2018 Boracay closure and redevelopment

2018 Boracay closure
Volunteers from the DENR Region 6 conducting a cleanup in Bulabog Beach. April 26, 2018.
Date April 26 – October 26, 2018
Duration 6 months
Location Boracay, Malay, Aklan, Philippines
Type Closure / Rehabilitation
Cause Violations of building and sewerage regulations by business establishments, deteriorating environmental conditions

The closure of the Philippine resort island of Boracay, one of the nation's major tourist destinations, was set for six months starting April 26, 2018 as part of the government's efforts at the island's environmental rehabilitation. As part of the closure, Boracay would be closed except to registered island residents and employees of its business establishments.

Background

Algal bloom in Boracay on April 25, 2018, a day prior to the resort island's closure.

In a business forum held in February 9, 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte called the island of Boracay a "cesspool" and announced plans to close the island to tourists and conduct a rehabilitation on the island in June 2018 to resolve the worsening sewage conditions there. Duterte has directed Environment secretary Roy Cimatu to resolve the environmental issues in the island.[1] Boracay is part of the jurisdiction of the town of Malay of Aklan province. Three of Malay's barangays are in Boracay.[2]

According to the Western Visayas regional office of the Department of Tourism, Boracay had two million tourists in 2017 which accounts for 34 percent of Western Visayas' 5.8 million tourist arrivals. At least 19,031 are employed to work on the island.[3]

Waters along the beaches of Boracay have experienced algal bloom which environmentalists and some long-time residents claim to be an indicator of pollution and deteriorating water conditions. The Malay municipal government, some business operators, and some residents insist that the algal bloom is a natural seasonal phenomenon that usually occurs annually in the summer, and occurred on Boracay even before the island became developed.[2]

Boracay Island Water Co. operates the sewage network of Boracay which accommodates only 61 percent of the island. The island has two central sewerage treatment plants with a total a total capacity of 11.5 million liters/day, one in Barangay Balabag and another in Barangay Manoc-Manoc, and plans the construction of a third plant in Barangay Yapak with a capacity of 5 million litres/day. This addition will allow more establishments in the Balabag area to connect to the sewer system. Without this addition, only 58 percent of the capacity is used.[4]

Events leading to the closure

Following Rodrigo Duterte's comment on the situation in Boracay, the local government of Malay issued a statement in February 19, 2018 accepting the remarks by the president as "constructive criticism" and has acknowledged the environmental issues affecting the island. It pointed out that the municipal government has entered in a partnership with architectural firm, Palafox Associates to formulate a tourism municipal master plan which involves decongesting Boracay and implementing building regulations in the island. In addition it has criticized ABS-CBN and GMA Network for using photos of algal bloom in the island to "sensationalize" the algal phenomenon in the island which it insists as natural and says it only occurs in the summer.[2]

There were repeat calls for a partial closure of Boracay instead of a total closure. 1-Pacman partylist has proposed the closure of areas identified as medium to high risk based primarily on environmental and sanitary standards while low risk areas are to operate while the rest of the island is being rehabilitated.[5]

Planned media coverage restriction

The Department of Interior and Local Government announced that journalists would need permission to cover the shutdown of Boracay.[6] On April 14, 2018, the Department of Tourism of the Philippines issued guidelines that sought to limit media coverage of the Boracay shutdown. According to the media accreditation guidelines, television networks would be limited to 12 persons, while radio, print, and online organizations and wire services would be limited to five persons.[7] Accredited organizations would be allowed on the island from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., restricted to designated areas,[6] and required to be escorted.[8] "Vetting and processing" of applications for accreditation would take three to five working days.[7]

The Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility (CMFR) noted criticisms that saw the guidelines "as government’s way to prevent access to critical media, selectively favoring the media practitioners who are friendly to government."[7] The National Union of Journalists of the Philippines called the restrictions unconstitutional.[6] The CMFR said the accreditation system was a form of prior restraint,[9] and noted a wider pattern of restrictions that sought to limit press freedom in the Philippines.[7][9]

On April 25, 2018, the Department of Tourism announced that it was dropping the requirement for accreditation for media coverage.[8]

