Govt says tourism industry continues to grow

Govt says tourism industry continues to grow

Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post/Natuna, Riau Islands

The government acknowledged that the bomb blast outside the
Australian Embassy in Jakarta could discourage foreign visitors
from coming to the country, but the nation's tourism industry
could still grow this year supported by domestic tourists.

Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Dorodjatun
Kuntjoro-Jakti said the bomb blast may not significantly affect
individual tourists but could lead to declining numbers of group
tours who travel to attend meetings, conferences, or exhibitions.

"Group travelers will probably drop their plans because
insurance firms usually refuse to cover their trips in the event
of terrorist attacks or riots. Even if they did provide cover,
the premium would be really super high," he told reporters here
on Saturday after opening a seminar on the Natuna economic
development.

He thus called on domestic tourists to go on with their travel
plans to tourist spots across the archipelago in order to show to
foreign tourists that Indonesia, despite Thursday's bombing, is
still worth of visiting.

"We have to show that we're still traveling and that we're not
afraid or reluctant to travel. That will show them that Indonesia
is still worth visiting. We should be the trigger in a situation
like this," he said.

A powerful bomb exploded in front of the Australian Embassy in
Jakarta on Thursday, killing at least nine people and injuring
hundreds of others. The blast followed previous attacks,
including the October 2002 Bali bombing and the August 2003 JW
Marriott Hotel bombing.

The tourism sector, which is one of the nation's biggest
sources of revenue, has been struggling to recover in the past
few years after a host of shocks, including the Bali bombing in
2002 and the outbreak of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome
(SARS) last year.

Meanwhile, Minister of Culture and Tourism I Gde Ardika
remains confident of meeting the target of 5.1 million foreign
tourists and US$5.2 billion in foreign exchange revenue by the
end of the year after witnessing the industry's performance in
the first semester of the year.

The government targeted an increase in tourist arrivals of 13
percent to 5.1 million this year, while in the first semester of
the year, a total of 2.56 million foreign tourists arrived, up
almost 31.2 percent from the corresponding period last year.

"The strong jump in the number of foreign tourists in the
first half of the year is incredible in light of the fact that
the target for the whole year is only a 13 percent increase. My
rough calculations shows that the target can be surpassed and
tourist arrivals can even reach 5.6 million," Ardika said, who
was also present at the seminar on Natuna.

Ardika said he had yet to receive any information on any major
cancellations by foreign tourists.

He also called on local tourists to go on with their travel
plans, especially during the Idul Fitri and Christmas holiday
season.