No pagers please -- we're Balinese

JAKARTA (JP): A pager ad on TV depicting a dancing Balinese girl pausing to read her ringing pager has failed to amuse Bali governor Ida Bagus Oka and his wife.

The typical round-eyed, energetic Balinese dancer that appears during prime time receives a message from someone asking her to meet him at a discotheque.

The ad, aired by major private television stations, is an affront to Balinese culture, the governor said in Denpasar yesterday.

Taking a break while dancing to stare at a pager would never happen and would ruin the gracefulness of the dance, he said.

But what most worries the governor of the predominantly Hindu island is that the ad gives the false impression that Balinese dancers are "available" like call girls.

"To rendezvous at a discotheque has a negative connotation, don't you think?" he was quoted by Antara as asking.

His wife, Asiawati Oka, plans to lodge a protest with the television stations airing the disputed ad. (pan)