New campaign to raise tourists' awareness

Encouraging travellers to help in the global fight against trafficking in illicit goods and services, three United Nations agencies have joined forces launching today a new campaign aiming to raise awareness among travellers and the tourism industry about making the right ethical choices and reducing demand for illegal products. The campaign, "Your Actions Count - Be a Responsible Traveller" is the product of three UN agencies joining forces - the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). "Tourists are global citizens and with over one billion tourists travelling the world each year, they can become a force of good," said UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Rifai during the campaign's launch at the International Tourism Bourse in Berlin, Germany. "Travellers have a responsibility not to contribute to the profits being generated through organized crime," added UNODC Executive Director Yury Fedotov, who emphasized that travellers need to understand the exploitative nature of the sale of persons, animal products, drugs, cultural artefacts or counterfeit goods. Emphasizing the link between the protection of cultural heritage and the protection of people, UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova explained that "tourists are easy targets for dealers selling cultural artefacts of doubtful provenance," as they are "usually unaware that these ?souvenirs' may be stolen heritage, ripped away from their original settings, illegally excavated from archaeological sites, or traded by unscrupulous individuals offering meagre payment."