Akses ke Objek Wisata Tangkahan Rusak Parah

Jalan yang menuju ke kawasan objek wisata Tangkahan, kabupaten Langkat, Sumatera Utara saat ini dalam kondisi rusak parah. Selain banyak jalan berlubang hingga kedalaman setengah meter, banyak jembatan dalam kondisi rapuh dan mudah sekali ambruk jika dilewati kendaraan melebihi batas muatannya.
Kerusakan jalan ini membuat jarak dari Medan menuju Tangkahan sepanjang 93 kilo meter ditempuh dalam waktu yang relatif sangat lama, lima hingga enam jam. Kondisi jalan yang beraspal praktis hanya sampai di sekitar Pasar Batang Serangan. Padahal dari Pasar Batang Serangan menuju Tangkahan yang masih berjarak 30 kilo meter kondisi jalannya hampir semuanya tak beraspal.
Bila turun hujan, kondisi jalan dari Pasar Batang Serangan menuju Tangkahan bak kubangan. Perjalanan Kompas menuju Tangkahan hari Senin (18/8) lalu sempat tertahan di tengah jalan, karena ada truk pengangkut tandan buah segar (TBS) kelapa sawit yang terjebak setelah roda depan truk tersebut terjebak di jalan berlumpur.
Di beberapa titik terdapat jembatan yang kondisinya sangat rapuh. Rata-rata konstruksi jembatan terbuat dari kayu dan tak kuat menahan beban kendaraan dengan tonase besar. Padahal kendaraan yang melintas di jalan tersebut selain bus jurusan Medan-Tangkahan, juga truk-truk pengangkut TBS sawit serta CPO (crude palm oil/minyak kelapa sawit). Pengemudi yang melintasi jembatan tersebut harus ekstra hati-hati bila tak mau terguling kendaraannya.
Menurut Ketua Harian Lembaga Pariwisata Tangkahan (LPT) Seh Ukur Sembiring jalan yang rusak membuat wisatawan enggan mengunjungi Tangkahan. Pemerintah daerah kata Seh Ukur seperti tak peduli dengan kondisi rusaknya jalan. PTPN II yang memiliki kebun hampir di sepanjang jalan antara Batang Serangan menuju Tangkahan kata Seh Ukur juga kurang peduli dengan rusaknya jalan, meski kendaraan mereka tiap hari melewati jalan tersebut.
"Masyarakat terpaksa berswadaya memperbaiki jalan, tetapi kemampuan kami kan juga terbatas.Paling yang diperbaiki hanya jalan yang mendekati Tangkahan," katanya. Dana swadaya masyarakat dari tiket masuk menuju Tangkahan, kata Seh Ukur terpaksa digunakan untuk memperbaiki kondisi rusaknya jalan. Padahal kalau pemerintah daerah mau memperbaiki jalan ini, katanya, masyarakat rela harus menyerahkan semua pemasukan dari obyek wisata di Tangkahan untuk pemerintah.
Denny, wisatawan asal Labuhan Batu mengatakan, dari obyek wisata yang ditawarkan sebenarnya Tangkahan sangat sempurna sebagai ecotourism unggulan di Sumut. Sayangnya kondisi jalan menuju Tangkahan rusak parah.
"Entah apa yang diperbuat Bupati Langkat selama ini untuk memperbaiki kondisi tersebut. Padahal kalau melihat jumlah wisatawan yang datang ke Tangkahan, ini jelas potensi yang besar," ujarnya.
Kepala Badan Pariwisata Daerah Sumut Henry Hutabarat mengatakan, dia akan menyurati Gubernur Sumut Syamsul Arifin yang juga bekas Bupati Langkat agar mau membenahi jalan menuju Tangkahan.
"Ini harus jadi catatan Gubernur Sumut karena Tangkahan kan dulu juga wilayah dia. Kalau memang Gubernur ingin rakyatnya tidak lapar, salah satunya dia harus mau memperbaiki jalan menuju Tangkahan agar kondisi perekonomian masyarakat di sana juga meningkat," ujar Henry.

Sumber: Kompas, Rabu, 20 Agustus 2008

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The trouble in managing heritage buildings in Indonesia

By: Matheos Viktor Messakh

As the executive director of the National Archive Building Foundation, Tamalia Alisjahbana has her own perspective on how to preserve heritage buildings in the country.
Tamalia criticized the management of heritage buildings in Indonesia, which is the responsibility of the Finance Ministry and is ruled by the Financial Law.
"With that law, heritage buildings are purely considered to be commercial assets. But a heritage is not purely a commercial asset, it is also a historical, cultural asset."

