Meeting fails to reach agreement on Son Tra master plan
>> Public demand Son Tra master plan reconsideration
Agreement was not reached at closed meeting between tourism authorities in Danang City and leaders of the National Administration of Tourism over a master plan for developing Son Tra Peninsula.
At a Thursday meeting chaired by the administration in Danang which banned the media, head of the Danang Tourism Association, Huynh Tan Vinh said the master plan would harm the ecosystem of the peninsula.
Vinh insisted that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism reconsider the plan which should put a priority on protecting Son Tra’s diverse ecosystem.
"Many investors in Son Tra began speeding up work on their projects since the master plan was announced in mid-February," Vinh said. "And this has sparked public concern as thousands of plants and animals here are being threatened. The projects are destroying the lungs of Danang City."
The association's general secretary, Trinh Bang Co, also said that it was necessary to review the master plan which should take into account voices of the public and environmental experts.
Representing the city's tourism department, vice director Tran Chi Cuong said they supported the tourism association's efforts to protect Son Tra.
Meanwhile, Ha Van Sieu, deputy head of the National Administration of Tourism stressed that the master plan had been carefully drafted after consulting relevant departments, agencies and experts before proposing to the PM.
Another official from the administration, Truong Sy Vinh, added that the plan had been drafted from 2013 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism with support from the ministries of Public Security, Defence, and Natural Resources and Environments and several experts.
Sieu concluded the meeting saying that they would not agree with the proposal from the Danang Tourism Association to review the master plan for developing Son Tra Peninsula into a national tourism site by 2025 with a vision towards 2030.
"The plan had been carefully drafted and had no problems," he stressed.
Danang tourism authorities refused to sign the meeting minutes.
Speaking with the media after the meeting, Vinh said that he knew it would be very difficult to change a plan that had been announced by the PM, but they will try their best and hope to receive more support from the public.
“At the meeting, I asked the officials from the National Administration of Tourism that if they ever seen the brown-legged langurs in Son Tra," Vinh said. "I feel sad when they said not yet but they could still make the plan without seeing them."
Vinh said that the master plan violated the investment and environment laws so needs to be reviewed.
“I've proposed another meeting in Danang to discuss the issue," he added. "I hope they will rethink."
A meeting between tourism authorities in Danang City and leaders of the National Administration of Tourism over a master plan for developing Son Tra Peninsula is held in Danang City on May 11.
At a Thursday meeting chaired by the administration in Danang which banned the media, head of the Danang Tourism Association, Huynh Tan Vinh said the master plan would harm the ecosystem of the peninsula.
Vinh insisted that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism reconsider the plan which should put a priority on protecting Son Tra’s diverse ecosystem.
"Many investors in Son Tra began speeding up work on their projects since the master plan was announced in mid-February," Vinh said. "And this has sparked public concern as thousands of plants and animals here are being threatened. The projects are destroying the lungs of Danang City."
The association's general secretary, Trinh Bang Co, also said that it was necessary to review the master plan which should take into account voices of the public and environmental experts.
Representing the city's tourism department, vice director Tran Chi Cuong said they supported the tourism association's efforts to protect Son Tra.
Meanwhile, Ha Van Sieu, deputy head of the National Administration of Tourism stressed that the master plan had been carefully drafted after consulting relevant departments, agencies and experts before proposing to the PM.
Another official from the administration, Truong Sy Vinh, added that the plan had been drafted from 2013 by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism with support from the ministries of Public Security, Defence, and Natural Resources and Environments and several experts.
Sieu concluded the meeting saying that they would not agree with the proposal from the Danang Tourism Association to review the master plan for developing Son Tra Peninsula into a national tourism site by 2025 with a vision towards 2030.
"The plan had been carefully drafted and had no problems," he stressed.
Danang tourism authorities refused to sign the meeting minutes.
Speaking with the media after the meeting, Vinh said that he knew it would be very difficult to change a plan that had been announced by the PM, but they will try their best and hope to receive more support from the public.
Head of the Danang Tourism Association, Huynh Tan Vinh, talks with the media after the meeting
“At the meeting, I asked the officials from the National Administration of Tourism that if they ever seen the brown-legged langurs in Son Tra," Vinh said. "I feel sad when they said not yet but they could still make the plan without seeing them."
Vinh said that the master plan violated the investment and environment laws so needs to be reviewed.
“I've proposed another meeting in Danang to discuss the issue," he added. "I hope they will rethink."
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