Prison opened to tourists

SEMARANG, Central Java: The island of Nusakambangan, a penal colony for hardened criminals, was opened to tourists on December 1, Sri Soebagjo of the local tourism office said.

The move is part of a three-year trial he said Tuesday, Antara reported.

Soebagjo said the island has beautiful scenery, and old Dutch buildings which tourists would enjoy, and has 22 tourist destinations, including white sand beaches and caves.

Since the opening at least 800 tourists have been to the island, which is jointly managed by the Central Java administration, Cilacap district administration, the local tourism office and local justice office. (swe)