Vendors upset tourists

DENPASAR, Bali: Officials are concerned that the swarming food and souvenir vendors, competing for buyers to the point of becoming a nuisance, may adversely affect the tourism industry here.

Many foreign tourists in Kuta beach, for instance, have reportedly cut short their stays on the island after the local traders "forced" them to buy their goods.

John Hopson, an Australian tour operator, said yesterday many tourists from his country canceled their trips to Bali and went to Penang in Malaysia instead.

"The vendors sometimes use rude words and intimidation to make the tourists buy," he said.

Australia is the second largest country after Japan supplying foreign tourists to Indonesia. Last year, over 160,700 tourists from Australia visited Indonesia while Japan sent a record 174,000.

Around 2,000 food and souvenir vendors are operating in Kuta, hundreds of whom don't have permits.

Last year, the local administration in Badung launched an operation, but failed to reduce the number of vendors.

"If we are barred from operating here, who will feed our children," said Luh Sutri, who has been working in Kuta for eight years. (23/rms)