Those working in the Vietnamese tourism industry should not have any aggressive or discriminative actions against foreign tourists, especially those from the Chinese-speaking markets, the chief of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT) stated on Monday.

The tourism departments, travel societies and associations, tour organizers and hotels across the country must have solutions to ensure safety for tourists, VNAT chief Nguyen Van Tuan told a press briefing in Hanoi.

These organizations should keep any “aggressive, discriminative and unfair actions from happening to Chinese tourists,” Tuan urged.

The media meeting was held to deliver the VNAT report on international arrivals in May, which says the number of Chinese tourists has slumped, apparently following the ongoing tension over the Chinese oil rig illicitly stationed within Vietnamese waters since early this month.

The Vietnamese industry thus had to spread information about the country’s sovereignty over the East Vietnam Sea so that “tourists will understand and support Vietnam.”

“We also have to reassure tourists that the tension over the East Vietnam Sea does not affect the tourism activities ashore and in the coastal localities,” Tuan told reporters.

“Vietnam remains a safe, friendly and attractive destination for tourists from all over the world.”

However, Tuan admitted that the oil rig tension has put negative impacts on both Vietnamese and Chinese tourism as fewer Vietnamese holidaymakers are traveling to China and vice versa.

“The tourism industry must have promotional programs to attract more tourists from other markets, such as Australia, Russia, Japan, South Korea, West Europe, North America, and ASEAN,” he said.

Many local tour organizers reported earlier this month that their customers have asked to cancel booked packages to China as they feel uneasy about traveling there at this time of high tension.