The first museum dedicated to Palestinian art in the US opens its doors in Connecticut pic.twitter.com/DB0NiufrpF— AFP news agency (@AFP) April 28, 2018
News and information about Culture and Tourism in Indonesia (Asean & Asia)
Pages
▼
Sunday, April 29, 2018
The first museum dedicated to Palestinian art in the US opens its doors in Connecticut
Friday, April 27, 2018
Heavy security as Philippines closes Boracay to tourists
Yahoo – AFP,
Ayee Macaraig, April 26, 2018
Boracay
(Philippines) (AFP) - The Philippines shuttered its most famous holiday island
Boracay to tourists on Thursday for a six-month clean-up, which the government
has imposed with a muscular show of its security forces.
Coast guard
boats were on patrol and assault rifle-wielding police were posted at entry
points to the once-pristine island that has become tainted by heavy
commercialisation and overdevelopment.
Regional
police head Cesar Binag told AFP the shutdown began past midnight, with
tourists barred from boarding the ferry that is the main way onto the island.
"Boracay
is officially closed to tourists. We are not closing establishments but
tourists cannot enter. We are implementing the instruction of the
president," Binag said.
About 600
policemen were deployed, with some performing life-like drills including riot
officers battling bottle-hurling protesters and mock hostage taking of
sunbathers -- all before startled locals.
"My
nephews and nieces were afraid," Filipino tourist Tara Calcetas told AFP.
"It was scary because there were people swimming yesterday (at the beach)
and the police were firing guns as if there was a criminal here."
The government conceded on Thursday there was no real threat, with interior ministry assistant secretary Epimaco Densing telling AFP the security presence was "just part of preparing for the worst".
Map and
factfile on the Philippines' best known holiday island
Boracay. (AFP
Photo/Laurence CHU)
|
The government conceded on Thursday there was no real threat, with interior ministry assistant secretary Epimaco Densing telling AFP the security presence was "just part of preparing for the worst".
President
Rodrigo Duterte ordered the shutdown this month after calling the resort a
"cesspool", dirtied by tourism-related businesses flushing their raw
sewage directly into the ocean.
During the
closure, only residents with ID cards are allowed to board ferries to Boracay,
which is home to around 40,000 people.
People on
the so-called "party island" held a final bash on the beachfront on
the eve of the closure, complete with a fireworks display and cheers of
"Bye, Bye Boracay".
But on
Thursday, residents had the swaying palms, turquoise waters and usually mobbed
white-sand beaches mostly to themselves.
"This
is what you call an island, a paradise. Boracay looks like its original
beautiful self," said restaurant cook John Reymar.
The
Philippines has pledged to take advantage of the calm to spruce up the
1,000-hectare (2,470-acre) chunk of bruised paradise.
There are
plans to bulldoze illegal or dilapidated structures, to shore up the island's
infrastructure and clean up the mess left by years of unchecked growth.
However, plans to help the up to 30,000 people who had been employed by the island's bustling tourist trade were less clear. Though Duterte has promised some $38 million in funds to help workers, they say they haven't seen a cent yet.
Volunteers
help to clean up Boracay's Bulabog beach (AFP Photo/NOEL CELIS)
|
However, plans to help the up to 30,000 people who had been employed by the island's bustling tourist trade were less clear. Though Duterte has promised some $38 million in funds to help workers, they say they haven't seen a cent yet.
The workers
were drawn by the relatively good wages on the island that has seen the number
of visitors roughly quadruple to two million since 2006.
Those
tourists, a growing number of whom are Chinese and Korean, pumped roughly $1
billion in revenue into the Philippine economy last year.
But its
growth from a sleepy backpacker hideaway into a mass-tourism hub with fast food
outlets on the beach has taken a toll.
Unchecked
construction has eaten away at the island's natural beauty, while slimy
algae-filled waves in some areas and mountains of discarded drink bottles are
problems acknowledged even by critics of the shutdown.
"I'm
all for rehabilitation and preserving it but clearly this is not the way to do
it," Philippine politics expert Ashley Acedillo told AFP.
He called
the closure an "ill-thought through, unplanned and knee-jerk action"
that did not take into account the economic impact on the island's workers and
business community.
Reymar, the
restaurant cook, agreed: "But maybe without tourists, what is the use of
having a beautiful island?"
Tourists banned from Philippines' famed Boracay island for six months https://t.co/sBX6FDayDA pic.twitter.com/i6Xdptjci1— AFP news agency (@AFP) April 26, 2018
Sunday, April 22, 2018
Dance music superstar Avicii dead at 28
Yahoo – AFP,
Shaun TANDON, April 21, 2018
New York
(AFP) - Avicii, one of the world's most successful DJs who helped usher in the
global boom in electronic music but struggled to cope with the hard-partying
lifestyle, died Friday in Oman, his representative said. He was 28.
Two years
after his unusually early retirement from touring amid recurring health scares,
the Swedish DJ was found dead in the Gulf sultanate's capital Muscat.
"It is
with profound sorrow that we announce the loss of Tim Bergling, also known as
Avicii," his management said in a statement, without specifying the cause
of death.
