The Tourism Ministry has given an assurance that it will not tolerate tour agencies forcing co-ed accommodation on its tour guides.

The ministry's secretary-general Ong Hong Peng urged all those affected to lodge a complaint when employers force female and male colleagues to share rooms while on assignment.

NONE This was decided today after a two-half-hour meeting with Women, Family and Community Development deputy minister Heng Seai Kie ( left ), Ong and representatives from the police force as well as the Malaysia Tourism Federation (MTF) and the Malaysian Women Tourist Guide Association (MWTGA).

According to Ong, the ministry had today received the first complaint on a tour company which had forced its male and female employees to share accommodation.

He said the ministry will issue a show-cause letter, requiring the employer to respond within 14 days.

The ministry will wrap up investigations within three weeks after the response and then take the appropriate action.

"There is a specific clause in the rules and regulations imposed on tour and travel agencies but we need the cooperation of those affected to enable us to act," said Ong.

Among the measures to be implemented are spot checks and show-cause letters issued to tour agency operators alleged to have infringed the regulations.

If the tour agency is found guilty its licence will be revoked, warned Ong.

No enforcement

Yesterday, MWTGA president Erina Loo complained that although the clause in the regulations was imposed two years ago on June 1, 2009, there has not been any enforcement.

NONE Loo ( right ) was responding to a statement by Heng urging female tourist guides to speak up against errant employers after news reports that a male bus driver had sexually assaulted a female tourist guide while they were sharing a room in a hotel in Malacca.

Heng, who chaired the meeting, said that the Tourism Ministry is looking into its rules to make sure there is strict enforcement and also put in place measures to ensure that tour guides do not lose their incomes after exposing their employer.

"In order to ensure job security, we also proposed to include in the licence conditions that at least 30 percent of assignments are given to women tour guides," said Heng.

"We want to make sure there is no gender discrimination. We also assure that the identity of the of the complainant will be kept confidential," added Ong.

"We just need vital information like the name of the tour agency and contact details. A lengthy complaint won't be necessary.

"We will check on itineraries and rooming charts and use other unobtrusive ways to eliminate such practices," he said.

Meeting with stakeholders

Moreover, the Tourism Ministry will be meeting with other stakeholders including hotel operators, tour companies and their guides to explain the licence regulations on Wednesday and emphasise its enforcement, said Ong.

Asked why the ministry has not conducted relevant spot-checks in the past and why must they act only after complaints, Ong said:

"There are over more than 3,000 tour agency operators. Without specific information to enable us to conduct a surprise check, it is like looking for a needle in a haystack."

He stressed that no one was to be blamed, as the parties were only interested to solve the woes faced by female tour guides.

Police officer Ong Chin Lan from the Criminal Investigation Department, who also attended the dialogue, called on "all silent sufferers to come forward and provide information".