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Search for missing Taiwan tourist in Kashmir
Srinagar: The Kashmir police on Saturday said that they are searching for a Taiwan tourist missing for a week in the valley. Thay have also offered a reward in advertisements published on the front pages of newspapers in Kashmir featuring the photograph of the 52-year-old woman, whose name is given as Huang-Su-Chin. Policemen in motorboats patrolled the Dal lake, Kashmir's main tourist attraction in Srinagar, as part of their search. Abdul Rashid, sub-inspector of Jammu and Kashmir Police said Huang-Su-Chin, who arrived here on March 22, checked into a houseboat and told the houseboat owner that she was going to an internet cafe but since then she is missing. "We have requested the houseboat owners to help us in our enquiry for the missing tourist. As there are a few houseboat owners, who are not registered and they lure these tourists and take them to their venues. So we are searching every area. We are tracing out what is the actual position and are hopeful of finding a positive result soon," said Rashid. The lake is dotted with hand-carved pinewood houseboats popular with tourists.
Meanwhile,
houseboat owners said the incident gives out a bad image about the region,
where tourism is gradually picking up after over 18 years of unrest. "Until
the time police is able to trace this lady, we are really worried because
it will affect our tourism it gives a bad image about our place. So our
incoming foreign tourism will be hit," said Ali Mohammed Shalla, advisor
to houseboat owners association. A record number of 610,320 tourists,
including 18,080 foreigners, visited Kashmir last year, which was the
biggest number since 1989. But most Western countries still caution their
nationals against travel to Kashmir. Six Western tourists were abducted
in Kashmir in 1995. One Norwegian was beheaded, an American escaped and
the four others are presumed dead. However, violence has declined in the
Himalayan region since India and Pakistan began a peace process more than
two years ago, gun battles between security forces and soldiers still
take place frequently.
-April 1, 2006
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