Red Dot’s turnover grew by nearly 50 per cent in 2007/8 – proof that Sri Lanka remains a viable and much-loved holiday destination.

For all the political problems afflicting the country, statistically Sri Lanka remains one of the safest destinations for tourists. But the terrorist war in the north and east naturally leaves questions. This is intended to provide some of the answers.

You may not regard us as independent witnesses, but our main office is based in Colombo, which gives us a day-to-day knowledge of Sri Lanka. Furthermore, our directors also have a background in the media and understand its tendency to combine truth with hype. Our staff has encompassed many races and religions and retains a broad perspective.

Our aim is to treat our travellers with respect and provide the clear information that you deserve. We provide clear links to BBC News and UK Foreign Office websites. This is our analysis, as of the date at the top of the page:

RED DOT GUARANTEES

If you chose to cancel an impending holiday because of a perceived worsening of the security situation – however much we may disagree with your assessment -- we voluntarily refund all recoverable costs, above and beyond our booking conditions. Our suppliers are generally sympathetic to such requests. Cancellation costs are most likely to be incurred the later the cancellation, in peak season, or if we are not kept properly informed.

We are also unique among specialist Sri Lankan companies in offering this guarantee in our Booking Conditions:

TERRORISM AND PERSONAL SAFETY:
Your personal safety is our prime concern. If the Foreign Office (or, in the case of non-UK travellers, the appropriate governmental body) advises against travel to any of the countries on your itinerary we will guarantee the following refunds in the event of cancellation. This clause overrides other cancellation clauses: Two months or more before travel: 90 per cent of holiday cost. Less than one month before travel: Minimum 85 per cent of holiday cost. During your holiday: All recoverable costs.

The fact that we sell directly from Sri Lanka enables us to react rapidly towards trends. We had 170 people in Sri Lanka at the time of the tsunami in 2004 and have a proven ability to respond professionally and caringly when a situation demands.

We like our holidaymakers to be informed and independently-minded. We realise many have a long-standing affinity with Sri Lanka and need no lectures about the political situation in the country. We carry links to BBC news on Sri Lanka from the home page and would encourage you to read about the situation, whilst retaining a sense of perspective about whether the situation is realistically going to impact in any way upon your holiday.

LATEST NEWS

April has been a troubled month in Colombo, and several bomb blasts have received much media attention. From a tourist perspective, it can honestly be stated that the travel industry continues undisturbed and Sri lanka lovers are taking advantage of some spectacular deals that are available in all regions of the country.

More than 20 people died when a bomb was left by Tamil terrorists on a bus on Colombo's southern outskirts in late April. Red Dot has advised against travel on public transport for several months.

The Sri Lankan Highways Minister, Jayeraj Fernandopulle was politically assassinated by a Tamil Tiger suicide bomber on April 5, during a ceremony to mark the approach of the Sinhala/Tamil New Year. He was killed while starting a marathon race, 18 miles outside Colombo. He was the second minister to be killed in 2008, following the assassination of DM Dassanayake, the minister for nation building, in January. Fernandopulle was a 55-year-old Roman Catholic lawyer and a vocal critic of the Tamil Tigers. Red Dot routinely advises that you avoid political gatherings.

GENERAL SUMMARY

1. The Sri Lankan government began 2008 by formally withdrawing from a moribund ceasefire agreement with the Tamil Tiger rebels who have long been fighting for an independent state in the north-east of the country. The government stated that continued violence meant that the Norwegian-brokered ceasefire had long become redundant. Erik Solheim, foreign minister of Norway, who have long sought to broker a peace deal, has understandably expressed fears of worsening violence. The ceasefire has been regarded as fraudulent by all analysts since peace talks broke down in October 2006. It can be logically argued therefore that there will be no material change in the situation following the decision. That the Sri Lankan government is now committed to trying to win the military conflict in the north and east, however, should be incontestable.

2. Foreign Office advice about travel to Sri Lanka remains essentially unchanged. You can read click here

3. Colombo: Colombo, in our estimation, now requires careful analysis from a holidaymaker or business traveller. Security in Colombo has been stepped up and the capital suffers from occasional terrorist attacks. There have been eight significant bomb attacks since November. These are habitually been targeted on political or military figures, but they are occasionally more indiscriminate. In early February, a suicide attack at the Fort railway station killed eight and injured many more. Despite all this, Colombo remains a normally functioning city, with hotels and restaurants offering excellent value to the traveller. Around 4,000 England cricket fans had a trouble-free visit to Colombo during England’s Test series against Sri Lanka in December. You might conclude that it is merely another somewhat troubled city in the modern world; you might prefer to stay out of the city. It depends on your philosophy of life. Stays in Colombo should be judged in this context.

4. Public transport: Red Dot advises against travel on public buses in the current climate. A bomb explosion at Dambulla’s main bus station in early February 2008 killed 18 people, and a bus bomb in April on Colombo's southern fringe killed 24. The Foreign office advice also generally questions the safety record of Sri Lankan buses. The bomb in February at Colombo Fort railway station also leads us to warn against train travel in and out of Colombo, although we will assist with such arrangements if travellers confirm in writing that they are aware of the risks involved. Our policy on hill-country trains is unaffected. Red Dot carries out security and safety checks on all its vehicles.

5. In November, the Foreign Office advised against travel to Yala game park, Yala reopened in early February following extensive security checks, but FO advice remains not to travel. Many Red Dot travellers still wish to visit Yala and we will consider bookings on a case-by-case as long as clients confirm in writing that they are aware of FO advice.

