ASEAN intensifies efforts to boost tourism: Minister

ASEAN intensifies efforts to boost tourism: Minister

Wahyoe Boediwardhana and Dadan Wijaksana, The Jakarta Post,
Nusa Dua, Bali

ASEAN tourism ministers have pledged to improve security in
the region, as part of attempts to revive the image of the
tourist industry -- badly tainted by the horrific terrorist bomb
attacks on Bali last year.

An intensified effort to improve security is a prerequisite to
generate confidence among visiting tourists so they feel safe and
well-protected during their stays, Indonesia's Minister for
Cultural and Tourism I Gede Ardika said here over the weekend.

Ardika went on to say that ASEAN (Association of South East
Asian Nations), plus Japan, China and South Korea had all agreed
to issue a joint statement on the matter, which is expected to
help ensure sustainability in the tourism industry throughout the
region.

One of the issues at the top of the agenda during the weekend
gathering, according to Ardika, was improving law enforcement
across ASEAN countries.

"This is a reflection that ASEAN serves as one area. So we're
not just guarding our own turf," he said, adding that the deal
was a follow up from an earlier meeting in Phnom Phen in January.

He was speaking to reporters after the completion of a meeting
called the ASEAN-China, Japan and Korea Tourism Ministers Retreat
held in Nusa Dua, Bali.

The tourism sector in the region, which has been one of the
main sources of foreign exchange income, was the hardest hit
following the Oct. 12 Bali bomb blasts, which killed more than
200 people, mostly tourists.

Efforts to revive the industry have been intensified ever
since, not just in Indonesia, but also in the region, which has
also felt the pinch of the attacks.

Elsewhere, Ardika said that the region's ministers had agreed
on certain schemes to promote tourism in ASEAN. He pointed out as
an example, a plan to issue the so-called ASEAN Air Pass for
tourists wishing to visit an ASEAN country.

"For instance, a tourist paying a visit to Indonesia, will
also be entitled to two optional tickets, with discounted prices,
heading for two other ASEAN countries," Ardika said.

"The prices offered will be special, far below the normal
prices."