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Ubud residents send prince on final journey

By: I Wayan Juniartha

For many people -- tourists, international media, and romantic Balinese -- the grand cremation ceremony held on Tuesday in Ubud was a clear example of the Balinese people's devotion toward royal patrons and the splendor and grandiose nature of their cultural heritage.

With a 28-meter-tall bade (tower used to carry the deceased's body to the cemetery), gigantic petulangan (wooden sarcophagus inside which the body is cremated) in the form of a black bull with golden horns, an elaborately decorated Naga Banda (giant dragon symbolizing the deceased's worldly attachments), a holy host group of 60 Hindu high priests and a watching crowd of around 15,000 people, the royal cremation was indeed a feast for the eyes.
Yet, as in other elaborate Balinese-Hindu rituals, there were aspects of the royal cremation ceremony that escaped the public's attention.
One of those things involved the personal sacrifices made by Ubud's residents, locals and expatriates. For weeks, the residents of Jl. Suweta, where the royal palace lies and most of the ceremony's preparations took place, had to drive through a narrow alley to reach their homes.
The construction of two giant royal bade at the southern end of the street had made people reluctant to enter the street at all. The construction of 68 petak (makeshift ceremonial chambers) for the remains of the 68 non-royals that would be cremated on the same day, had rendered the southern section of the road virtually impassable.
Needless to say that several restaurants, art galleries and shops along the street suffered a significant drop in revenue.
"Sometimes, this kind of thing is inevitable when you live in Bali," a resident of Jl. Suweta said.
On the day of the ceremony, the people of Ubud made another personal sacrifice: Electricity was switched off for the whole day. Overhead electrical cables that might have hampered the movement of the cremation's giant structures were taken down. The patrons of Ubud's small-scale pensions and guesthouses had to do with cold showers on the day while Internet addicts paid through the nose to access the Internet via their cell phones.
"Another sacrifice was made by the trees along the procession's route," Bulan Nadi, a local housewife said.
On the night before the ceremony, a group of people armed with buzzing chainsaws inspected the route and then cut down trees they believed would obstruct the movement of the bade. By the next morning, dozens of trees had gone and sawdust could be seen strewn across the street.
"This street will be barren after the ceremony," Bulan lamented.
Yet, all these sacrifices seemed less significant than the ones made by the women of Ubud, who for three months had worked tirelessly to prepare both the royal cremation and the cremations of their 68 relatives.
To a large extent, Balinese-Hindu rituals are "women's business". Women make the majority of the intricate offerings and carry out most of the tasks in the rituals.
In a cremation ritual of this magnitude, the number of offerings and other ritual paraphernalia could easily reach tens of thousands.
"Do you know how exhausted we get after making and then re-counting 28,000 jaja (ritual cakes)," Bulan Nadi said.
The number of offerings for each ceremonial structure, including individual ceremonial meal portions prepared for the deceased, must be precisely in accordance with the number given by the priest and tukang banten (an offerings expert) who supervised the ceremony's preparation.
"If you make less than the given number, the ceremony will be deemed incomplete. If you make more than the given number, particularly in a cremation ceremony, then it is widely believed that more people will die in the next few days, as the number of souls will always correspond with the number of available offerings," she said.
The preparation period, which took almost three months, was a grueling, time-consuming, and, often, frustrating period for the Balinese. Consequently, a large number of people often fall ill after completing a big religious ceremony -- and Ubud is no exception.
Bulan Nadi said she had fallen ill twice during the preparation period. Her husband also suffered an acute case of exhaustion.
Meanwhile, the guardian of the royal family of Ubud, Tjokorda Raka Kerthyasa, was no longer the fresh, charming and physically fit prince he was prior to the start of the ceremony's preparation period.
"I am very tired. So many things to do, so many things to organize," Kerthyasa said.
The daunting task of organizing a grand cremation such as this one, which involved thousands of helpers from 67 different traditional villages in Bali, had certainly drained his energy.
"Not to mention that we have to do all of this while we are still mourning the loss of our loved one," he added.
He was referring to Tjokorda Gede Agung Suyasa, the Prince of Ubud, the former Bendesa (chief) of Ubud for three decades and the man whose body would be carried atop the towering bade.
Throughout his life, Suyasa was very close, emotionally and psychologically, to Kerthyasa. In Suyasa's last days, Kerthyasa was among the few individuals permitted by the elderly prince to enter his chamber and keep him company.
Many believe that upon Suyasa's passing, Kerthyasa would take his position as leader of the arguably most powerful royal family in Bali.
Similar exhaustion and sadness could be seen on the faces of the members of Ubud families that cremated their loved ones that day.
In Balinese-Hindu philosophy, a cremation releases the soul of the departed from the cocoon of his or her physical body. At the same time, it finalizes the separation between the grieving family and their dearly beloved.
"It's a mixed feeling of knowing that your loved one started his or her final journey ... after the cremation our separation will also be finalized," Bulan Nadi said.
It was before this background setting of physical exhaustion and emotional grief that the royal cremation ceremony was commenced at noon Tuesday. Dressed in purple T-shirts emblazoned with the words Kula Warga Puri Agung Ubud (The People and Relatives of the Ubud Royal Palace), some 8,000 of Ubud's men and male youths waited patiently for their turn to carry the bade and the cremation's other giant structures.
In front of the palace's southern gate, an old man lifted a sacred tawa-tawa (gong) and after a brief moment of silence, struck the gong repeatedly.
The striking of the gong, which is believed to posses the supernatural quality of being able to command legions of invisible creatures residing in woods and gorges around Ubud, signified the official beginning of the ceremony. The sound of the instrument instructed the creatures to assist the people of Ubud with the ceremony, particularly with carrying the bade's eleven tons.
As the gong filled the air with strange metallic tones, a powerful gust of wind suddenly passed through the gate, sending a cold shiver down the spines of the men who stood near it.
"They are coming," the old man said solemnly.
That was another thing that eluded the public's eyes on the day.

