Is China weaponising tourism? the case of Palau, 2008-2018

Abstract

China's use of outbound tourism as a type of economic sanctions has been dubbed “the weaponisation of tourism” by several commentators. The conventional view is that stringent government control and the high volume of outbound tourists give the Chinese state considerable leverage over destination countries. It remains unclear how the weaponisation of tourism is implemented and what are the results. This case study investigates China's outbound tourism to Palau, a small island country located in the western Pacific Ocean, that is committed to Taiwan diplomatically yet dependent on China economically. First, it describes the evolution of China's outbound tourism to Palau between 2008 and 2018 and identifies the key factors that contribute to the fluctuation of Chinese tourist arrivals, using tourism statistics, government reports, news reports, social media postings and interviews. Second, it summarises the characteristics of China's weaponisation of tourism. Third, it evaluates the weaponisation of tourism using different criteria. The findings suggest that the weaponisation of tourism is implemented by enforcing Approved Destination Status regulations and exercising cyber sovereignty. As a type of unilateral, trade sanctions, it has limited effects on Chinese tourist arrivals in Palau, due to bureaucratic incompetence, poor coordination and the noninvolvement of private corporations. Its effectiveness as an instrument of China's foreign policy should not be overstated.