Ho Chi Minh City tourism officials have urged the local government to establish a tourist police agency to stem rising crimes targeting foreign visitors.
Deputy director of the HCM City Tourism Department La Quoc Khanh said tourist safety is becoming a big issue, with diplomats from the embassies of Australia, South Korea, Japan and the Taipei all reporting an increasing number of street robberies against their citizens.
"In writing, they expressed concern about the rise in the number of foreigners who were robbed in the city and the lack of cooperation or insufficient cooperation of the functional forces upon receiving tourists’ information," Khanh said.
Nguyen Thanh Phong, chairman of HCMC People’s Committee said a new tourism police unit would be set up and managed by the Department of Tourism.
New recruits would be trained by the city police, he said.
In a broader citywide crackdown on crime, the city will punish district leaders if robberies continue to escalate.
Phan Anh Minh, deputy director of HCMC Police Department also called for sanctions to be imposed against travel companies that do not do all they can to ensure the safety of their customers.
