Confidence through tourism

Free transportation, free accommodation, free meals, complimentary return airline tickets to any domestic destination and free tickets to any tourist resort in the country: What more could a tourist want, or need?

Even without all those lures, Indonesia -- whose national currency, the rupiah, is now worth a mere 20 percent of its precrisis international value -- is already one of the most attractive tourist destinations in the world. Imagine staying at a five-star hotel for the equivalent of a mere US$50 a night. And while most Indonesians must now think at least twice before spending money on such luxuries as a new pair of decent shoes, perfume or jewelry, for the international dollar-carrying traveler, the country offers bargains galore.

Add to all that the country's magnificent landscape, its mountains and beaches, plus the diversity of its peoples and cultures. Truly, Indonesia's tourist promotion officials can be forgiven for their inclination toward using hyperboles when describing the country.

So, what then is the trouble with Indonesia's tourist industry? One of the country's top foreign exchange earners in past years, the tourist sector has been hit hard by the ongoing regional economic crisis. It went into an even deeper slump after the May riots in which more than 1,200 people were reported to have died and culminated in the downfall of then president Soeharto, who ruled the country for more than three decades.

The May unrest prompted many foreign governments to issue travel warnings on Indonesia to their citizens. And while protest demonstrations of such a scale and violence have since been absent, the political uncertainty that has remained since Soeharto's downfall has not helped to restore foreign confidence -- from investors and tourists alike -- in the country's ability to pull itself out of its present difficulties any time soon.

As a consequence, investors continue to stay away. The tourist sector, too, has been badly affected by the developments of the past months. The country will most probably have to lower its $5.75 billion tourist earnings target for 1998 by a considerable amount. The fact is that while the government has set tourist arrivals for 1998 at 4.6 million -- already a conservative estimate compared to 1997 -- only 1.4 million international tourists visited Indonesia during the first half of this year.

In light of all this, the policy of offering free tourist services -- if only for a day -- which the government devised together with the private sector not only makes sense, but is probably the most effective way to demonstrate to the outside world that things are not that bad in Indonesia today.

True, there are still many Indonesians who are not quite happy with the reforms that have been made so far by the government under President Habibie. A recent poll conducted by a private research organization indicates that more than half of Indonesians have little confidence that the new President can lead this country out of the crisis.

Nevertheless, at least in terms of public order, the worst seems to be over. As Indonesians get more and more acquainted with the new civic freedoms they have just acquired, it is reasonable to expect that they will be able to exercise those freedoms in a more peaceful and orderly manner in the weeks and months to come.

Tourists and other international travelers, whatever the purpose of their visit, can of course do a lot to rectify any false information about this country. This is the purpose of yesterday's "free service" campaign. Though one day may not seem like much, it is to be hoped that the policy will help restore wider international confidence in this country. If this can be achieved, tourism could rightly consider itself a spearhead of Indonesia's economic resurrection.