Four millionth visitor arrives

SURABAYA, East Java (JP): Indonesia yesterday greeted the four millionth visitor to the country.

In a ceremony held at the Juanda airport, Chang Chien Wen of Taiwan was greeted by officials, including Surabaya Mayor Sunarto Sumoprawiro, the director of marketing of the Directorate General of Tourism, Den Zachrie, and the chief of the East Java office of the Ministry of Tourism, Post and Telecommunications, Rio Judojanto.

Chang, 46, is a businessman visiting Indonesia for the first time and is here on a three-night tour to Surabaya and Bali. He was accompanied by his wife, Chang Hsieh Ching.

Chang, who came with a group of 15 Taiwanese, said he learned about Indonesia from several advertising brochures in his country.

A local tour guide for the group, Santoso Widjojo, said that Taiwan is a potential market for Indonesia, but services at airports for Chinese speaking tourists need improvement.

"Many Taiwanese frequently report to my office that officers at several airports in Indonesia seize their reading books," Santoso said, adding that most Taiwanese do not speak or read any other languages.

Indonesia expects to receive a total revenue of US$4.6 billion from foreign visitors this year.(icn)