Source: The Jakarta Post, Thursday, 07/17/2008

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Ecotourism conference held in Bali

A conference on ecotourism is being held in Bali by the Forum for East Asia and Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC) from July 17 to 18.
"The countries in the two regions (East Asia and Latin America) have the world's best ecotourism destinations and they have identified efforts to strengthen cooperation in ecotourism among FEALAC member countries," said the director for inter-regional cooperation at the Foreign Ministry, Dian Wirengiurit, on Thursday, as quoted by Antara news agency.
The conference is being attended by around 200 representatives of 24 FEALAC member countries.
Wirengiurit said the conference follows a decision made by the FEALAC Working Group in a meeting in Korea in October 2007.
The decision acknowledged the importance of initiating programs supporting FEALAC efforts in enhancing cooperation between East Asian and Latin American countries, particularly in the economic and social fields.
Speakers at the two-day conference will include experts and officials from Brazil, Argentine, Korean, Japan, New Zealand, the Philippines and Indonesia.
The theme of the conference is "Towards Sustainable Ecotourism Development in East Asia and Latin America".
A survey of the tourism market shows that the market for ecotourism in Latin America and Europe was increasing by about 30 percent a year, while in Asia and Pacific the rate of increase is more than 20 percent a year.
The ecotourism market has also proven to easily adapt to changes in trends in tourism, and to have strong survival and fast recovery capability from different threats and challenges such as bombing incidents, war and even the SARS epidemic.
All FEALAC member countries possess natural beauty and unique culture to be offered as ecotourism potentials, and the development of nature and culture tourism products has beenincreasing in recent years in the two regions.
Among objectives of the conference were to raise awareness among all tourism stakeholders about the importance of responsible and sustainable ecotourism development, to exchangeexperience and best practices in developing ecotourism, and to establish FEALAC Ecotourism Network.
Established in 2001, FEALAC has 33 member countries including Australia, China, Japan, Korea, Laos, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar, Panama, Thailand and Peru.

Source: Antara , Thursday, 07/17/2008

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Seribu Harapan di Setra Dalam Ubud

Oleh BENNY DWI KOESTANTO

Sejatinya ke mana perginya jiwa-jiwa orang meninggal? Bukankah sebenarnya jiwa-jiwa itu tidak pergi, tapi justru pulang ke Sang Pemilik Kehidupan? Maka, berbahagialah mereka yang mengantar kepulangan itu dengan penuh syukur dan sukacita.

