Ethical Travel in 2022: The Spreading Saudi Stain

by Robert McGarvey

Three recent trade industry headlines have made clear to me that, suddenly, in addition to weighing issues such as Covid and environmental impacts of travel I must also factor in ethics. Why? Read the headlines:

CNBC: Carnival is Exploring Sale of Seabourn to Saudi Investors

Saudi Arabia to Spend $1 Trillion Over a Decade to Build a Global Tourism Economy

Hotel companies lured by lavish Saudi Arabia projects must find way to balance humanitarian promises

The Saudi goal is bold: to attract 100 million tourists yearly by 2030.

The Saudis know which way the wind is blowing. Between a global shift away from fossil fuels and the inevitable depletion of the country’s oil reserves, the petroleum cash gusher that has propped up this country won’t last forever.

So why not pour cash into buying a stake in the global tourist economy? Especially now when assets are cheap (vide Seabourn).

Know this: Saudi Arabia is by no means the only nation that wants tourist dollars but which would be viewed as ethically repugnant by many. Think Myanmar, Russia, Yemen, and Iran for a start on a global human rights violators list.

But, honestly, most of those nations take half hearted approaches to tourism.

And US companies are skittish about doing business in them – even with Russia, now, post the Ukraine invasion.

Saudi Arabia is different. It is actively wooing US businesses and it is waving wads of riyals to get their attention. It is working.

Marriot, Hilton and Hyatt all have signaled intent to develop properties on Saudi sand – Hyatt is saying it will open a Miraval at a Red Sea resort and Marriott is blabbering about a Ritz-Carlton.

Will they actually attract US tourists?

Fact is, Saudi Arabia already has a thriving tourism industry that is centered on religious tourism.

But now the Saudi eyes have shifted to winning tourists from western Europe and the US and, it believes, it has the goods to sell them, notably the Red Sea – sometimes islands in it are referred to as the Saudi Maldives – but there also are ruins, stunning (if sandy) landscapes, and coast lines and mountains.

It’s not just the monotone sandbox many Americans believe it to be.

So why not go there?

This is where ethics and personal choices enter the equation.

Of course there have long been suggestions of significant involvement by powerful Saudi officials in 9/11, a claim many take as fact although there is little hard evidence. It is undeniable however that 15 of the hijackers were Saudi citizens. That’s out of a total of 19.

Then there is the murder of Wapo columnist Jamal Khashoggi at a Saudi consulate in Istanbul – a sadistic killing that many say was authorized at the highest level of the Saudi government. But the official Saudi position is this was a rogue killing.

The Saudis also have a medley of oppressive laws, from a ban on alcohol and pork products (don’t even joke about a breakfast of a Bloody Mary and a Bacon Butty) and modest dress is mandatory. It is illegal to carry binoculars in Saudi Arabia.

It is also illegal to carry two passports in the country (something I have always done for 30+ years).

It is illegal to possess photos of scantily glad women. Don’t try to bring in a Playboy or even the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.

It gets worse. The Saudis are serious violators of human rights.

A 2020 US State Department report on Saudi Arabia noted: “Significant human rights issues included: unlawful killings; executions for nonviolent offenses; forced disappearances; torture and cases of cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment of prisoners and detainees by government agents; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest and detention; political prisoners or detainees; serious restrictions on free expression, the press, and the internet, including threats of violence or unjustified arrests or prosecutions against journalists, censorship, site blocking, and engaging in harassment and intimidation against Saudi dissidents living abroad; substantial interference with the freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association; severe restrictions of religious freedom; restrictions on freedom of movement; inability of citizens to choose their government peacefully through free and fair elections; violence and discrimination against women, although new women’s rights initiatives were implemented; trafficking in persons; criminalization of consensual same-sex sexual activity; and restrictions on workers’ freedom of association, including prohibition of trade unions and collective bargaining.”

A 2021 Amnesty International report on Saudi Arabia said: “The crackdown continued on the rights to freedom of expression, association and assembly. The Specialized Criminal Court handed down heavy prison terms to individuals for their human rights work and expression of dissenting views. Among those arbitrarily detained, prosecuted or sentenced were human rights defenders, government critics and other political activists. Women human rights defenders were subjected to judicially imposed travel bans following conditional release from prison. Courts resorted extensively to the death penalty and people were executed for a wide range of crimes. Migrant workers continued to be vulnerable to abuse and exploitation under the country’s sponsorship system, and tens of thousands were arbitrarily detained and subsequently deported. Prison authorities violated the right to health of human rights defenders and others imprisoned after grossly unfair trials.”

Nope, that’s not a country where I would plan to spend my volitional leisure travel dollars or time.

Very probably you soon will have to make your own decision on the Saudi question. Their intentions are plain, their money is plentiful, and they are in a hurry to make a mark in global tourism. Will you help them?

I know I won’t.