Greed ruining Bali's beaches

Greed ruining Bali's beaches

I Wayan Ananta Wijaya, Contributor, Denpasar, Bali

Bali has always been associated with pristine beaches that have
white sands and powerful waves that attract millions of visitors
to the island.

And for years, the scenic and panoramic views of Balinese
beaches have been exploited for tourism purposes.

The Balinese consider the sea as a holy place as it plays a
crucial role in their lives, either through religion or culture.
They consider the sea as the beginning and the end of one's life
cycle. They take tirtha (holy waters) from the sea to be used for
purification and rituals. The sea purifies the spirits of the
dead before they go to heaven.

IB Darmika, anthropologist from the University of Hindu
Indonesia in Denpasar, talked about the close relation between
the Balinese people and the sea.

"We believe that the life of a human being originates from
the sea. The Balinese people pay homage to the sea and preserve
it as a most precious asset," he said.

The holy script written on palm leaves, the lontar inscription
Adi Parwa, reveals the mythological Bima Ruci in which the
Balinese strongly believe that the center of life and tirtha
amertha (holy water of immortality) exist deep within the ocean.

Darmika said the holy water purifies both bhuwana alit (human
beings) and bhuwana agung (the universe).

The procession to seek the holy water of Kamandalu is called
melasti, the anthropologist said. Visitors to Bali may wonder why
hundreds of people wearing lavish traditional costumes and
carrying colorful flowers, cakes and fruit offerings march toward
any beach in Bali. The melasti is usually carried out before any
ritual in major Hindu temples or special events like Nyepi, the
Hindu Day of Silence.

Hindu scholar I Ketut Wiana added that philosophically,
melasti means a prayer to eliminate the suffering of the people
and to balance the cosmological world. It is also a means to seek
spiritual power to face any calamity.

With such a deep respect and awe, almost entire beaches and
coastlines in Bali were left untouched and protected for
centuries, until the province was developed to become Indonesia's
most prominent tourist destination in the early l960s.

An environmentalist, A.A. Ngurah Made Arwatha, said the sea
was no longer used for religious purposes.

"It has become a potential economic resource and a place for
leisure and entertainment," Ngurah said.

Greedy investors hunt for beach locations to make way for
various tourism-related development projects including hotels,
villas, golf courses, etc. The exploitation of beach areas
intensified in the early l980s and climaxed during former Bali
governor IB Oka's term in office in the l990s. The then governor
controversially issued a decree allowing investors to develop
tourist facilities and manage the coastal areas in front of their
properties.

The decree also shifted the function of beaches from the
social and religious domain to limited and restricted business
facilities.

Since then, parts of the coastline have been closed to the
public. Some beach areas are only open to the guests of luxury
hotels that manage the sites.

The public's right to utilize, enjoy and more importantly to
perform religious ceremonies that should be held in beach areas
have been denied by government regulation and by the greediness
of developers.