Felix J. Cruz elected President of ASEAN Tourism Association

Philippine Airlines Vice-President for Marketing Support Felix J. Cruz has been elected president of the ASEAN Tourism Association (ASEANTA), one of the region's premier tourism organizations, following the resignation of Elly Hutabarat of Indonesia recently.

Cruz was elected to serve the unexpired term of Hutabarat, from October 27, 2007 to January 31, 2009, as head of the influential tourism body.

Steering the organization with him are William Tan of the National Association of Travel Agents Singapore as Treasurer and Datuk Mohammad Ilyas Zainol Abidin of the Malaysian Association of Hotels as Secretary General. The appointment of a new deputy president will be discussed at the next ASEANTA board meeting in January 2008.

Cruz said the airline sector was a major catalyst for further boosting tourism in ASEAN, signaling that this would be a focus of his term.

"I encourage more active participation from the airlines because the development of tourism into and within the ASEAN region will not be possible without the vital support of the air transport sector," he said.

Cruz has served as PAL's vice president for marketing support since 1999. In that capacity, he oversees the Philippine flag carrier's product research and development, advertising and promotions, product loyalty marketing, in-house tour programs, and customer relations. 

Founded in March 1971, the Kuala Lumpur-based ASEANTA comprises both public and private sector organizations involved in tourism from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. These include national tourism organizations, such as the Philippine Department of Tourism; national travel agencies associations; national hotel associations; and national airlines from all ten ASEAN member countries.

Over the last 36 years, ASEANTA has grown to become one of the leading tourism associations in the region, playing an integral role in elevating ASEAN into one of the world's prime tourist destinations, and building tourism into one of ASEAN's largest and most economically important industries.

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