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The Egyptian Museum, Cairo 9 September 2012
Tour guides call for restoring security
- “They beat tour guides and tourists!”
- “It is now permissible to kill tour guides!”
Hany Abu Zeid, member of the Egyptian General Tourist Guides Syndicate board
Over approximately two years,
tourism has suffered with repercussions for our livelihoods.
But we did not stage protests,
unlike other sectors everywhere in Egypt.
The most recent example of these protests
is the flight attendants strike at the Cairo airport
which caused a loss of US$50 million until yesterday.
We did not stage this protest to call for higher pay
although all those who voiced professional demands
already get salaries while our livelihoods
have been altogether jeopardized.
- “ Where is security?”
- “What can the tour guide do alone?”
Hoda Rady, tour guide
The only goal of the protest
is to demand the restoration of security
at historical sites.
There is a lack of security: Female tourists
are harassed, and tour guides are beaten and humiliated.
We are calling on the Interior Minister
to secure monumental sites
because tourism is already suffering.
There are five main sites
that suffer from a major security problem, namely;
The Valley of the Kings and Hatshepsut Temple in Luxor,
The Giza Pyramids, and Edfu and Philae Temples in Aswan.
They suffer from a complete lack of security.
“O Sphinx, raise your voice to make the officials hear you!”