Mengikuti, menyaksikan, dan merasakan upacara pelebon/ngaben (kremasi) keluarga kerajaan di Puri Agung Ubud, Gianyar, Bali, sepekan terakhir seperti memandang diri sendiri di hadapan cermin.
Dalam tradisi masyarakat Bali, tubuh seseorang hanyalah wadah bagi jiwanya. Saat seseorang meninggal dipercayai bahwa atman atau jiwa tetap di sekitar tubuh. Tubuh terdiri dari unsur api, udara, air, bumi, dan ruang hampa harus kembali ke alam semesta, menyatu dengan Sang Pencipta. Inilah tujuan ngaben.

Kematian sejatinya bukan akhir, tetapi awal. Lebih penting lagi cara hidup seseorang dan bagaimana harapan sangat kuat keluarga almarhum setelah kematian datang.

Itulah yang jelas tertangkap dari cara sanak keluarga, rekan, dan warga melaksanakan ngaben atau pelebon. Nyaris tidak ada tangis, tapi wajah-wajah bersemangat, penuh harapan bagi yang telah meninggal, maupun yang ditinggalkan.

Kremasi tiga anggota keluarga Puri Agung Ubud ini tergolong peristiwa besar, bahkan terbesar dalam tiga dasawarsa terakhir. Maka, ketika ngaben mencapai puncaknya, Selasa (15/7), ruas jalan sepanjang 2 kilometer di Jalan Raya Ubud selebar 5 meter dan jadi jalur arak-arakan jenazah menuju Setra (pemakaman) Dalam Puri Agung Ubud dari Kompleks Puri Agung Ubud disesaki manusia, warga setempat, warga daerah lain Bali, hingga turis dari mancanegara. Panitia menaksir jumlah hadirin mencapai 300.000 orang.

Tiga orang yang dikremasi itu tergolong dituakan dan terpandang. Mereka adalah Tjokorda Gde Agung Suyasa, kepala keluarga Puri Agung Ubud dan ketua komunitas tradisional di Ubud sejak 1976; Tjokorda Gede Raka, seorang pensiunan di Kepolisian Kota Besar Denpasar; dan Gung Niang Raka. Turut pula dikremasi 68 jenazah dari empat banjar desa adat sekitar Puri Agung Ubud: Banjar Sambahan, Ubud Tengah, Ubud Kelod Peken, dan Ubud Kaja.

Tjokorda Agung Suyasa lahir 14 Juli 1941, anak ketiga dari Tjokorda Gde Ngurah dari permaisuri pertama Tjokorda Istri Muter. Suyasa meninggal 28 Maret 2008, sedangkan Tjokorda Gde Raka dari Puri Anyar Ubud meninggal sepekan sebelumnya. Desak Raka adalah istri pertama dari almarhum Tjokorda Raka dari Puri Kaleran Belingsung Ubud. Desak Raka lahir 1917 dan meninggal 23 Desember 2007. Jenazah Desak Raka sebenarnya pernah dikremasi pada pelebon sederhana, beberapa saat setelah meninggalnya. Namun, kini memperoleh kremasi lengkap.

Juru bicara Puri Ubud, Tjokorda Raka Kerthyasa, menjelaskan ngaben kali ini adalah pertama terbesar sejak 1979 saat ngaben seniman masyhur Ubud yang juga keturunan puri, Cokorda Gde Agung Sukawati. Mengingat fungsi puri/kerajaan dianggap penting dari sisi penegak moral dan ritual keagamaan, dukungan masyarakat di Bali pun sedemikian besar. Setidaknya 68 desa adat se-Bali secara gotong royong membantu upacara ini. ”Pelebon bukanlah suatu acara duka, tetapi diyakini sebagai cara menghibur jiwa-jiwa yang telah meninggal dan menjaga agar jiwa mereka tidak terganggu oleh tangisan yang ditinggal. Di sisi lain, pelebon merupakan bentuk gotong royong seluruh anggota keluarga dan masyarakat untuk mengurangi beban biaya,” kata Kerthyasa, Jumat lalu.

