Aruba Get Trade Show Wrong as Well … More Bad PR for Aruba … Can Aruba get Anything Right?

Can Aruba get anything right? Does everything have to be some form of a shake down, where in the process all that occurs is dissatisfied customers? Aruba still has not learned the concept “the customer is always right” and that there are other places where people can spend their dollars and get treated accordingly. The lack of understandng that concept is quite stunning seeing that Aruba’s economy is based on tourism.

If this was a problem, the ATA should have informed the meeting planners in advance, so that they could have included this in their evaluation.   The action leaves a bitter taste in the mouth now and it has negative influence on a possible recurrence.

Will Aruba ever learn that sometimes its about getting anyone to even want to come to Aruba? Since the disappearance of Natalee Holloway and the bad PR they have received from the questionable investigation and judicial process, Aruba’s tourism has tanked. Aruba has all but begged and lowered prices to entice people to go to Aruba in lieu of forgetting that an American tourist went missing and vanished on their watch.

However, Aruba plays the nepotism and favoritism game again. This time its with set ups for trade shows. Aruban ministers have actually stopped the set up of a trade show so that they could have their own do the job.

According to rumours, a local company that wanted to get the job, went to the minister and told him about it.  

The premise sounds easy enough except for the fact that there is no coherent policy that states either way how to handle this issue.

Because, that is bad publicity for Aruba, is the opinion of employers’ organization Atia, who says that this is another example of a non-coherent policy. 

Amigoe; Sept 27, 2007: Problems with the set up of a trade show

ORANJESTAD – Is a group that comes to Aruba for a congress allowed to bring its own people to set up the trade show?  The minister of Immigration Affairs does not think so and has therefore stopped all the set up work this past weekend and demanded that a local company takes over.

This happened in the Radisson Hotel that accommodated a group of approximately 500 conference tourists for a trade show and expo of the company Telefonica and Movistar from Venezuela.  The set up of the show started this past weekend.  The Guarda nos Costa went to the place and ordered the work to be stopped immediately based on article 8, sub 2 of the LTU, which implies that a tourist visa does not give the right to work.  According to rumours, a local company that wanted to get the job, went to the minister and told him about it.  

The group immediately brought in some lawyers that set the matter straight, so the show could continue.  Most of the participants may not have noticed that something was going on, but this is a serious incident.  Because, that is bad publicity for Aruba, is the opinion of employers’ organization Atia, who says that this is another example of a non-coherent policy.  Minister Briesen (Tourism and Transport) is pursuing a policy that focuses on increasing the conference tourism during low season.  The arrival of the group fits perfectly in this policy, and Minister Wever of Immigration Affairs thwarts this policy by starting about work permits, while the group was already here. If this was a problem, the ATA should have informed the meeting planners in advance, so that they could have included this in their evaluation.   The action leaves a bitter taste in the mouth now and it has negative influence on a possible recurrence.