News

Part Of Borocay Beach Closed For Up To 3 Days After Tourist Let Kid Poop There

2019-08-16 , 10:00 am

There’s nothing better than lazing on a beach while on holiday.

Some of us like to go for an invigorating swim, some like to laze in the sand and bask in the sunshine, while others like to take a nice, huge shit on the shores.

That happened.

Part of Borocay beach closed

A part of Borocay beach has been closed for three days after a tourist reportedly let her child poop in its waters.

After a video of the incident went viral on social media, the Boracay Inter-agency Task Force (BITF) were instructed to isolate the area for a clean-up.

The defiled area was closed off with markers 100m wide on the shoreline that read “No swimming, this area is under clean up’ for a period of 48 to 72 hours”.

I don’t know about you, but swimming in a nice beach like Borocay only to find a turd floating in the water would certainly ruin my holiday.

And if pooping near the shore wasn’t bad enough, the video also showed another woman burying the child’s soiled underwear in the sand.

Penalties for inconsiderate tourists

Tourism chief Bernadette Romulo-Puyat encouraged the public to report such incidents to the authorities so these misbehaving tourists can be “promptly apprehended and fined accordingly” for violating environmental laws.

Ms Puyat added that the tourism agency would step up their efforts to inform tourists of the “proper travel etiquette”.

“We will continue to coordinate with the tour operators and travel agencies in informing our tourists of the proper travel etiquette when visiting the Philippines and the corresponding fines and punishments if these are not followed,” she said.

So if you were to travel to Borocay, better make sure you adhere to their rules, eh.

Limited Entry:

Only 19,000 tourists are welcome to stay on the island at any given time
Entry is limited to 6,405 visitors to the island per day
The number of available hotel rooms will be reduced to 6,000 to 9,000 from 12,000
Tourists may be required to present hotel reservations before entering the island
You can only book from Department of Tourism-accredited hotels. You can find the list here

And the rules you have to follow while on the beaches:

No smoking and alcoholic beverages along White Beach (main beach area of Boracay)
Dining on the beach is prohibited
Beachfront parties are now banned
Sandcastles (a big attraction in Boracay) will be regulated
Shops and hawkers/peddlers are banned from peddling their goods on the beach
Fire dancing with kerosene lamps are prohibited
Casinos are banned on the island

Six-month shutdown

This pooping incident is especially irksome considering that Borocay was closed off for six months just last year for restoration and a large-scale clean-up.

In April 2018, President Rodrigo Duterte approved a recommendation from three government agencies to shut Borocay down due to the sewage and environment-related problems caused by unbridled tourism.

The island reopened in October 2018, but with tougher sanctions aimed at tourists. Drinking, smoking, and beach parties are now prohibited, and all water sports except swimming are banned.

The beach reopened with clearer waters and a spotless shoreline, and the government wants to keep it that way.

Before the shut down last year, Duerte called the island a “cesspool” and said “You go into the water, it’s smelly. Smells of what? Sh*t.”

Well, it seems like not much has changed, unfortunately.

For tourists heading to Borocay, or any place in the world for that matter, please, be considerate and treat the place with respect.

Yesterday, I advised tourists to not wash their asses with holy water, and today, I’m encouraging them to not poop on beaches. I don’t even want to know what’s going to happen tomorrow.