By Tarko Sudiarno
The Jakarta Post Surakarta
Hotels, travel bureaus and royal family of Surakarta lamented on Tuesday the hunt on American people at star-rated hotels conducted by certain group on Sunday.
Aris Supriyadi, sales manager of Sahid Raya Hotel, Surakarta, one of two hotels swept by the anti-U.S. group said that several foreign tourists had canceled their plan to visit here due to the "operation".
Not only foreign guests who were frightened by the hunt, but also domestic tourists. "Many prospective guests from Jakarta and Semarang called us, asking if the hotel security could protect them should they go on with their plan."
"Just this afternoon the U.S. Consulate General in Surabaya called us to get detailed information about the anti-U.S. hunt. The caller was curious how we could evacuate and protect American guests should such an incident happen again in the future."
"The hotel policy is clear that we cannot hand over the guest lists to anyone. We respect the guests' privacy and security."
He said his hotel got an average of between 30 and 40 foreign guests monthly.
Front Office Manager of Novotel Solo John Johan Tisera shared similar complaint, saying that the security officers should have acted actively in preventing any group from acting arbitrarily such as hunting certain guests at hotels.
"We hotel security will not be able to fully deal with such a sweeping. We also have policy not to give the guest list to unauthorized people. But things are different if we have to face a large number of people," Tisera said, referring to the group which came to search his hotel on Sunday.
"The image of Surakarta and Indonesia was ruined by such a sweeping. Sixteen prospective guests canceled their reservation on Monday," said Panca, a manager at Mandira Tours, a travel agent in Surakarta.
"Didn't the people (who conducted the U.S. guest hunt) think that their actions could hurt many people, hotel management, becak drivers, and vendors in traditional markets and transportation companies?"
"I made many copies of the cancellation of our guests' reservation and distributed them every where just to show them that their actions did hurt many people."
Deep regret and concern was also voiced by the Surakarta Palace Prince Gusti Pangeran Haryo (GPH) Dipokusumo.
"Protest against America should not have been expressed in such an emotional action. Sweeping is a military terminology. A word of terror and violence. Couldn't we express our disagreement in other polite and civilized ways as our ancestors had taught us?"
"Isn't it possible for us to make official protest and hand over it to the House of Representatives and the government? This will look more polite, sympathetic, not anarchic and not emotional. Sunday's action hurt all of us. Fortunately, Indonesians in America did not get the same treatment."
The prince, who is now chairing Bengawan Solo Fair 2001, said he was ashamed with the incident. "Majority Solo people are not like them," he said referring to members of the group hunting the Americans.
"Those who joined the group and took part in series of violence in the past were people living in outskirts who lack communication with us. It would be better for us to communicate more with those people. They live not in either urban or rural areas, thus they are between two different cultures. They need our touch," prince Dipokusumo said. (53/sur)