Desamanya M.T.A. Furkhan, Chairman of the Confifi group of companies that pioneered the development of the hotel industry along the Golden Mile of the Beruwela coast, has become perhaps the first major player in tourism industry to slam the West on its attitude to the ending of the war and the consequences that have flowed from that.

In the chairman’s review in the annual reports of some of his companies (Riverina, Eden Hotel Lanka etc), Furkhan noted that towards the close of the last financial year ended March 31, 2009 government’s efforts to wipe out terrorism in the North was reaching its final phase.

This was "in the midst of tremendous pressures from Western countries who were spreading false propaganda about a ‘pending humanitarian disaster’ and ‘human rights violations’"

"They were all out to save the terrorists from total defeat. The Western media played a leading role to espouse the cause of the West which led to severe criticism and adverse travel advisories discouraging tourists from visiting Sri Lanka."

The government has now successfully completed a well planned and equally well executed military operation wiping out practically all the leaders of the LTTE and liberated the North and the Est.

"It was an unprecedented, historic achievement for which H.E. the President, the Defence Secretary, Heads of the Armed Forces and the Police should be extended our grateful thanks since terrorism as perpetrated by the LTTE for a continuous period of 25 years was the biggest hindrance to tourism in the country," he said.

"Now that it is finally eliminated, we can see the government is making relentless efforts to bring about peace without which tourism could not succeed in the island."

Furkhan noted that although travel advisories issued by several countries had been considerably toned down, some countries are still trying to discourage their nationals from visiting Sri Lanka.

"There is no doubt that the Western world is left thoroughly annoyed and are now smarting under the fact that the Sri Lankan Government totally ignored their pleas and threats to stop the war in the North,’’ he said.

"Therefore, it is more than apparent that at the moment the West is not in a hurry to tell the absolute truth (of the situation here) and make positive statements to encourage tourists to visit Sri Lanka."

Fortunately, the Western hegemony in the world is beginning to wane and new players like Brazil, Russia, India and China as well as the rich and powerful Middle Eastern countries are making their mark in the world scene. There were therefore prospects of new markets for tourism in Sri Lanka opening in such countries in the not too distant future.

Despite the false propaganda and most adverse media reports, tourist arrivals into the country stood at 438,470, which was only 11% down from the previous year’s 494,010, he noted.

Riverina Hotels PLC has had a bad year with group revenue down to Rs.270.1 million from Rs.349.9 million a year earlier incurring a loss after tax of Rs.43.9 million against a profit of Rs.39.6 million the previous year.

At company level, revenue was down to Rs.252.9 million from Rs.325.7 million and the net loss to Rs.34.6 million from a profit of Rs.28 million the previous year.

Furkhan claimed that a 20-year summary of operations showed that Riverina had mostly been a success with losses only recorded during the time of the tsunami and closure of the hotel for refurbishing.

He also said that the marginal dip of net assets per share to Rs.71.42 from Rs.73.87 the previous year did not take into account of what he called a "substantial hidden unrealized" capital gain in Riverina’s 24.4% stake in Eden Hotel.

If this was factored in, the present net asset value per share would rise to Rs.85.50, he said.

He explained that theirs was a four-star hotel where there was normally a high demand for rooms except during years of downturn caused by the terrorist problem.

"However, now that the war situation in Sri Lanka has come to an end, we can see that there is already a tremendous demand for the hotel in the market, and therefore I expect that in the post-war situation the marketing prospects of the hotel to be very high," he said.

In the context of severe competition to sell rooms both in city and resort hotels, Furkhan said that buyers constantly badgered the industry for special promotional rates even during peak periods. Most hoteliers succumb to this pressure in order to sell rooms.

"Now that the local war situation has come to an end, and there are some welcome signs of the beginning of the end of the global recession, there is greater hope for better tourist arrivals in the not too distant future he said.

Furkhan also said that although conditions compelled some hotels to postpone maintenance work on their properties in order to survive, the Confifi group as a matter of policy had given priority to keep their hotel plant in good order.

"I am happy to state that the Riverina Hotel is still in a reasonable good condition," he said.

A new General Manager, Mr. Nimal Sangakkara, had taken over from Mr. C.W. Chang at Riverina and blended well with the staff and the plant, he said.

Riverina has a stated capital of Rs.194.5 million and a group revaluation reserve of Rs.773.2 million. Retained earnings for the group stood at Rs.183.5 million and for the company at Rs.162.1 million.

No dividend has been recommended for the year under review.

Confifi Hotel Holdings PLC with 26.74% and Confifi Management Service with 23.59% are the major shareholders of the company followed by Galleon International Master Fund (of Mr. Raj Rajaratnam) with 6.07% and Mr. M.H.M. Nazeer with 5.34%.

A management fee of Rs.13.9 million, down from Rs.16.8 million a year earlier, had been paid to Confifi Management Services during the year under review and nearly Rs.1 million as rent for corporate officers.

The Riverina share traded at a high of Rs.38 and a low of Rs.25.25 during the year under review against a trading range of Rs.59.50 to Rs.22 the previous year.