Sekaten entry cost up by 20 percent

YOGYAKARTA: The increase in fuel prices at the beginning of March has apparently influenced the entertainment sector in the city.

The organizing committee of the annual traditional event of Sekaten night market to be held from March 11 to April 22 at Alun-Alun Utara (northern square), for example, has recently announced that it would raise the entry ticket by some 20 percent on last year's price.

Last year, entry to the Jogja Expo Sekaten or JES, as the event is now named, was Rp 2,500 on weekdays and Rp 3,500 on weekends. It has now risen to Rp 3,000 and Rp 4,000 consecutively.

"We have to adjust to the increase in the prices of other commodities," JES 2005 chairman Subarkah said earlier this week.

Subarkah added that unlike previously, there would not be a door prize at this year's event. Instead, the organizing committee would double the insurance allocation from Rp 50 previously to Rp 100 currently, taken from the ticket price.

That way, compensation payable to Sekaten visitors who sustain an accident or death would also be doubled.

If previously the claim for injured visitors was Rp 4 million it is now Rp 8 million. For death cases, the claim is now Rp 6 million, while it was previously Rp 3 million per case.

Subarkah said there would be few changes to the event itself. As last year, the municipal government will hire event organizer Citra Pamerindo, which will offer air-conditioned tents for companies wishing to participate in JES 2005.

Last year's event generated for the municipal government an income of Rp 125 million. "We hope to raise at least the same amount from this year's event," Tri Djoko, also of the organizing committee, said. -- JP