Gentlemen, (And I use the term politely), you have both hit the nail on the head. The issue (although not only Balinese in origin) is - do the Jakartan based Government have the balls to stand up to the rising tide of fundamentalist doctrine which will possibly destroy your entire nation!This is a...

hate even mentioning it, because every Indonesian has the right to be pissed off about it. From memory you need permission to reside or travel in a different Residency anyway, so maybe it would work.But the REAL answer is to cool down the entire situation.

Quote:Originally posted by Polar Bear: One suggestion to help Bali.give it semi autonomy, and prevent non Balinese Indonesians from visiting the island. that's probably the only practical way of dealing with the problem.

One suggestion to help Bali.give it semi autonomy, and prevent non Balinese Indonesians from visiting the island. Its a horrible thing to even consider, it is VERY unfair, and if I were Indonesian I would be REALLY angry at the idea.

I am so sorry about this, but this is the real truth:Prior to 911 the average Australian tourist was happy to go to Bali for a couple of weeks a year. My next door neighbours went 3 times a year. I remember once asking them if they liked Indonesia and they said "oh no, we go to Bali, not Indonesia".

Tourism in Bali still stagnant five months after blasts Luh Putu Trisna Wahyuni, The Jakarta Post, DenpasarBalinese involved in the tourist industry are increasingly worried about the imminent threat of massive layoffs due to the drastic drop in tourist arrivals on the island.

Batam's long wait for investors Fadli, The Jakarta Post, BatamMany industrial areas in Batam, Riau Islands province have been forced to discontinue promoting their sites due to a lack of interest from investors.