Battling violent image to tempt tourists<\/p>\n
Nopporn Wong-Anan, Reuters, Bandung, West Java<\/p>\n
An air-conditioned train gathers speed as it takes a hill curve
\non a track elevated hundreds of feet above lush terraced green
\nrice fields.<\/p>\n
A short distance away, travelers watch smiling village
\nchildren gather around a kite maker assembling their favorite
\ntoy. Other bare-footed youngsters fly red diamond-shaped kites
\nthat have already been made.<\/p>\n
Some 2,300 kilometers to the east in the Moluccas islands, a
\ncivil emergency is in place as the Indonesian government tries to
\nend a three year religious conflict that has claimed more than
\n5,000 lives.<\/p>\n
The conflicting scenes of serenity and violence are a
\nconundrum for Indonesia's tourism sector as it tries to put the
\nbest marketing spin on the world's most populous Muslim nation.<\/p>\n
Indonesia's international image is marked by endless
\ndemonstrations, political instability, Muslim militancy and
\ncommunal, religious and separatist violence -- complete with
\ntravel warnings from major Western governments.<\/p>\n
Against this, it is hard for Indonesia's travel industry to
\nsell its message that it is safe to visit the jungles and
\npristine beaches of the world's largest archipelago -- which if
\nlaid over Europe would stretch from Dublin to Moscow.<\/p>\n
\"I don't have any problem on embassies' travel warnings as
\nlong as they mention clearly where the troubles are,\" I Gede
\nArdika, Minister for Culture and Tourism, told Reuters.<\/p>\n
The 1998 Asian economic crisis hit Indonesia harder than its
\nneighbors. As well as suffering financially, the crisis helped
\nbring about the fall of Indonesia's autocratic long-time
\npresident Soeharto.<\/p>\n
The country has been racked by a series of deadly communal and
\nseparatist clashes in some outlying provinces, and went through
\npolitical turbulence that saw three different presidents in the
\nfour post-Soeharto years.<\/p>\n
Faced with this, tourists steered away from the beaches of
\nBali and other Indonesian holiday spots, such as the island of
\nLombok, Manado on Sulawesi and the cultural destination of
\nYogyakarta on Java island, in favor of other Southeast Asian
\ndestinations.<\/p>\n
Indonesian tourist arrivals fell 11 percent to 4.6 million in
\n1998. Visitors who did arrive spent less money and shortened
\ntheir stays, cutting tourism spending 19 percent to US$4.3
\nbillion.<\/p>\n
Visitor numbers climbed back to a record high in 2001 of over
\n5.1 million, taking revenue back to $5.4 billion -- a similar
\nlevel to spending before the crisis.<\/p>\n
But the heavily-indebted country lags behind neighbors like
\nThailand, just a quarter the size, which last year had 10 million
\ntourists generating income of $7.6 billion.<\/p>\n
The resort island of Bali -- the \"Island of the gods\" with
\n20,000 temples, is the jewel in the crown of Indonesian tourism.<\/p>\n
It suffered from the country's plunge into crisis but
\nattracted nearly 1.5 million foreign tourists last year.<\/p>\n
Bali has been largely free of the unrest that has rocked
\nIndonesia in recent years, partly since its Hindu religion
\ninsulated it from Muslim-Christian fissures elsewhere.<\/p>\n
But it is seen by many internationally as an oasis of calm in
\na turbulent country.<\/p>\n
\"While Bali remains a relatively safe destination, much of the
\nrest of Indonesia is a risky proposition,\" says tour guide
\npublisher Lonely Planet in a web site warning to tourists.<\/p>\n
The United States has a similar caution.<\/p>\n
\"The security in many parts of Indonesia puts Americans at
\npotential risk,\" says the web site of the U.S. Embassy in
\nJakarta.<\/p>\n
The British Embassy says: \"We believe that Indonesia is one of
\na number of countries where there is an increased threat to
\nBritish interests from global terrorism. Visitors should be extra
\nvigilant in public places.\"<\/p>\n
Although some of the worst social troubles have abated in
\nIndonesia and the presidency of Megawati Soekarnoputri looks
\nrelatively stable, the country is still fighting separatist
\nrebels in Aceh and Papua, at the extreme western and eastern ends
\nof the country.<\/p>\n
And after the U.S. declared war on terrorism in Afghanistan,
\nanti-U.S. rallies erupted in Jakarta and elsewhere and extremist
\nIslamic groups threatened to expel Americans and other
\nWesterners. A grenade exploded at an Australian international
\nschool in Jakarta in November.<\/p>\n
The demonstrations have faded and the threats proved mostly
\nempty, but the damage to Indonesia's image lingered.<\/p>\n
Indonesian tourism authorities and private tour operators
\nacknowledge there is violence in some danger spots but argue that
\nwith 17,000 islands in a country with a land area nearly three
\ntimes the size of Texas, there are plenty of safe holiday
\nchoices.<\/p>\n
\"We are quite open. Temporarily...you are not suggested to go
\nto the Moluccas, you are not advised to go to Aceh, but you are
\nsuggested to go to other places,\" said Ardika.<\/p>\n
If tourists believe the message, with an associated marketing
\neffort built around a rich culture of indigenous tribes, rain
\nforests and marine national parks, Ardika hopes to push arrivals
\nthis year to 5.4 million to 5.8 million.<\/p>\n
The global marketing plan takes in traditional markets such as
\nWestern Europe and North America, along with emerging ones
\nincluding China, India, the Middle East and Eastern Europe.<\/p>\n
\"Our strategy is it is better for us for not too many tourists
\nto come, but they can spend more (time and money).\"<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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