Closure and rehabilitation

Cleanup of algae in Boracay

On April 4, 2018, the Philippine government announced that Boracay would be closed for up to six months starting on April 26.[10] Checkpoints manned by police officers and soldiers would be set up at piers in Boracay to turn away visitors from the island. Passes would be given to local residents. [11]

On the day of the closure, President Rodrigo Duterte declared a state of calamity over the three barangays of Boracay.[12]

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has distributed relief goods to residents of Boracay while the island is closed to tourists. In June 2018, there were reports of residents receiving spoiled canned goods. The DSWD has admitted mishandling the relief efforts, apologize, and vowed to investigate the matter.[13]

Within the same month, a whale shark sighting was reported in Boracay through social media. Social media users mostly from Aklan hailed the sightings as a good sign.[14] The government through presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that the sighting is a proof that the rehabilitation is a success.[15] Greenpeace however responded to that the whale shark sighting is not an indicator of success of the cleanup efforts pointing out that whale sharks are migratory creatures and claimed that the animal is a normal occurrence in Boracay. It criticized the government for using the sighting as a metric for the rehabilitation.[16]

Department of Agriculture providing the Ati people tools and seeds for vegetable cultivation in the island.

The government in June 2018 announced that it is developing the Ati people's 2 ha (4.9 acres) ancestral land in Boracay into an agro-tourism area in an effort to integrate the Ati in the island's tourism industry. The development is part of the Department of Agriculture's Kabuhayan at Kaunlaran ng Kababayang Katutubo (lit. Livelihood and Progress of Filipino Indigenous Peoples; 4Ks) program which was conceptualized by the department's secretary Emmanuel Piñol. A greenhouse will be set up for vegetable cultivation and a goat farm for the production of milk. A organic restaurant serving Ati cuisine and hostel will also be set up[17]along the beach area to be run by members of the Ati people.[18]

The last batch of livelihood aid from the DSWD was distributed to Boracay residents on September 21. A total of ₱158.9 million worth of aid was given to residents affected by the closure.[19]

From October 16 to 25, 2018, Boracay will be partially opened or have a dry run of its return to tourism operations. Filipino citizens will only allowed to visit the island as tourists with locals given priority. Assessment will be made before Boracay will be fully reopened on its soft opening on October 26.[20]

Post-closure rehabilitation

Despite Boracay's soft opening to tourism on October 26, 2018, rehabilitation works will continue on the island with its first phase to complete within October 2018. The second phase of rehabilitation is projected to last until mid-2019 and the third phase until the end of 2019.[20]

In June 27, 2018, the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) filed a complaint against 17 executive officials including Aklan Governor Florencio Miraflores and Malay Municipal Mayor Ciceron Cawaling over neglect over Boracay. The officials were alleged to have been lax in issuing building permits and to have failed to sufficiently tackle illegal development activities on the island.[21]

Impact

The government projected that there will be about ₱18-20 billion loss of potential gross receipts as a result of the six months closure of Boracay.[22] Tourist stakeholders in the island project a loss of ₱30 billion as they estimate that 700,000 bookings by foreign tourists were cancelled in anticipation of the closure.[23]

Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific and AirAsia Philippines have announced that they will reduce flights to and from Kalibo International Airport in Kalibo and Godofredo P. Ramos Airport in Caticlan during the closure.[23]

One estimate placed the number of jobs to be lost at 36,000, with lost revenues at ₱56 billion.[24]

As a result of the closure, the Boracay police recorded only 14 index crimes from April 26 to June 22, 2018 as opposed 176 cases during the same period the previous year.[25]

Reform

Land use

On May 30, 2018, President Duterte declared that he planned to make the entire Island of Boracay a land reform area and wanted to prioritize Boracay's first inhabitants.[26][27]

Tourism regulations

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources conducted a study which concludes that the ideal number of people Boracay island can accommodate is 60,000 people. At that given population it is estimated that the island could produce nine tons of garbage at average. In lieu of this, the agency is working with the local government of Malay and other stakeholders to come up with new regulations once Boracay is opened again to tourists. The DENR would only allow for 19,000 tourists to visit the island daily. If the limit is exceeded, only allow tourists with hotel reservations would be allowed but their respective hotels would be alerted by the agency that the daily limit of tourists in the island has already been reach.[28] However it was later clarified that the government has yet to finalize the daily tourist limit to be imposed on Boracay.[20]

