Tourism – A culprit in commodifying cultures and traditions

Tourism is a culprit in commodifying cultures and traditions. The Aborginal culture is used for tourism promotional purpose in both a general and product specific manner that can be illustrated with reference to 1999 brochure ,” Central Australia Holiday Guide”, It writes “you will have a fanastic time ,but it will leav you wanting to come back .” This shows that Aboriginal culture was increasingly promoted as a tourist attraction. Research shows that only a small minority of people have a strong interest in Aboriginal culture tourism products and a larger proportion of visitors view them as part of the image of Australian landscapes.

Case Study: Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park

In the previous posts, you will have read that the Tjapukai Aboriginal Cultural Park is the largest employer of Aborginal people in Australia, however the breakdown of equity is as such Djabugay people only own 15.8% , Tirrganydji (10%) and Nganydjin (3.6%). The rest goes to ATSIC and indirect Aboriginal interests. Thise the ability of the people to influence the Park through their shareholding is minimal. The employees themselves think that the performances are unauthentic and they are taught how to dance to accommodate to the Park managers’ requirements which are taken into account from tourists surveys.