Menurut Kerthyasa, berapa pun besarnya biaya upacara keagamaan—biaya fisik dalam seluruh ritual kremasi di Puri Agung Ubud kali ini sekitar Rp 3 miliar—upacara itu tidak dapat berhenti di tengah jalan. ”Dalam ngaben niri (sendiri) biaya bisa di atas Rp 50 juta dari kantong pribadi, tapi dalam ngaben massal biaya bisa ditekan jadi Rp 5 juta,” kata Ni Nyoman Rented, menantu almarhumah Ni Wayan Genjong, salah satu petani penggarap yang jenazahnya ikut dalam ngaben massal ini.

Ngaben massal bersama tiga anggota Puri Agung Ubud juga terasa lebih istimewa bagi keluarga peserta. Harapan melihat kepulangan jiwa sanak keluarga ke Hyang Widhi Wasa terasa kian besar karena ngaben massal digelar bersama keluarga kerajaan.

Sekitar pukul 12.30, Selasa kemarin, arak-arakan pun dimulai. Seluruh jenazah ditempatkan di sebuah bade (menara untuk jenazah dan yang tertinggi kali ini 28,5 meter dengan berat 11 ton) diarak ribuan warga Bali. Prosesi juga diikuti patung lembu penuh hiasan megah dan disucikan masyarakat Hindu serta patung Nagabanda. Patung naga hanya muncul pada kremasi keluarga puri yang dituakan.

Saat dikremasi, jenazah ditempatkan di atas menara sebagai simbol antara bumi dan langit. Sebuah bhoma (topeng bermuka seram) ditempatkan di belakang menara untuk menakuti roh jahat dan topeng garuda di depan menara. Dengan beban sangat berat, plus kondisi jalan sempit dan penuh sesak manusia, sungguh tidak mudah mengusung bade-bade serta patung-patung.

Begitu sampai di pemakaman, seluruh pengunjung bertepuk tangan, sedangkan para pengusung bersorak. Prosesi dilanjutkan ke area pemakaman (setra), diiringi gamelan bleganjur. Jenazah yang sudah dibalut kain kafan bersama aneka sesaji dimasukkan ke dalam perut patung lembu. Tepat pukul 18.30, api dinyalakan dan dalam sekejap melalap habis patung lembu, nagabanda, serta jenazah-jenazah.

Pada akhir acara, pedanda membunyikan genta untuk menolong jiwa mencapai surga. Abu jenazah akan dilarung ke laut, simbol pengembalian ke alam semesta.

Beberapa hari kemudian, tahap akhir upacara, yaitu nyekah; penyucian jiwa, yang akan ditempatkan sebagai leluhur di masing-masing merajan (tempat suci di kompleks pura keluarga).

Sumber: Kompas, Rabu, 16 Juli 2008

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Visit Indonesia Year?

What an unfortunate year for Indonesia's tourism industry. Less than one month after the government declared 2008 Visit Indonesia Year, flooding crippled Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, the main gateway to the country, early last month.
Last week, the second annual Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2008, by the Geneva-based World Economic Forum, downgraded Indonesia as a tourist destination to 80th among 130 countries surveyed. That was much worse than its position last year, which was 60th out of 124 countries.
The report showed that Indonesia scored very poorly in health and hygiene due to an inadequate supply of hospital beds, poor access to sanitation and drinking water and an acutely low number of qualified physicians.
The country also performed badly in that other pillar of the tourism industry -- infrastructure. In fact, Indonesian airplanes have been banned from European airspace since last year and no progress has been made on getting this blanket ban lifted.
Indonesia scored high only in terms of natural resources, with several World Heritage natural sites and the richness of it flora and fauna, and price competitiveness. But these strengths were undermined by such major weaknesses as underdeveloped infrastructure, including air and ground transportation.
There are even great concerns related to safety, particularly the prevalence of road accidents.
No wonder Indonesia, though richly endowed with a wide variety of cultures and interesting sites, has remained among the least popular tourist destinations even in the Southeast Asian region, outranked by Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand. Last year, Indonesia received just around 5.5 million tourists, compared to more than 9 million arrivals in Malaysia and almost 20 million in Singapore.
The survey showed the top-ranked countries in the travel and tourism industry -- Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Australia, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States, Sweden, Canada and France -- understand the importance of support businesses and regulatory frameworks, coupled with world-class transportation and tourism infrastructure and a focus on nurturing human and natural resources.
Countries have vastly different underlying operational conditions, depending on where they fall in the tourism development spectrum. All have unique tourism products to offer, but the central goal is to encourage improvement in the underlying competitive conditions and infrastructure.
This is again where Indonesia is fundamentally weak, even in nature-based tourism, where the country should have a strong comparative advantage.
This latest travel and tourism report from the World Economic Forum should serve as a strong wake-up call for us, especially the government, to reinvigorate the tourism industry, especially now in the midst of a weakening global economy and uncertainty in the international financial market.
International tourism is known as a resilient industry, never suffering a deep and lasting recession and able to recover quickly because the need to travel, whether for business or leisure, is so deeply ingrained in our societies.
As a resource-based industry, tourism is also an ideal business for Indonesia to develop because of its multiplier effect and the labor-intensive nature of its operations. It directly benefits local communities economically. Travel businesses do their best when they use the local workforce, services, products and supplies.
The tourism industry also supports the integrity of a place. Destination-savvy travelers seek out businesses that emphasize the character of a locale. Tourism revenue in turn raises the perceived value of those assets.
Travel-related businesses such as hotels, restaurants, transportation, handicrafts and cultural shows are all labor intensive, the very kind of enterprises needed to absorb the huge pool of job seekers here.
But it is precisely because of its multi-sectoral activities that the promotion of the tourism industry should involve not only the tourism ministry but all other state and private organizations that provide the basic infrastructure and public services, including immigration, customs, transportation, accommodation and security.

