Flights to S'pore, U.S. fully booked

Flights to S'pore, U.S. fully booked

JAKARTA (JP): Airline flights from May 15 to May 31 from
Jakarta to certain destinations, particularly Singapore,
Australia and the United States, are fully booked out, travel
agents and airlines said on Saturday.

Travel agents and airlines told The Jakarta Post that the
extraordinary number of passengers heading overseas during that
time was mainly due to school holidays in mid-May to mid-July and
individuals' fear of possible mayhem in the capital ahead of the
June 7 general election.

"On average, seats are booked out for departures from mid-May
to the end of May," Julia, ticketing manager at PT Bayu Buana
Travel Service, said.

She refused to give details but said: "Next month is peak
season for people traveling abroad since the school holidays are
about to start."

This year, school holidays across the country have been
brought forward and will start in mid-May and last until mid-
June. Schools have brought forward the dates of examinations and
class activities to avoid the May 19 to June 5 campaign period
and the polls.

Normally, school holidays fall in June and end in July.

But a number of travelers, according to Julia, have their own
purposes for mid-year trips.

"Some say they are taking their family members on trips in
case of worsening conditions ahead of the polls," Julia said.

Vayatour Travel Agent sold out all its reservations to
Singapore several weeks ago, said reservation and ticketing
manager Puji.

"Travelers, mostly wealthy Chinese-Indonesians, say they're
heading out for family holidays," she explained.

Some ticket buyers have had to be satisfied with having their
names put on flight waiting lists.

"They did not refuse our offer of the waiting list," Puji
said. She strongly believes that the people willing to take their
chances on a waiting list are those who still feel uncertain
about the country's future prior to and after the polls.

Another operator in the booming airline ticketing business, a
staffer of Golden Rama Tour on Jl. Tanah Abang II in Central
Jakarta, said some people booking flights through her office had
expressed fear of possible unrest around poll day and beyond.

"They reserved open tickets that are valid for one year," she
said.

An airline employee said on Saturday that flights to Singapore
and Australia were fully booked during May.

"On average, the return tickets are open tickets," the Garuda
employee, who asked for anonymity, said.

For domestic destinations, only Bali has shown a drastic
increase in ticket sales, said the employee, who works on Jl.
Gunung Sahari in Central Jakarta.

Separately on Saturday, a noted sociologist said people's
apprehension of possible unrest around poll time was natural.

"Those of Chinese descent were traumatized by the May riots,
in which they were targeted by angry mobs," said Sardjono
Djatiman, a sociologist at the University of Indonesia.

More than 150,000 Indonesians and foreigners fled the country
from May 14 to May 20 last year owing to the May 13 through May
15 riots.

According to the National Commission on Human Rights, at least
1,188 people died in the riots and thousands of shops, vehicles
and homes were attacked, burned or looted.

Separately, chairperson of the Communication Forum for
National Unity (FKKB) Rosita S. Noer, estimated on Saturday that
a large number of present and former state officials would also
temporarily flee the country ahead of poll day.

"They all want to save their own skins because they're afraid
and are feeling threatened in this country, which has become home
to riots and uncertainty," Rosita said.

From Singapore, The Straits Times reported on Saturday that
about 30,000 Indonesians were expected to wait out the general
election in the neighboring city-state, fearing violence during
the polls.

"To be on the safe side, (Indonesians) are booking their plane
seats and hotel rooms," Prasetya Purnawan, a director at
Singapore's Le Meridien hotel, told the paper.

"But it's still a wait-and-see situation," he said. "If there
are riots, they will fly out."

Indonesian Embassy officials estimate that about 30,000 people
will seek safety in Singapore during the campaign period and the
elections, the newspaper said. (01/bsr)