Editorial

IPPG is now eight years old and 2004 has been another year where we saw changes happening in the porter world, with a global awakening of people to the importance of ethical tourism. Here are a few events I would like to mention.

I have been contacted by an Australian who runs trips in Papua New Guinea/Irian Jaya pointing out that while the number of porters in Papua New Guinea is small, the steady growth of trekking and local operators is reproducing all the woes seen elsewhere. We need to enlist a rep for that area.

I have received a copy of a letter sent to a Spanish trekker by Rupa Maya Jirel, the wife of his porter friend. She is distraught after her husband died coming back from a carry into the Meera peak area. How he died is unknown but the odds are he is yet another victim of altitude illness, trying to make his way back alone having been paid off. What is clear though is the profound effect his death has had on his wife, children and relatives. Without support and often with no insurance, a bereaved family is plunged into a precarious existence when the breadwinner dies.

In the Karakoram (Pakistan) five porters drowned while carrying loads across a river. Also in this region there is increasing friction over the definition of the daily stages on which payment is based. On a brighter note, in Tanzania the Kilimanjaro Guides and Porter Union are operating its own treks, and in Peru Porteadores Inka Nan are now well established.

Kul Bahadur, who lost his feet to frostbite while working as a porter (Kul featured in the BBC documentary Carrying the Burden), has now bought a teashop near Pashupatinath (Kathmandu) with the help of a sponsor, and is slowly gathering his family back around him.

Last for not least, the Machermo porter rescue post is now running each trekking season and the porter shelter construction is under way, courtesy of CAN (Community Action Nepal – UK) and the generous support of our donors.

More than ever I am convinced that ethical tourism that puts a reasonable percentage of profits back into the host country is a powerful way to make a difference to developing nations and avoid aid dependency.

Dr Jim Duff INTERNATIONAL DIRECTOR

PS. Since I wrote this the situation in Nepal has changed dramatically with the King’s coup. While the political situation is unstable, the poor will suffer the most. IPPG hopes that all parties will come to a peaceful settlement where the government reflects the will of the people.