Respectful tourism please
Residents in Christchurch, New Zealand, where 185 people died in a February 2011 earthquake that flattened the downtown area, have grown accustomed to buses disgorging camera-wielding visitors at sites such as the ruins of the Anglican cathedral, once the symbol of the city.
Shelagh Ferguson and Alex Coats, marketing researchers at New Zealand's Otago University, last month published a study on the dark tourism phenomenon which found locals accepted such interest was inevitable, but wanted strict controls to prevent stirring more trauma in a community where memories of the disaster remain raw.
The locals resented "rubbernecking" in suburbs where people are still rebuilding their homes two-and-a-half years on. But they had no problem with tours taking in sites in Christchurch's central business district where mass fatalities occurred, provided they were respectful and avoided sensationalism.
The study, carried out using in-depth focus groups, said as memories of the quake faded outside Christchurch, disaster tours served to remind incoming visitors about its victims and what the city had endured.
"We found that residents understood the fascination that death and disaster might exert over visitors and should not be ignored as confrontation with death allows for catharsis, acceptance, and a means of grieving" it concluded.
On a very practical level, tourists spend money—often at a time when a devastated area desperately needs jobs and investment to get back on its feet.
Akira Oikawa, who sells fish, seaweed and other processed marine products, said the post-disaster day-trippers to Rikuzentakata and the nearby area were helping to make up the shortfall.
"We are grateful for tourists visiting here and buying local products, as we saw a drop in the number of tourists after the disaster," he said.
"But it's hurtful when people ask casually about how many people died," he added. "We appreciate a little bit of empathy."