‘Just surviving’: for Cambodian tourism, recovery out of sight | Coronavirus pandemic News

Siem Reap, Cambodia – Chheut Dina was cleaning up Siem Reap International Airport when she was told not to return to work for a few days.

After nearly 10 months without tourism, the airport withdrew its contract with Dinah’s employer in December 2020, forcing a family of seven to cut spending and refinance a $ 11,000 loan it had taken before the pandemic. HCC Angkor, a cleaning company owned by the majority of the French Vinci Corporation, previously reduced the employment of Dina and her colleagues by one month a year due to COVID-19 restrictions.

“Sometimes my kids, when they don’t have to learn, go to the pond or the stream or the lake to catch fish or snails and vegetables, so we spend less than that. [before] but we eat less proper food than before, ”Dina told Al Jazeera.

With the help of his union, Dina and the rest of the HCC employees complained to the company that they were desperate to dismiss the management or simply refuse to confirm whether they had been fired.

Uncertainty about their future has been particularly frustrating since the airport began receiving international flights after the country reopened its borders to vaccinated tourists last month.

“If they want to release us from the contract, they have to pay us the right compensation according to the law, then we can look for other job opportunities or get compensation,” Dina said. “That creates a blurry picture. We don’t really know what’s going on.”

Although Cambodia has reopened to international travelers, the Siem Reap Tourist Center, a UNESCO World Heritage Site of Angkor Wat, is still considering a long and unpredictable way to recover from foreign dependence and a pandemic.

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen withdrew forty measures for all vaccinated passengers on November 15 – a step beyond reopening Thailand, which this week imposed a seven- to 10-day quarantine for foreigners except those visiting Phuket’s “sandbox” in response to Omicron. variant.

Arrivals, however, have been few. Before Singapore Airlines resumed service last week, the city’s airport did not see a single international flight for 20 weeks.

Even before the pandemic, Siem Reap, which has since relied on extinct Chinese groups, showed signs of exhaustion, with sales of tickets to Angkor Archaeological Park falling by 8.3 percent in 2019 compared to the previous year, according to the World Bank.

Khek Norinda, director of communications for Cambodia’s airports, said Al Jazeera visitors were down 12.4 per cent from 2019 to 2018, before falling during the pandemic. Before Singapore Airlines resumed service last week, the city’s airport did not see a single international flight for 20 weeks.

While announcing the gradual recovery, Norinda said the airline’s return showed that it was still “hungry” to visit Siem Reap.

“Moreover, the experience of visiting the temple without crowds and without a hustle and bustle can work in its favor,” he said.

Thourn Sinan, a Cambodian representative for the Asia-Pacific Travel Association, told Al Jazeera that the government had not clearly communicated its pandemic policies and found it difficult to respond to its industry.

“They have very good planning,” he said for the industry as a whole. “But on the other hand with the pandemic era [continuing], they can’t decide what to do. ‘

Chheut Dina has not had a steady job since December 2020 [Courtesy of Danielle Keeton-Olsen]

During the pandemic, the provincial government sought to beautify the city by widening roads and creating gardens and footpaths in front of Angkor Wat, a spectacular level of temple stamped in Cambodian currency.

Many businesses around the famous attraction – surrounded by family restaurants, clothing stalls and artists displaying paintings and other memorabilia – have complained that renovations have cost customers.

A beverage vendor outside Angkor Wat told Al Jazeera that small businesses were struggling despite the spirit of cooperation between vendors who decided to stay in the park.

He said he was guilty of charging $ 150 a month to an inn he owned: “I want to get all the money. [I can] but I’m not happy, because it’s not easier for them than it is for us. ‘

Sinan, a representative of the Asia-Pacific Travel Association, said he doubted Cambodia’s tourism would return to pre-pandemic levels for five to seven years, despite knowing the tour operators who had invested in their business as a result of the reopening of the border.

“These are new investments [businesses] put, this is probably the last investment [possible] for them, but if there is no investment from international tourists for them, they will continue to lose, ”he said.

Near the start of the pandemic, the Ministry of Labor and Vocational Training promised to pay $ 40 a month to licensed workers in the tourism and clothing industries, and would force employers to pay an additional $ 30 a month. In addition to criticism, there was insufficient support, with union officials complaining that many workers were left out of support.

Dinak, an airport cleaner, said she could not receive any COVID-19 support payments or health care through the national social security fund, which made it difficult for her elderly parents to pay for their medical expenses.

“Sometimes we don’t have the money to do that, so we borrow to do it together,” he said.

Angkor Wat sellers have been successful in the pandemic [Courtesy of Danielle Keeton-Olsen]

Norinda said Cambodia’s airports wanted to prioritize the welfare of its staff during the pandemic, but “unfortunately” had to cut off its relationship with HCC in Siem Reap.

Because Cambodia has reported a few cases of COVID-19 – there have been no more than 25 infections every day since early December – mainly domestic tourism. ecotourism sites, has given light relief to the industry.

Chhay Sivlin, president of the Cambodian Association of Travel Agents, told Al Jazeera that more home visitors visited the temples in Siem Reap but spent less than foreign tourists.

“Cambodian travel culture [is that they] they don’t feel the need to hire tour guides, nor do they need the help of local travel agents, ”he said.

Sinan said he did not think the city could count on the return of Chinese tourists, who were more interested in the life of COVID-19 in China than in the “new normalcy” elsewhere.

He said Southeast Asian countries could fill the gap if they learn from Europe, where many residents are on holiday vacations with summer passports.

“I think ASEAN should have a rapid recovery in terms of tourism [members] they can trust each other, ”he said.

‘Waiting for tourists’

For now, the residents of Siem Reap need to do their best in difficult situations.

Before the pandemic, Doung Visith was earning $ 50 comfortably every time he toured Angkor Wat. Today, Visith, a part-time job at a hospitality company, spends her time trying to persuade locals to hire her for a $ 20 short morning walk before lounging visitors to the newly renovated restaurants and shops. in front of the temple.

Although he appreciates the park’s well-kept façade, he wants foreign tourists to be there to see it.

“We’re reliving it, waiting for tourists to come again,” he said.