I nternational trade unions, economic blocs or economic communities, as they are vari- ously known, such as the EU are manifestations of supranationalism, which refers to national governments or organizations working together to achieve common goals at an extra-national level, usually in areas of trade and economic development. In addition to the EU other examples of such organizations include the OAS (Organization of American States), ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) and SADC (South African Development Community).
The notion of a supranational organization is often used inter- changeably with international organizations but there are differences. A supranational organization is a multilateral organization consisting of three or more members plus although international in scope they are often not global organizations in the sense that almost every country is a member, for example such as the United Nations.
Many supranationalist alli- ances exist throughout all parts of the world and will be discussed in more depth in various other sections in this book. Usually, a major goal of most supranational alliances is to facili- tate the flow of products and services, capital and investment, and people. In the context of tourism, the people most affected by a decrease in the barrier effects of border are tour- ists who reside in the trading bloc countries, tourists from outside the alliance, and tour- ism employees from member countries.
The 1985 Schengen Agreement among European states allows for the abolition of systematic border controls between participating countries; includes provisions on common a common policy on the temporary entry of persons (includ- ing visas), the harmonization of external border controls, and cross-border police coopera- tion. Citizens of non-EU (or non-European Economic Area) countries who wish to visit Europe as tourists can obtain a common Schengen visa on arrival at a border and then not require further visas within the Schengen area.
B ecause supranational organizations and agreements tend to increase the flow of tour- ists they tend to be seen very favorably by the tourism industry. However, passports and IDs are still usually required to for tourism movement from one country to another while the movement of a person as a tourist may also be much easier than moving as a worker or migrant.
Heightened concerns over national security since 2001 have also often made it more difficult for nationals of some countries to enter supranational areas as well as national boundaries and a major challenge for members of such regions is to balance the rights of tourists, economic interests of the tourism industry and security needs.