Johannesburg — THE graphic images being broadcast and published around the world of the violent attacks on foreigners in and around Johannesburg have the country's tourism authorities fretting.

And so they should, considering that the tourism sector makes up about 8% of gross domestic product , employs more than 1-million people and is one of SA's fastest-growing sectors. Photographs of foreigners being brutally beaten and burnt splashed across the front pages of major newspapers around the world could do great damage to the sector.

Environmental and Tourism Minister Marthinus van Schalkwyk was first off the mark yesterday, warning that the outburst of xenophobic violence could cause serious damage to SA's tourism industry, and tourists from African countries were likely to avoid visiting SA. "We are quite concerned about the effects of the attacks on tourism -- they have the potential to impact negatively on the African market," he said.

Moeketsi Mosola, CEO of SA Tourism, followed shortly afterwards, warning that the attacks "place a very negative reputation on brand SA".

"We condemn in the strongest possible sense any attacks on citizens from other countries on the African continent. In the spirit of hosting Africa's first Fifa World Cup, it is of critical importance that we recognise that we are not an island, that we are bound together as Africans by history, culture and our ability to embrace people of all backgrounds," Mosola says.

Resentment at the flood of immigrants into SA in recent years, particularly Zimbabweans, has sparked an angry backlash by poor South Africans in Johannesburg's city centre and townships in the past week. At least 20 people have been killed in the attacks.

Correspondents from major media organisations in the UK and Germany feel the effect of the attacks on tourism will be limited -- the impression that SA, and Johannesburg in particular, are dangerous destinations has long been established. Those too scared to visit SA stopped visiting long ago.

"I would be surprised if there was an impact on tourism," says Chris McGreal, South African correspondent for The Guardian . "I think SA, and Johannesburg in particular, already have a reputation as being dangerous and therefore already being avoided by tourists."

However, if the violence were taking place in Cape Town, which is a major attraction for UK visitors, there would be a bigger effect on tourist numbers, he says.

"It is also important to remember that this is a multilayered story and the main focus is not necessarily the violence but on the Zimbabweans who have fled dire circumstances back home only to face an equally dire situation in SA," McGreal says.

The visuals of the violence-ridden townships have an echo of another, darker SA.

"The violence is reminiscent of the violence that took place in the '80s under the apartheid government," Alec Russell, the Financial Times' southern African correspondent, says. "My concern is that this is a perfect storm of bad news, with the Eskom outages in January, (ANC president Jacob) Zuma's continuing woes, his charm offence notwithstanding, and now the townships in flames. It is certainly not good for SA." However, Russell doubts the violence will stop tourists visiting SA. "I think most tourists avoid Johannesburg anyway and head directly to Cape Town and the Kruger Park."

Richard Klug, correspondent for German television network ARD, says the perception among most Germans is that SA is a criminal country. "Germans see two SAs: one is a paradise that is Cape Town, the other a criminal country too dangerous to visit.

"However, many Germans, particular higher income groups who have a better understanding of the situation in SA, will still visit the country."

Comment on the continent has been focused on the 2010 World Cup, with several African newspapers questioning whether SA is still a safe venue for the tournament, says Wilf Mbanga, editor of The Zimbabwean newspaper.

Mbanga says many Zimbabweans are worried about their relatives in SA, while those in SA are beginning to wonder whether life under President Robert Mugabe was that bad after all.

The test for the tourism sector will be to see if actual bookings drop off.

Martin Wiest, chief operating officer of Tourvest Inbound, which owns well-known tourist brands such as Relais Hotels and Drifters, says the winter months are generally quiet for the industry, with booking picking up in July for the peak summer months.

"If there ever is a good time for the violence to take place, it is now. It is a very slack period for the industry and the violence has not had an effect on tourist numbers."

However, Wiest says if the government does not take control quickly, there could be a negative impact on bookings come July.

And this is essentially the crux of the message that the tourism industry and outside world are sending to the government: while the violence is of major concern, the world is still watching to see how SA tackles the problem and how quickly it can be defused.

If the government succeeds in returning order to Johannesburg's townships, the events of the past few weeks will be quickly forgotten. If not, the hard work of the country's tourism authorities will be quickly unravelled.

The tourism sector's future is now in the government's hands.