Bali's image could get a boost from proper promotion<\/p>\n
Rita A.Widiadana, The Jakarta Post, Sanur, Bali<\/p>\n
Picture this year's Academy Award nominee Nicole Kidman strolling
\nhand in hand with actor Russel Crowe on the pristine white sand
\nof Kuta Beach in Bali.<\/p>\n
The image of these two big names, both Australian stars,
\nwalking along a Bali beach would certainly guarantee excellent
\ninternational publicity, which could help restore Bali's
\nshattered tourism industry in the aftermath of the Oct. 12
\nbombings.<\/p>\n
In the past, top Australian model Elle MacPerson did extensive
\npromotion for Indonesia through her exquisite poses for Garuda
\nIndonesia advertising campaigns.<\/p>\n
Australian artist Rebecca Gilling, who starred in the TV
\nseries Return to Eden in the late 1980s, also mesmerized the
\nIndonesian public when she landed at Soekarno-Hatta airport in
\nJakarta. Wide coverage by the Australian media of Gilling's visit
\nto Indonesia was good publicity for Indonesia in Australia.<\/p>\n
During a recent meeting of Indonesia-Australia tourism leaders
\nin Sanur, John King, a tourism consultant from Gavin Anderson &
\nCompany, expressed the view that Bali and Indonesia badly needed
\nextensive and effective promotion worldwide in an attempt to
\nregain their credibility as tourist destinations.<\/p>\n
\"The idea of inviting celebrities like Nicole Kidman and other
\nfamous names to the island would turn the eyes of the
\ninternational media to Bali,\" King said.<\/p>\n
Another participant brought up the name of Paul Hogan, star of
\nthe Hollywood hit Crocodile Dundee. Hogan, who has helped several
\nenvironmental projects in Bali, is well-known to Indonesians,
\nAustralians and the international media.<\/p>\n
Likewise, Brig. Gen. Made Mangku Pastika, chief investigator
\ninto the Bali bombings, could be invited to Australia to give
\nfirsthand explanations on the progress of the Bali bombing
\ninvestigation to the Australian public.<\/p>\n
In the days after bombs blasted two bars in the famous Kuta
\nentertainment center, some 11 kilometers south of the Bali
\nprovincial capital of Denpasar, thousands of holidaymakers, many
\nof them from Australia, scrambled to get a flight out of Bali.
\nSince then, Bali has been shunned by international tourists. Many
\nof them have canceled their trips to Bali and other parts of
\nIndonesia, mostly for security reasons.<\/p>\n
Since Oct. 12, 2002, the island's tourism industry, including
\nhospitality businesses, airlines, transportation operators and
\ntravel agencies, have been almost driven to the wall.<\/p>\n
Travel warnings and advisories issued by foreign governments
\nincluding Australia, the United States, some European countries
\nand Japan, have decimated Bali's tourism industry, once the
\nisland's economic mainstay.<\/p>\n
It is not only local travel and tourism players in Bali and
\nIndonesia that have been badly affected by the bomb attacks,
\nAustralian tourism businesses have also suffered quite seriously
\nas Bali was previously one of the favorite holiday destinations
\nfor Australian vacationers.<\/p>\n
Australia has always been one of Bali's most important tourism
\nmarkets, and accounted for approximately one in five visitors
\nprior to October 2002. Spending by visitors from Australia in
\nBali amounted to approximately US$300 million a year. Australia
\naccounted for approximately 20 percent of Bali's visitor numbers
\nand was second behind Japan in terms of the largest source
\nmarket.<\/p>\n
In 2001 alone, Bali generated some $1.4 billion in foreign
\nexchange earnings from the tourism sector, which represented a
\nquarter of Indonesia's total foreign exchange earnings from
\ntourism.<\/p>\n
To revitalize the Bali market, a number of prominent figures
\nfrom Australia's tourism and travel industry gathered in the
\nSanur resort to jointly discuss efforts with their Indonesian
\ncounterparts on how to effectively improve the reputation of Bali
\nas a safe holiday destination for Australians in particular, and
\nother international visitors in general.<\/p>\n
Around 14 travel industry firms from Australia and Indonesia
\nshared views during the four-day meeting last week. Among the
\ncompanies were Qantas Holidays, Qantas Airways, Bali-based Air
\nParadise International, Harvey World Travel, Flight Center Ltd.,
\nNew Horizons Holidays, San Michele Travel\/Indonesian Travel
\nCenter, Tourism Task Force, representative from Australian MICE
\nIndustry, the Council of Australian Tour Operators, Pacific Asia
\nTravel Association and International Tourism Training Services.<\/p>\n
A number of important figures from various Australian
\ngovernments and parliaments were also present at the bilateral
\nmeeting. Senator Alan Ferguson from South Australia, Bruce Baird,
\nFederal Member for Cook, and the Federal Member for Curtin, Ms.
\nJulie Bishop, were among the key persons in attendance.<\/p>\n
An executive of the Australian-Indonesia Business Council said
\nthe meeting was very important but the involvement of the
\nIndonesian tourism industry should have been stronger given that
\nonly a small number of Bali tourism figures took part.<\/p>\n
Senator Alan Ferguson explained that it was still quite
\ndifficult for the Australian government to lift the travel
\nadvisory against Bali and Indonesia.<\/p>\n
\"We have to also accept that travel advisories will be around
\nfor some time in today's international climate and that the
\nposition of foreign governments must be respected,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, the Australian government resolved to join in
\ninternational efforts to lessen the impact of travel advisories
\non tourism and travel.<\/p>\n
The Australian tourism leaders advised the Indonesian tourism
\nauthorities to work hand-in-hand with judicial officials to
\nensure that exposure regarding the perpetrators of the October
\nincidents is minimized as this was continuing to cause enormous
\ndistress and ongoing negative publicity for Bali internationally.<\/p>\n
Over the past four months, there has been massive local and
\ninternational media coverage on the progress of the Bali bombing
\ninvestigation, including in Australia. Australians made up more
\nthan 80 out of 202 victims who died in the bombings.<\/p>\n
\"The pictures of the alleged bombing perpetrators grinning and
\nsmiling really hurt the Australian public,\" said one participant.<\/p>\n
Myra P. Gunawan, deputy for tourism affairs at the Indonesian
\nCultural and Tourism Board, said she felt heartened that the
\nAustralian tourism industry was paying serious attention to
\nBali's plight. \"I hope this will extend to other countries as
\nwell,\" she said.<\/p>\n
Indonesia, she said, had conducted various promotional
\nactivities and government-to-government lobbying to bring
\ninternational visitors back to Bali and other places in
\nIndonesia.<\/p>",
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