Revival in tourism looms after election outcome
JAKARTA (JP): The election of President Abdurrahman Wahid and Vice President Megawati Soekarnoputri has brought new hope for a revival of the country's ailing tourism, executives of tourism related businesses said on Monday.
Yanti Sukamdani Hardjoprakoso, the chairman of the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI), said hoteliers were pleased to find the election of the two leaders helped calm the previously tense and chaotic situation.
"Stability and security are the fundamental assets for good tourism. Now that the situation has become calm, we can move on with our business planning the future," she told The Jakarta Post.
Mirna Basalamah, the public relations manager of Mercure Rekso Hotel, located in the Chinatown district of Glodok, reaffirmed Yanti's hope for the new duo, saying her hotel saw a positive impact from the smooth election in its occupancy rate.
"Our occupancy rate rose by 15 percent since the duo were elected (on Oct. 20 and Oct. 21), resulting in an increase in revenue by an equivalent level. They have definitely brought a new hope of security, especially to us who do business in Chinatown," she said.
Yanti further said hoteliers were depending on the capability of the new government to provide security, a conducive business environment and to deliver a better image to the foreign public and investors.
She said business at hotels in Jakarta dropped to their lowest level with the average occupancy rate falling to about 25 percent this month, compared to the average 40 percent maintained throughout 1998 and between 45 percent and 50 percent in 1997.
"Average pretax earnings of hotels in Jakarta are about 20 percent of total revenue, worse than the 25 percent in 1998," Yanti said.
"Some hotels are even suffering a financial deficit," said Yanti, whose family owns the chain of Sahid hotels.
She said hotels in Jakarta had a better average occupancy rate of between 45 percent and 50 percent in 1997 because political turmoil had not yet erupted.
A study jointly conducted before the election period by PHRI and Jakarta-based consultant Horwath International predicted the average occupancy rate of hotels in Jakarta would increase by 10 to 12 percent in 2000, given the availability of a stable government and explicit security.
Chairman of Indonesian Inbound Tour Operators Club (ITOC), Arievaldy Kumarga, said tourism-related businesses were counting on President Abdurrahman and Vice President Megawati to form a good and reliable government.
"We hope the new government will pay more attention to tourism. Concerned ministries must collaborate better with each other to promote tourism. The first thing they must do is to rehabilitate Indonesia's image overseas," he said.
He said local travel agents should inform overseas colleagues about the current positive development in the country's safety and political conditions to help improve Indonesia's security image.
He said travel agents expected more foreign tourists to visit Indonesia following the current good signs of political stability.
"We expect some increase during the end of the year due to holidays and the celebration of the turn of the century. But we may only see the real increase in inbound arrivals next year or in 2001 because some people may need more time to assure themselves that the good changes here are for real," he added.
The government predicts inbound arrivals will be about 354,150 foreigners in October, 354,500 in November and 404,530 in December.
The government is upbeat that it will receive up to five million foreign visitors this year, higher than the 3.5 million it received last year. (cst)