BACKGROUND

We would like to offer a brief analysis of the present security situation in Sri Lanka following the Sri Lankan government’s decision at the start of 2008 formally to withdraw from the ceasefire deal with the Tamil Tigers rebels:

1. The Sri Lankan government and the LTTE rebels bowed to concerted world pressure by agreeing to attend peace talks in Geneva at the end of October 2006. These broke up without agreement about how to proceed. In the ensuing months as conflict returned to the north and east the ceasefire agreement became worthless in the eyes of the government, the LTTE and foreign mediators such as the Norwegians.

2. The Government and the LTTE (Tamil Tigers) have taken a hardline stance since the talks broke up. The LTTE leader, Prabhakaran, has accused the government of not seriously seeking a settlement and has said that the continuation of military action will leave them no alternative but to fight for an independent Tamil state in the north and east. Fighting has since intensified in these areas. Both parties claim to be abiding by the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement and insist their actions are “defensive” in motive rather than offensive. Western observers unanimously reject this suggestion.

3. SP Thamiselvan, the LTTE's second in command, was killed in air raids by Sri Lankan forces on November 2 in the Tigers' northern stronghold of Kilinochchi. Following the death of Anton Balsingaham in 2006, SP Thamilselvan had been the main point of contact between the Tigers and the West, and had represented them at abortive peace talks in Geneva. Suggestions that he was a moderate are widely disputed. He fought for ten years in the conflict between 1982-92 and in mid-2007 had openly threatened to cripple Sri Lanka's economy with targeted military attacks. His death therefore is likely to maintain the status quo.

4. This regrettable development followed a potentially historic accord signed in October 2006, by President Rajapakse's ruling People's Alliance and the second largest party, the UNP, in which they agreed to work together towards a political settlement with the LTTE. The agreement with the UNP sidelined the JVP, a minority hardline nationalist party promoting a military solution to the conflict. This promised to put the issue of devolution in the north and east back on the agenda. The accord unravelled in February 2007 after the government successfully courted a group of opposition MP’s to guarantee them a Parliamentary majority.

5. Throughout 2007, the government has claimed a succession of military victories. It maintains that it has now taken effective control of the Eastern Province south of Trincomalee. The LTTE insist that they have “tactically withdrawn” from those previously rebel-controlled areas. The government has since also engaged LTTE forces in the Wanni (the rebel-controlled North), claiming they are neutralising military threats through air raids and ground movements.

6.It is in this political and military context that the LTTE, using two light aircraft, launched its first air raid -- a night air raid on the Air Force Base at Katunayake on 26 March, 2007. The aircraft dropped explosives on the Air Force Base – which is adjacent to the main Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) – killing three servicemen and injuring several others. There was no major damage to the airport and no civilians were involved. The main airport was closed for less than two hours. The airport responded promptly by suspending night-time flights after a safety review. The air taxi service has also been suspended.

7. The increased violence and slow progress towards a lasting power-sharing political solution is undoubtedly a cause for concern and sadness. There is, though, a need for perspective. The feedback from Red Dot holidaymakers during the last year remains overwhelmingly positive. The temporary slump in tourism in early 2007 has recovered. Red Dot bookings for 2007/8 reached record levels.

8. Throughout the two-decade conflict, tourists have never been targeted by terrorists by the Tamil Tigers. There is no evidence to suggest this situation has changed. Recent attacks have all involved carefully-specified military targets – Habarana Navy convoy, Galle Navy Base, Katunayake Airforce base.

9. No serious analyst expects a civil war to break out across the entire island. Media talk of Sri Lanka being "on the brink of civil war" is misleading, irresponsible and the product of lazy journalism. We regret all loss of life and personal grief in this beautiful country. But travellers should recognise that any prolonged fighting has taken place in the far north and east, away from the tourist areas.

10. The UK Foreign Office upgraded its advice in December, 2006 to record a growing risk of targeted terrorist attacks on political and army figures in the capital, Colombo. The overall level of advice did not change. Two senior army figures and a Tamil politician in favour of democratic government have been killed and there was a failed attempt to assassinate Gothabaya Rajapakse, the defence minister and brother of the president. Travellers should expect to see an increased army presence in the capital -- security checkpoints have been increased – but otherwise Colombo operates normally. There is no open conflict around the capital, or indeed in any tourist area, nor is there any likelihood of this. We believe that to equate the risk in Colombo with the risk of a terrorist bomb in London is both valid and helpful. Colombo remains a relatively safe city for a traveller to walk around.

11. Red Dot stopped sales to the east coast towns of Trinco and Arugam Bay in May 2006 and now only offer to those travellers, such as aid workers, who convince us that they are well versed about the situation. We must stress that there remain no concerns about safety in any recognised tourism areas, including the entire Cultural Triangle and Galle. The Foreign office advice on these areas has not changed. We draw up every itinerary with concerns about safety and would propose changes to itineraries if we saw the slightest reason for concern.

12. Everybody should wish for a peaceful solution. It is a fact, however, that for those holidaymakers able to make intelligent assessments of the true situation in the country, the sad return of political conflict has come hand in hand with wonderful holiday value.

14. We like our holidaymakers to be informed and independently-minded. We realise many have a long-standing affinity with Sri Lanka and need no lectures about the political situation in the country. We carry links to BBC news on Sri Lanka from the home page and would encourage you to read about the situation, whilst retaining a sense of perspective about whether the situation is realistically going to impact in any way upon your holiday.

David Hopps & Charlie Austin
Directors, Red Dot Tours Ltd