It is no surprise that Thai tourism officials moved quickly to try to contain the negative impact of the multiple attacks in seven provinces last week. Since the bomb attacks occurred at the start of the long holiday weekend, tourists -- local and international -- were well on their way to their holiday destinations. The initial impact could be described as minimal.
The big question mark is what the impact on hotel and travel bookings in the months ahead after the extent of the attacks sinks in will be. Compared to many countries across the globe, bomb attacks, especially those targeting foreigners and tourists, are infrequent. The most recent and serious attack in which many tourists were killed was the one on the Erawan shrine last year.
But in such incidents, the best confidence booster is whether authorities are able to determine and identify within a reasonable time the motive behind the attacks and the culprits involved. Conflicting motives sow confusion, raising doubts about credibility of police work, investigations or arrests, which in the end fails to boost confidence.
The Tourism Authority of Thailand has the primary task of boosting confidence after each attack or bombing. The agency has the unenviable task of responding to doubts and is unable to speak fully on behalf of investigating authorities. In the most recent attacks, that TAT has been quick to announce a number of initiatives aimed at boosting tourist confidence.
The raft of measures includes a Situation Monitoring Centre and a "We Care" campaign. These two initiatives are aimed letting people know that the country is still a secure and welcoming destination.
The "We Care" initiative, for example, involves campaigning for local communities to make tourists feel welcome and to encourage everyone working in the field of tourism to wear special white-yellow ribbons -- symbols of the peace and unity of the nation.
A number of special events and festivals are being planned to stimulate travel and bookings, including a proposal for the cabinet to approve adding a special weekend holiday next month.
These measures are all well and good. But what is puzzling is the proposal to use Pokemon Go to promote tourism and restore tourists' confidence.
Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul and her team want to invite tourists to hunt Pokemon characters in Thailand. It will ask True Corporation to add PokeStops and Gyms to various popular and safe tourist destinations to attract travellers to catch rare Pokemon items and characters in these areas. This they say will help boost tourism activities.
"The ministry will create an infographic map and user guide for Pokemon hunters, offering locations, tips, and do's and don'ts for tourists," Ms Kobkarn said.
There is even some thought being given to developing a Pokemon hunting package priced at about 10,000 baht for three days and two nights with target locations in the North as it has many historical places.
The TAT's proposal runs counter to security and safety concerns raised by the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC).
The NBTC wants to set four no-go zones for players in Thailand such as state properties, temples, private zones and dangerous areas such as roads, waterways and railways.
One questions the reasoning and logic of the TAT initiative. Surely the idea of promoting historical sites and destinations is to get visitors to learn and appreciate Thai history, culture and heritage. Encouraging tourists to chase after augmented reality characters and creatures defeats this objective. In this case, please, Pokemon No.