Bombings have devastated tourism in Bali

Rita A. Widiadana, The Jakarta Post, Kuta

Only a few days before the deadly bombing of Oct. 1, 2005, the tourism industry in Bali and other places in Indonesia was starting to enjoy robust business after three years of being in the doldrums.

In Bali, for example, many hotels were experiencing occupancy rates of 90 percent to 100 percent.

Travel agencies, airlines, restaurants and cafes had high expectations. They had employed workers who had previously lost their jobs after the tourism slowdown that occurred after the Oct. 12, 2002, bombings.

"We had enjoyed a slight recovery after the 2002 bombings with an increase in hotel occupancy rates and a significant rise in tourist arrivals. The most recent bombings have shattered our hopes," Bali Tourism Board chairman Bagus Sudibya said.

Following the 2005 bomb blasts, the number of tourist arrivals to Bali dropped drastically from 5,000 people a day to only 2,000, with high cancellation rates.

Sudibya told legislators that the impact on the island's related tourist industry has been immense.

For Bali, which relies mainly on tourism, the incident crippled the island's social and economic conditions.

"While Bali has been the major gateway to other destinations in the country, terrorist attacks on the island would also have a great impact on other destinations in Indonesia," he added.

As Bali contributes around 40 percent of Indonesia's US$5 billion tourism revenue, this will certainly affect the country's income from the sector.

Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik admitted that Indonesia had failed to achieve its target of US$6.5 billion in revenue and six million visitors, due to the current situation.

Slow response

While the government was quick to respond to terrorist incidents, as well as natural disasters like the tsunami, it has been slow and unfocused in implementing follow-up policies and strategies.

Immediately after the 2002 bombings destroyed two bars in Legian in an incident that claimed 202 lives, many people from overseas as well as then president Megawati Soekarnoputri visited the site.

A few days later, several of the perpetrators, including Imam Samudra, Amrozi and others were arrested. They have been tried and now await the death penalty thanks to hard work by police led by former Bali Police chief Made Mangku Pastika.

To stimulate the recovery of ruined tourist businesses, the central government, through former coordinating minister for economic affairs Dorodjatun Kuntjoro-Jakti, immediately formulated a "Bali for the World" campaign aiming at luring visitors back to the island.

The government also pledged to allocate billions of rupiah to the island's tourism recovery program.

The results were pitiful, said Putu Agus Antara, former chairman of Bali Tourism Board and a senior tourism and textile industry professional.

"We did not need concerts for recovery. What we needed most was real action. So far, we have not seen this by way of recovery funds," he added.

The "Bali for the World" campaign is only evidenced by T- shirts and car stickers now. We had no idea what the central government was doing," he said.

After the 2005 bombings, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's administration did almost the same thing.

A day after the incident, high-ranking officials from Jakarta flocked to the bomb sites in Kuta and Jimbaran, and held press conferences for local and international journalists to show their empathy. But that was it.

Former coordinating minister for economic affairs Aburizal Bakrie invited a number of tourism practitioners from Bali and asked them to make proposals for a recovery program.

"I'm not going to beg the central government if the root cause is lack of commitment to help us," said a top person in the Bali tourism industry.

Proposals have been made without clear follow-up action from the central government. The seizure and killing of Dr. Azhari bin Husin, one of the most wanted masterminds in a series of bombings and terrorist attacks, might be good in public relations terms, but securing the recovery of the country's tourism industry requires a lot more effort.

Image recovery

Joop Ave, chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Indonesian Tourism Association, told The Jakarta Post in an interview here in Kuta that Indonesia has a serious image problem internationally.

"Tourism relies mostly on image, trust and products," noted Ave, former minister of tourism and telecommunications in former President Soeharto's government.

The bombings in October 2002 and 2005 in Bali, followed by the tsunami in Aceh and North Sumatra last year, have together destroyed the image of Indonesia as a safe tourist destination.

"Worst of all, the government has done little to counter reports broadcast worldwide by international media on the recent incidents," he added.

Soon after the terrorist attacks, for instance, Indonesia could have sent representatives, such as Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid or the late Nurcholis Madjid, known to be moderate Muslim scholars, to appear on the popular CNN Larry King talk show and tell the world that the majority of Indonesia's 220 million population are moderate Muslims.

"This kind of counter action would have been very important to improve the country's image in the world, but nothing was done," he said.

By comparison, southern Thailand has endured much violence, including bombs and riots. The country was also hit by the tsunami last year. "However, millions of visitors around the globe still feel it is safe to visit Thailand," Ave said.

The key to Thailand's success, he said, lies in its government's strong political will and commitment to supporting the country's tourism industry, an economic backbone.

The country, through its aggressive US$65 million "Amazing Thailand" campaign, has carved an impressive image among world travelers, attracting more than 12 million visitors to the country despite the tsunami and unrest in the south.

"Our neighbor, Malaysia, also launched an integrated and successful 'Truly Asia' campaign," he added.

Unfortunately, Indonesia, the largest country in Southeast Asia, has allocated only US$1 million for promotional activities.

New strategies

Indonesia, he suggested, must not only focus on Bali. "The island has been our tourism icon, but when it was attacked by a bomb, the country's tourism collapsed in a matter of minutes," he said.

Indonesia has a lot of beautiful tourist potential that needs to be properly developed and promoted worldwide.

The penetration of new markets can also be effective. Some tourist components in Bali have already tried to enter alternative markets such as Russia, Poland, Greece, Middle East countries, China, India as well as Latin America.

I. Gusti Bagus Yudhara from the Bali Chapter of the Association of Travel Agencies commented that the government, together with people in the tourism industry, must work hand in hand to promote Indonesia's potential tourist destinations at various international events.

"Many people in tourism have complained that the government has paid very little attention to such efforts," Yudhara said.

Small wonder, he said, that people elsewhere did not realize where Indonesia was.