DOT to miss Chinese arrival target by more than half over passport row

MANILA, Philippines -- The Department of Tourism is likely to hit less than half of its target of Chinese arrivals in 2012 because of the government's refusal to stamp visas on Chinese passports bearing the map of disputed South China Sea islands.
“For 2012, we were expecting around 450,000 visitors from China. We don’t have the exact figures yet but from what we’ve gathered, the arrivals we got are not even going to break 200,000,” Secretary Ramon Jimenez Jr. said in an interview.
China was the Philippines’ fourth largest tourist market in 2011, registering 243,137 visitors, or 6.21 percent of the 3.9 million tourists to the country that year.
The government has filed a series of diplomatic protests over the increasing incursions by Chinese vessels into the disputed territory.
Jimenez said the DOT is closely coordinating with the Department of Foreign Affairs to address the issue of the passports and will try to increase the number of tourists from China.
“The thing is we don’t want our total connection with China to deteriorate. We have very major differences but are we enemies? No. And that’s the proper perspective the Department of Tourism is (supporting),” Jimenez said.
Close to four million tourists visited the country in 2012.
Of these, one million were from South Korea.