Source: The Jakarta Post, Wed, 03/12/2008

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Poor hygiene weakens RI's tourism: Study

The government will need to work extra hard to lure foreign visitors with this year's ambitious Visit Indonesia Year campaign, in the light of health and hygiene issues mentioned in a recent report.
The report, issued March 4 by Switzerland-based World Economic Forum (WEF), cited Indonesia's poor health and hygiene conditions and inadequate infrastructure as key disadvantages in attracting foreign visitors.
WEF ranked Indonesia 80th among 130 countries in its Travel and Competitiveness Index 2008, lower than neighbors Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.
Last year, Indonesia ranked 60th among 124 countries studied.
Indonesia's health facilities and hygiene received poor scores because of the country's low number of physicians (per capita), inadequate hospital beds, and poor access to improved sanitation and drinking water.
As Southeast Asia's largest economy, Indonesia also received low scores for quality of tourism infrastructure, comprising hotel rooms, presence of major car rental firms and automatic teller machines accepting Visa cards.
These problems were the main reasons for Indonesia's fall in ranking, WEF says.
Indonesia's edge in the competitiveness index related to competitive prices for goods and services, prioritization of travel and tourism spots, and the availability of qualified labor, the report said.
The index was arranged based on data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) and the WEF's own survey on qualitative institutional and business environment issues.
The index ranked Switzerland, Austria, Germany, Australia and Spain as the top five countries in the study (respectively).
As organizers of the high profile annual international business forum in Davos, Switzerland, the WEF is an independent international non-profit organization based in Geneva, Switzerland.
The forum was first established in January 1971, when a group of European business leaders met under the patronage of the European Commission and European industrial associations.
State Ministry of Culture and Tourism marketing director general Sapta Nirwandar told The Jakarta Post recently the government was in the process of improving tourism infrastructure, and making easier entry procedures for tourists.
"We are still in the process of fixing everything. We are now increasing promotions and cultural events overseas, simplifying visa procedures and improving the quality of service and human resource professionalism," he said.
Last year, some 5.51 million foreign tourists visited the world's largest archipelago, up from 4.87 million in 2006, according to data from to the Central Statistics Agency.
Singapore accounted for the largest number of visitors, with 1.46 million, followed by Malaysia (941,202), Japan (593,784), Australia (313,881), South Korea (423,098), China (335,172), Europe (528,171), and the United States (154,846), the agency reported.
"We have many interesting places and cultures, but many of them don't have good infrastructure or facilities to accommodate visitors' needs," said Thamrin Bhiwana Bachri, an executive at the State Ministry for Culture and Tourism.
"The facilities will include convenient hotels, clean public toilets, well-managed airports, and easy access to tourist attractions," he said.
For 2008, Indonesia has targeted to net seven million foreign visitors under the Visit Indonesia Year campaign funded by the State Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
Sapta said, however, the figure was still far less than Singapore or Malaysia, which were targeting to this year lure some 10.2 million and 20.7 million foreign visitors respectively. (rff)

