Chinese tourists can feel safe in Sarajevo, says senior police officer

A senior police officer in Sarajevo told Xinhua here on Monday that Chinese tourists are "always very welcome here and we will work more to increase security for them."

Zehrudin Rahmanovic, deputy commander of "Old Town" police department in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina, made the remarks following the visits of a reported 10,000 Chinese tourists to the "Old Town" during the Chinese Lunar New Year.

According to Rahmanovic, the police department had prepared a special action plan for Chinese tourists arriving on Feb. 2-15, which involved deploying eight police officers for security.

Chinese tourists, he explained, visited the main street in Sarajevo, Latin Bridge, White and Yellow Fortress, all located in the Old Town, and plain clothe police officers, had been around to target pickpockets.

The police department launched a campaign in January, using posters and leaflets to warn tourists to take care of their belongings such as mobile phones, wallets, backpacks, luggage, and not to leave personal items in cars.

"We have already seen a decrease of pickpockets by 10.0 percent year-on-year," Rahmanovic added.

Tourists from China made a record in 2018, with a 118.7 percent rise in arrival number and 114.5 percent increase in overnight stays year-on-year, becoming third and sixth in respective category among source markets, the Institute for Informatics and Statistics of Canton Sarajevo said in a report in January.