12/02/12, 12:13:09 EST

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'Crime keeps the tourists away'

iol.co.za

Crime is preventing tourists and potential investors from coming to SA, while the bitter ANC succession battle and the Zimbabwean crisis are giving the country negative publicity abroad, MPs heard yesterday.

The International Marketing Council (IMC) of South Africa briefed parliament's portfolio committee on communications about its efforts to market SA internationally.

The difficulty about this task, said IMC chief executive Yvonne Johnston, was that crime stories were "difficult to refute and impossible to spin".

The recent murders of internationally renowned figures such as reggae star Lucky Dube, historian David Rattray and musician Taliep Pietersen did not augur well for South Africa's marketing prospects.

"The frightening headlines about crime have become the dominant story in the international media. The reality is that this is the biggest issue inhibiting tourism and investment to South Africa," she said.

Johnston also told the committee that there had been a swing to negative reports in the international media in the past six months.

This was being fuelled by crime, the ANC's succession battle, debates about 2010 readiness and the ongoing turmoil in Zimbabwe.

The Australians were the number one culprit in "relishing" the South African crime story and, according to IMC research, the Aussies had the most negative views about SA, said Johnston.

"Crime is driving international companies to reconsider South African postings for their staff and this is a threat to the (positive SA) brand," she said.

The negative press brought about by the ANC's succession battle, she said, was largely based on reports of "in fighting" within the ANC over who should lead the party and ultimately the country.

While highlighting the negative perceptions brought about by the crime situation, Johnston disagreed with the belief that the government was in denial about crime.

"I think the reality is that crime has not been denied by our government at all... I think it's an unfair perception; I think that our government has stood up repeatedly and said, 'This is our number one issue and we are trying to fight it'," she said.

The IMC has now adopted a turnaround strategy to counter the negative press, wherein it will develop a media drive and advertising campaigns that will see it churning out positive stories about the country.

The starting point is the organisation's "We've done it before campaign" which seeks to dispel the wild perception that South Africa would not be able to deliver a successful 2010 World Cup.

The IMC is tasked with marketing the positive face of SA to foreign countries and it currently has offices in the UK, US and India.

 Printable Version  | published Oct 24, 2007