Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
FURTHER BUREAUCRACY AND BARRIERS TO FOREIGN AND
DOMESTIC TOURISM
But registration is not the only example of documentation, which makes
traveling harder for foreign tourists. Also present are a number of further en-
try permissions to border zones where particular areas which, paradoxically,
are often highly attractive for the country's tourism. The greatest paperwork
demands in this regard are made by Tajikistan, which in other respects pres-
ents itself as opening to tourism. Mountain areas in the country are among
the most attractive for tourism in the country. At the same time, these are
areas in which most movement involves individual tourists. Any further
bureaucracy significantly interferes with their movement. In 2005, fees for
former permission to visit the mountains cost tens of dollars, with a per
diem ecological tax of approximately 1 US dollar. The experience of tourist
suggests that these fees have served partially to increase the profit of travel
agencies, with only minimal impact on Tajikistan's state budget. A number
of tourists came into Tajikistan's mountains without any travel agencies sup-
port. Checks on payment of fees were very restrictive and there was often no
unified receipt to show payment of the fees in any event. Currently, the of-
ficially designated fee is 10 Tajiki somoni for entry to the national parks and
protected areas. But there is often nowhere to pay these fees, which make
them a target for corruption by some, often self-appointed, park rangers.
The last remaining bureaucratic barrier in Tajikistan is permission to
enter the Badakhshan Autonomous Region. Although the logic of this re-
maining in place is based upon the presence of a border zone, it neverthe-
less represents one more unnecessary burden for travel into this otherwise
very attractive area for tourism. The Badakhshan border regime remains
in force as one of the last survivors of the Soviet system in Central Asia.
It must also be stated that the existence or lack thereof of permission to
stay in the Badakhshan has no effect on security problems in the area (nar-
cotic trafficking, terrorism, etc.), which typically do not involve tourists.
It only serves as another formality for tourists to arrange. On the other
hand, requiring permits to visit Lake Sarez in the Badakhshan Mountains
is entirely legitimate. In environmental and security terms, this is an area
at relatively high risk.
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The natural dam of Sarez Lake (the so-called Usojsky Mass) was created in the 1911 earthquake and
its fracture (which could occur after another earthquake or in a terrorist attack) might herald catastro-
phe for the entire Central Asia region.
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