Batam immigration wises up for tourist influx

Batam immigration wises up for tourist influx

By Prasetyo Subekti

BATAM, Riau (JP): Frequent travelers between Batam and
Singapore have been enjoying a new facility since the beginning
of the month courtesy of the local immigration office.

Holders of the new "Smart Card" are entitled to speedy
immigration service when they arrive and depart this industrial
island which is now one of Indonesia's main tourist gateways as
well as a favorite weekend retreat for residents of Singapore.

A special counter has been set up at Batam's ferry terminal
for cardholders. Although they still must carry their passports,
they no longer are required to show them to the immigration
officer.

All they have to do is produce a plastic card, the size of an
ordinary credit card, in which information about their
immigration status is stored in the tiny micro-processor chip
inserted in the card.

The Smart Card Electronic Passport System was introduced to
provide a fast, efficient and secure way of screening frequent
travelers at the various immigration check points in the Riau
Islands, officials here said.

"It is a restricted passport" Indonesian ambassador to
Singapore Sudibyo Rahardjo said at the formal launching of the
card at Nongsa ferry terminal early this month.

"It will be issued to Indonesians and foreigners who are
frequent visitors to these resort islands," said Sudibyo, whose
office in Singapore will issue the cards.

Batam Island, situated some 20 kilometers from Singapore, is
now being developed as a center for manufacturing and tourism,
Sudibyo said while explaining the necessity of the card.

Located at the center of the growth triangle linking
Singapore, Johor (Malaysia) and Riau (Indonesia), Batam also
attracts international tourists who visit Singapore to go
yachting or play golf.

There are at least 7,000 yachts in Singapore, and if each one
carrying five passengers docks at Batam once a year, then
Indonesia is looking at 35,000 additional tourists.

The card has already been used in a limited way since 1991 by
Singapore-based workers of Batamindo, which pioneered Batam's
development.

"At that time only about 150 people were using the Smart
Card," Batam immigration chief Ajat Sudrajat Havid said.

With the official expansion of the card system, the government
has issued at least 2,000 cards this month. Indonesians get green
cards while Singaporeans are given red ones.

The card system is also employed at the immigration
checkpoints of Sekupang, Nongsa ferry terminal and Batu Ampar at
Batam. Their use will eventually be extended to Tanjung Pinang
and Teluk Sebong on Bintan Island, and then to other places in
the Riau archipelago which are being developed as part of the
industrial complex that is centered in Batam.

Minister of Justice Oetojo Oesman said his office is fully
behind the card scheme and has declared a number of cities around
Batam as special territories for immigration purposes since 1983.

"Foreigners who work and stay in these territories can enjoy
facilities in arranging visas and passports," Oetojo said.

The introduction of the card system is expected to boost
foreign investment in Batam and its surrounding areas besides
encouraging tourists, businessmen and professionals to come and
develop the regions, Oetojo said.

The software installed at the immigration checkpoints to
process the Smart Card can also detect whether or not the holder
has been blacklisted by immigration since the time the card was
issued.

The Immigration Office is not simply vying for current
frequent travelers, who are almost automatically allowed to
apply, but also prospective frequent travelers now that Batam
offers leisure activities such as golf and sports clubs for those
who reside in Singapore.

They are also available for Indonesians who travel frequently
to the islands.