The Department of Tourism would also prohibit smoking and drinking of alcohol in public places and the beaches of Boracay though these activities would be allowed in designated areas. This was done in an effort to reduce cigarrete butts and shards from broken alcohol bottles in beaches. Large scale parties such as the "Laboracay", which draws in 60,000 to 70,000 tourists in three days, would no longer be allowed in the island.[29]

References

  1. ↑ "Duterte calls Philippine tourist island Boracay a 'cesspool'". The Star Online. 10 February 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Burgos, Nestor Jr. (19 February 2018). "Town gov't accepts Boracay 'cesspool' tag as 'constructive criticism'". Inquirer Visayas. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  3. ↑ Burgos, Nestor Jr. (23 March 2018). "Tourists calling off Boracay trips amid closure plans". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  4. ↑ "Boracay Water investing P1.15B for sewerage treatment plant". Panay News. 25 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  5. ↑ Diaz, Jess (1 August 2018). "Partial closure of Boracay Island pushed anew". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  6. 1 2 3 Yap, Tara (2018-04-17). "Boracay coverage restrictions 'illogical' – NUJP". Tempo. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  7. 1 2 3 4 "Pattern of Restrictions Signals Crackdown on PH Press". CMFR. May 7, 2018. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  8. 1 2 Burgos Jr., Nestor P. (April 26, 2018). "Task force scraps restrictions on media coverage of Boracay during closure". Inquirer. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  9. 1 2 "The DOT Accreditation System: A Form of Prior Restraint". CMFR. April 19, 2018. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  10. ↑ Ronda, Rainier Allan; Ong, Ghio; Romero, Alexis (5 April 2018). "Boracay closed for 6 months effective April 26". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  11. ↑ "Boracay closure creates chaos on the island". The Manila Times. Agence France-Presse. 7 April 2018. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  12. ↑ Corrales, Nestor (26 April 2018). "Duterte declares state of calamity in Boracay". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
  13. ↑ Jalea, Mary Gleefer (26 June 2018). "DSWD admits mishandling spoiled Boracay relief goods". Manila Times. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  14. ↑ "Whale shark in Boracay a 'good sign'". Panay News. 23 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  15. ↑ "After whale shark sighting, Palace says Boracay rehab a success". GMA News. 25 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  16. ↑ "Greenpeace: Butanding off Boracay no indicator of cleanup success". The Philippine Star. 26 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  17. ↑ Gomez, Eireene Jairee (28 June 2018). "Ati tribal land turned into Boracay agro-tourism area". The Manila Times. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  18. ↑ "Government to open resort, restaurant managed by the Ati tribe in Boracay". ABS-CBN News. 28 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  19. ↑ "Last batch of livelihood grants released in Boracay". Panay News. 23 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  20. 1 2 3 Talavera, Catherine (2 September 2018). "25 Boracay hotels, resorts get DOT nod". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  21. ↑ Burgos, Nestor Jr.; Nonato, Vince (28 June 2018). "DILG sues 17 Aklan execs for 'neglecting' Boracay". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  22. ↑ Montemayor, J.; Iglesias, M. (6 April 2018). "P20B losses seen with Boracay closure". Malaya Business Insights. Reuters. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  23. 1 2 Ramirez, Robertzon; Desiderio, Louella (6 April 2018). "700,000 foreign bookings in Boracay canceled". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 9 April 2018.
  24. ↑ Domingo, Katrina (March 22, 2018). "Boracay shutdown: 36,000 jobs, P56 billion revenues may be lost". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved 2018-05-17.
  25. ↑ "Dahil bawal pumasok: Boracay index crime down" [Because entry is forbidden:Boracay index crime down]. Politiko Visayas. 28 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
  26. ↑ "Duterte puts entire Boracay Island under land reform". The Philippine Inquirer. May 30, 2018.
  27. ↑ "Duterte: Original residents may sell awarded Boracay land to big businesses". ABS-CBN News. June 13, 2018.
  28. ↑ "DENR to employ control card system in Boracay Island". UNTV News & Rescue. 21 September 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
  29. ↑ Ramirez, Rober (30 August 2018). "DOT bans parties, smoking, drinking in Boracay". The Philippine Star. Retrieved 23 September 2018.
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