The 2008 Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index
Rank Country Score (1-7 scale) 1 Switzerland 5.63 2 Austria 5.43 3 Germany 5.41 4 Australia 5.34 5 Spain 5.30 6 United Kingdom 5.28 7 United States 5.28 8 Sweden 5.27 9 Canada 5.26 10 France 5.23 16 Singapore 5.06 32 Malaysia 4.63 42 Thailand 4.37 80 Indonesia 3.70 81 Philippines 3.70 96 Vietnam 3.57 112 Cambodia 3.32
Indonesia's travel & tourism indicators (2007)
GDP (US$ millions) 10,167 Employment (1,000 jobs) 1,981
(Source: The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report 2008; World Economic Forum)

Source: The Jakarta Post, Mon, 03/10/2008

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Tourism offers unmissable business opportunities for Indonesia

As with people of all nationalities, many Indonesians spend their whole lives in their provinces, never traveling far from home.
About 13 percent of the population travel beyond what is required by their daily routines. That figure typically drops by 2 or 3 percent when you eliminate those who travel unexpectantly owing to unforeseen business or family matters.
In a year, only 3 percent of Indonesians travel by plane, the same 3 percent who live the so-called "good life" -- that of plastic cards, new cars and luxury holidays -- while just over 1 percent of all Indonesians have traveled overseas in the last 12 months, either for business or pleasure.
The Javanese, residents of the world's most densely populated island, stay within the confines of Indonesia more than any other islander across the archipelago.
That's understandable, considering distances, availability and cost of convenient transportation and the reality that most people do not have friends or relatives outside of their immediate area.
Sixty-five percent of travelers use buses, making it the most popular form of transportation, even during holdidays. A further 20 percent hop on their family motorbike for vacation.
Another 7 percent travel during holidays by cars owned within the family or by friends, while a mere 2 percent take the boat or ferry.
These statistics are compiled by the country's largest syndicated survey operator, Roy Morgan Single Source, which surveys more than 27,000 Indonesian respondents annually.
The numbers, updated every 90 days, are estimated to reflect almost 90 percent of the population over the age of 14, representing a total of 140 million people.
All holiday-makers, regardless of the distances they travel, make a contribution to the local economy. Not many industries can claim to receive contributions from such a diverse range of customers.
Even before a traveler steps onto a bus or plane, a ticket has already been sold, a room has been booked. Taxi drivers, porters, doormen, chefs, waitresses and housekeeping staff all have jobs to do to support this one traveler.
As does the craftsman, the shopkeeper, the boatman, the barmaid -- the list goes on. If you trace the number of employees called into action by a single tourist couple, the number could well run into the hundreds.
Tourism is good for employment, but it is also good in so many other incalculable ways. The exchange of views, the mingling, the sharing of culture, the goodness that natural beauty can bring, the development of communal pride and purpose. No industry promotes human values, the philosophy to live and let live and the celebration of life more than tourism.
With tourism growing rapidly in Asia, Indonesia is lagging way behind its neighbors. While Vietnam receives more and more tourists every year, Indonesia, hampered by its Bali-centric philosophy, languishes.
The world knows little about Indonesia beyond Bali, and those visiting Bali fail to make a connection to the rest of Indonesia.
It could be argued that the number of underachieving locales in Indonesia rivals the combined total of all other ASEAN countries.
By their own initiative, regional and local budget airlines appear to be doing more to develop travel and tourism than any other business or organization, including the cash-strapped ministry of tourism.
However, airline passengers who aren't visiting friends and relatives need hotels, food, attractions, activities, shopping and night-life. The infrastructure is lacking.
Equally important is the need for a tourist-friendly local government that has its citizens' welfare at the top of its agenda.
Here is an open invitation to form a coalition of the willing and to do some good and make some money: would an official from the ministry, a provincial government, a bank or the Investment Coordinating Board please stand up?
An e-mail to this writer from any of the above would result in an enthusiastic response by a group of capable, experienced investors who wish to execute a textbook construction of a new resort that would make proud all concerned.
If challenged to put my energy where my mouth is by readers of this column, I would join this coalition and dedicate as much time as I could to bring an eco-friendly, socially responsible resort to fruition in Indonesia.
It can be done, and with a greater dividend than any new city shopping mall could ever offer.
The writer can be contacted at Debnath.Guharoy@roymorgan.com

Source: The Jakarta Post, Tuesday, 03/11/2008

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