Bahari Nongsa festival promotes tourism

By David Chew

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto has declared 1996 to be Indonesia's Maritime Year, a most fitting tribute to the country's position as an archipelagic nation, in fact the world's largest. We should keep this important declaration in mind, at least for the next three months, considering the sea-faring heritage and tradition bequeathed by the Majapahit Empire several centuries ago.

And to help us do this, there will be an exciting beach carnival to highlight the country's rich heritage and tradition on the seas. The carnival will also provide entertainment, food and fun to those who love the sea and sun.

The Festival Bahari Nongsa is to be held later this month in the Riau archipelago, a myriad of more than 300 islands within a lush tropical area of 20,000 square kilometers.

The carnival's organizing committee, chaired by Soedibyo Rahardjo, Indonesia's former ambassador to Singapore, comprises government officials and businessmen from Batam, Jakarta and Singapore.

The carnival is fully supported by the Indonesian government through the Ministry of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications, the Batam Industrial Development Authority (BIDA), the governor of Riau and the Indonesian Navy.

The festival provides a good opportunity to promote tourism in the Riau-Singapore-Johor Growth Triangle, which reflects the cooperation of Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia in establishing a one-stop center to attract foreign investors to the region. Tourism and recreation cannot be separated from business in the sense that businessmen must relax after a hard day's work.

For this purpose, the invitations to the week-long beach carnival from Sept. 22 to Sept. 29 at the Nongsa Point Marina on Batam Island have been extended to VIPs from Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore.

The chief of the Indonesian Navy, Arief Kushariadi, Governor of Riau Soeripto, Chief Executive of BIDA Soeryohadi Djatmiko and other top Indonesian government officials have been invited.

From Singapore, the Minister of Trade and Industry Yeo Cheow Tong, Chief Executive Officer of the Singapore Tourism Promotion Board Tan Chin Nam and officials from the Port of Singapore Authority have been invited.

From Malaysia, the VIPs who have received invitations include Minister of Tourism Datuk Sabbaruddin Chik, the chief of the Malaysian Navy and the managing director of Johor Port in Southern Malaysia.

The festival will emphasize the enormous potential tourism industry in Riau archipelago, said Minister of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications Joop Ave in his message in the carnival's souvenir booklet.

Governor of Riau Soeripto said the following in his message: "For maritime sports and tourism, there are the Bintan and Batam islands, where you can find scenic beaches such as the Trikora Beach on Bintan, Pasir Panjang on Rupat Island and Nongsa on Batam. More sophisticated and attractive, are the sea gardens with beautiful coral and fish in the waters surrounding the islands of Mapor, Abang, Pompong, Bulang and Tanjung Berakit. Challenging diving spots also offer thrills to adventurous divers."

There will be many ocean sports at the carnival, such as the KSAL Cup International Yacht Race, sponsored by the Indonesian Navy. There will also be other sailing races, water-skiing exhibitions, jet-ski competitions, diving competitions and beach games.

Pleasure boats from Indonesia, Singapore and Johor, southern Malaysia, will ferry the participants in the carnival to Batam island.

The participants from Jakarta will begin their journey today, arriving at Nongsa Point in five days. The journey is the final leg of what First Admiral Yoewarsono of the Indonesian Navy, in his message in the souvenir booklet, called " ... the missing link in the yacht circuit between Australia and Asia."

"This year, races are intended to introduce the best sailing routes possible and are planned to stop at the most beautiful places such as Ambon, Ujung Pandang, Bali, the Thousand Islands and Nongsa Batam," said Admiral Yoewarsono.

Pleasure boats and yachts from Singapore and Malaysia will take advantage of the Riau Gateway Scheme, which was mooted in 1994 to enable the boating communities of both countries to explore new cruising grounds in Riau.

"The Indonesian Government ...... has put in place streamlined easy access procedures for all sea sport enthusiasts, be it angling, diving, boating or tourism," wrote Soedibyo. Under the scheme, the boats will have no trouble entering Riau waters through a customs and immigration checkpoint at Nongsa Point Marina.

So if you, a local Jakarta resident or a member of the expatriate community, are stressed by the hectic pace of working in Jakarta, aggravated by chronic traffic jams and you desperately need a break, the Festival Bahari Nongsa may be just the antidote for you -- and your family who may need that long- delayed holiday.

"The whole family can appreciate the natural beauty of untouched islands and pristine waters under which lie a magnificent panorama of reefs, coral and marine life," said Soedibyo.

If you intend to participate in the Jakarta-Nongsa Yacht Race, you will experience the same breath-taking feeling that the legendary Japanese, Buginese, Madurese and Menadonese sailors and fisherman felt hundreds of years ago when they sailed in their quaint Phinisi, or other traditional boats, in the beautiful waters teeming with marine life.

But there is one big difference: While they had to contend with pirates, you can rest assured that this menace will not bother you. The Indonesian Navy will take care of that. Any pirate boat that comes within distance of you will be chased away. If the pirates still prove to be recalcitrant, don't blame the navy for unleashing its full fire-power on them.

If you're short of time, take a domestic flight from Soekarno- Hatta Airport in Jakarta to Hang Nadim Airport in Batam, just more than an hour away. Relax and take in as much of the fun, food, frolic and sunshine available at the carnival's grand finale on Sept. 28 and Sept. 29.

You do not need to travel thousands of miles to the Caribbean or the Mediterranean to get your tired batteries recharged when you could go to the Festival Bahari Nongsa, which has all of their qualities and much more.