You may have heard of, or possibly even seen, tourists behaving badly here in beautiful Bali. It’s kind of hard to understand why because everything is pretty good here (well, except for maybe the traffic…). There really is no reason to misbehave or be disrespectful. But it does happen and seems even to be on the rise, perhaps driven by alcohol or just a lessening of standards of discipline?
So, I had a look around the world and found that there are some destinations that actually demand a guarantee of good behaviour on arrival. Palau in the Pacific is one where they ask every arriving passenger to sign The Palau Pledge. So, I thought, that’s exactly what we need here: something that delineates the limits of acceptable behaviour and then asks each visitor to promise to adhere to those limits. Finally it may tell you what will happen if you break your promise. For example, you may be deported or actually put in jail if you go right off the rails!
This should be placed in the hands of every visitor, national or international, in their own language, on arrival, to let them understand the values we put on our environment and our heritage, and how we expect them to respect and adhere to those values while they are here.
Here is the proposed text:
Thank you for welcoming me to your wonderful island. I am happy to make this promise as your honoured guest:
- Nothing I do while I am here will disturb either the natural environment, nor the way of life of the local residents.
- I will not intrude on local ceremonies or services without an invitation.
- I will not walk in areas that are clearly private.
- I will wear appropriate clothing at all times and respect the dignity and privacy of my hosts.
- While I am here to enjoy myself, I agree not to indulge in unseemly or inappropriate behaviour.
- I will try to communicate with the residents in their language – even if it is only a few words.
- While bargaining is still permitted, I understand that I should try to pay a fair price for my purchases.
- I will prioritise to buy locally sourced goods and services to support the local economy.
- I will make every effort to reduce the water I use, the energy I consume and the waste I generate while I am here, to preserve the resources of this land.
This promise is made knowing that if all who come here follow the same rules, then all will enjoy their time here more and continue to enjoy into the future.
What do you think? Is that a fair request to make of people who come here? Would you have signed? I do hope so.
Anyway please read the list again and see if you have broken any of the rules already? If you have not, thank you and enjoy your stay. If you have, please think again: would you have behaved like that in your own country? Probably not. So please don’t do so here!
