Blasts affect tourism outside Bali

Slamet Susanto, The Jakarta Post, Yogyakarta

The Bali bombings on Saturday night have not only affected tourism and the handicraft industry in Bali, but also in other parts of the country, including Yogyakarta and West Nusa Tenggara.

In Yogyakarta, local silver craftsmen said the bombings, combined with the fuel price hikes, would have a devastating impact on the industry.

"The prices of raw materials skyrocketed after the government raised fuel price on Saturday, and now after the second Bali bombings we predict that fewer tourists will visit Bali and Yogya, which means fewer of our products will be sold," said Haryanto, the secretary of a cooperative of silver artisans in the province.

He also worried that the export channel through Bali would be closed until the situation on the island returned to normal following the bombings, which killed at least 22 people. Silver craftsmen in Yogyakarta export their products to the United States through Bali.

"We have not yet been affected, but the worse-case scenario, namely order cancellations, could occur next week," said Haryanto.

Besides dealing with the effects of the Bali bombings, the craftsmen also have to cope with the fuel price increases that were announced on Oct. 1, which have resulted in higher production costs. Silver materials cost Rp 2.5 million per kilogram before the fuel price increases, but now cost Rp 2.7 million a kilogram.

"These rising production costs are on top of the smelting and transportation costs," said Agus Suparwanto, a silver artisan.

The silver industry in Yogyakarta plays an important role in the local economy. Currently, 104 silver artisans are listed as members of the Yogyakarta silver cooperative, on top of hundreds of other silver craftsmen in the province. Agus called on the local government to introduce measures to protect the industry from the effects of the Bali bombings and the fuel price increases.

Separately, a senior tourism official said on Tuesday the attack in Bali would also affect tourism in West Nusa Tenggara, because many of the tourists coming to the province enter through Bali.

However, the chief of the West Nusa Tenggara tourism office, Tjok Suthendra Rai, predicted the recent bombings would not affect tourism as much as the Bali bombings in 2002, which killed 202 people, many of them foreign tourists.

"We have not seen a exodus after the explosions in Kuta and Jimbaran on Saturday. It is an encouraging sign," said Tjok, as quoted by Antara news agency.