Consuls urge more visible security

Consuls urge more visible security

DENPASAR: Foreign consuls here have asked for assurance from
Badung regent Anak Agung Gde Agung on the efforts to maintain
security in the regency, particularly in the aftermath of Oct. 1
bombing in its tourism magnets of Kuta and Jimbaran.

R. Jantzen, German honorary consul in Bali, had asked the
regent to ensure a permanent security practice.

"The Badung regency should work out a sustainable and
methodical security effort," Jantzen was quoted by Antara as
saying on Friday.

He suggested that uniform security officers patrol the areas.
He said that the presence of security officers in tourism sites
created a sense of security.

Jantzen also said the regent should prevent bird flu from
spreading in Bali. "If a bird flu epidemic hits Bali, it will
immediately lose its attractiveness to tourists," he said on the
sidelines of a lunch with the regent in Kuta.

I Gusti Bagus Yudhara, the Mexican consul in Bali, also shared
Jantzen's concern.

"We hope there will be a sustainable effort, not just a
temporary one," he said. He also suggested the authorities build
a database to detect potential criminals.

Regent Gde Agung assured the foreigners that there would be
continuous efforts to maintain security.

He said after the Oct. 1 bombing, police had been patrolling
crime hot spots. Volunteers from the local community are being
trained by the police to help in the patrol.

He said that he would issue a regulation obliging hotels and
entertainment centers to install a Closed-Circuit Television
(CCTV) surveillance camera as a minimum security standard. "In a
long run, we plan to install CCTVs at all public places and
tourist sites," Antara quoted Gde Agung as saying. -- JP