2 — The Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents (Matta) is calling upon certain parties to stop overreacting to the news that China will once again allow its citizens to resume outbound travel.
Matta president Datuk Tan Kok Liang, who made this appeal today, said outright calls to shut Malaysian borders to Chinese travellers at this early stage are “irrational and irresponsible”.
“Since the re-opening of our borders in early 2022, our country has been making steady, positive progress towards recovery and any knee-jerk reaction to re-introduce restrictions without proper planning risks undoing all that we have achieved,” he said in a statement.
Tan said Matta has complete faith in the Ministry of Health Malaysia in managing Chinese arrivals just as they have done with other travellers from all over the world.
According to him, the government’s decision should balance the health and well-being of the people and Malaysia’s reputation as a safe destination as well as the economic ramifications of its policies in this matter.
“It must also benchmark with current global practices while considering its own capacity and limitations rather than bow to lobbyist groups,” he said.
He said data from Tourism Malaysia indicated that 3.1 million Chinese tourists visited Malaysia in 2019, making it the country’s third largest source market for international arrivals.
He added that initial estimates indicated that 1.2 million Chinese would travel to Malaysia this year which is expected to generate approximately RM3.6 billion in tourism receipts.
“Bear in mind that Chinese travellers won’t arrive all at once which will allow the government to monitor and manage the situation as it develops.
“To that end, the national travel association will provide feedback to help the government tackle and manage this process as it unfolds,” Tan said. — Borneo Post Online
