Confidence through tourism

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.