"The
family is devastated and we ask everyone to please respect their need for
privacy in this difficult time. No further statements will be given."
Maitrai
Joshi, a DJ at the Muscat Hills Resort, said he had spotted Avicii and
understood the dance superstar was on vacation in Oman for the first time and
had extended his stay.
"I saw
him again the next day and again he was friendly, humble and took some
photos," Joshi told AFP by email.
Avicii was
among the first DJs to break through in the mainstream as electronic dance
music grew over the past decade from nightclubs to Top 40 radio. He created a
global hit out of Coldplay's "A Sky Full of Stars," to which he added
a layer of energetic electronica.
He also
helped produce Madonna's last album. On Instagram, the pop icon posted a
picture of herself in the DJ booth with Avicii and wrote: "So Tragic.
Goodbye Dear Sweet Tim. Gone Too Soon."
His biggest
individual hits included "Wake Me Up," which went to number one
across Europe in 2013 and featured the soul singer Aloe Blacc.
Avicii was
one of the world's most successful
DJs (AFP Photo/Jason Merritt)
|
In 2015, he
DJ-ed the wedding reception of Sweden's Prince Carl Philip and his bride Sofia.
The couple mourned him in a statement, saying: "We had the honor to have
known him and admired him both as an artist and the beautiful person that he
was."
Swedish
Prime Minister Stefan Lofven called Avicii "one of the greatest names of
music in Sweden in modern times."
Scene
'not for me'
Avicii has
spoken publicly in recent years about his health problems, including
pancreatitis, triggered in part by excessive drinking.
The
condition forced him to cancel shows in 2014 as he had to have his gallbladder
and appendix removed.
In 2016,
Avicii stunned fans by retiring from touring when he was just 26.
"The
scene was not for me," he told music magazine Billboard after his
decision.
"It
was not the shows and not the music. It was always the other stuff surrounding
it that never came naturally to me. All the other parts of being an
artist," he added.
"I'm
more of an introverted person in general. It was always very hard for me. I
took on board too much negative energy, I think."
Avicii
later returned to the more quiet life of a studio artist. Last year, he put out
a six-song EP that featured British pop singer Rita Ora.
'Genius
and musical innovator'
The son of
Anki Liden, a prominent Swedish actress, Avicii had his start uploading tracks
on the internet and was discovered by Dutch superstar Tiesto, who invited him
to play at his residency in the clubbing hub of Ibiza.
His
breakthrough single, "Levels," adapted a sample of soul singer Etta
James and earned him one of his two Grammy nominations.
He took his
stage name from the Sanskrit word for the lowest level of hell in Buddhism,
adding an additional "i" at the end.
In 2014, he
was tied with Tiesto as the third top-grossing DJ in the world on the list of
Forbes magazine, which estimated his earnings for the year at $28 million.
Pop star
Charlie Puth paid tribute to Avicii as "a genius and a music
innovator" and said he "really opened my eyes to what my production
could one day sound like."
Deadmau5 --
an outspoken top DJ who had mocked Avicii when he quit touring so young --
offered his "sincerest and most heartfelt condolences."
"Banter
aside, nobody can deny what he has accomplished and done for modern dance music
and I'm very proud of him," Deadmau5 tweeted.
Fellow star
DJ David Guetta, who collaborated with Avicii on "Sunshine," wrote:
"We lost a friend with such a beautiful heart and the world lost an
incredibly talented musician
Electronic
producer Diplo on Instagram called Avicii "the gold standard" in
setting musical trends.
"I
know you had your demons and maybe this wasn't the right place for you
sometimes, but we need to protect true artists like you at all costs because
there are not enough left and we are losing too many," Diplo said.
Tuesday, April 17, 2018
Street side: Indonesia slum kids eye youth 'World Cup'
Yahoo – AFP,
Bagus SARAGIH, April 16, 2018
Jakarta (Indonesia) (AFP) - Somad rarely ventures beyond his impoverished Jakarta neighbourhood, but the 14-year-old is now gearing for a trip to Russia next month as a player in the 2018 Street Child World Cup.
Jakarta (Indonesia) (AFP) - Somad rarely ventures beyond his impoverished Jakarta neighbourhood, but the 14-year-old is now gearing for a trip to Russia next month as a player in the 2018 Street Child World Cup.
It's the
journey of a lifetime for the aspiring striker and eight other Indonesian kids
set to compete against teams of other disadvantaged children from two dozen
nations.
The event's
third edition in Moscow is a long way from Bekasi on the outskirts of
Indonesia's teeming capital where Somad's father sorts through foul trash heaps
to find and sell usable goods.
Along with
his food-seller mother, the teen lives in a 45-metre (485 square foot)
makeshift home shared with four other families.
"Not
many kids can be as lucky as I am," says Somad, who like many Indonesians
goes by one name.
"I
want to make my parents and friends proud so we can have better lives and have
no need to be scavengers anymore."
Somad lives with his family in a crowded neighborhood of scavenger families in Bekasi on the outskirts of Indonesia's capital Jakarta (AFP Photo/Elisabetta ZAVOLI) |
The slum is
mostly populated by trash pickers who live in its hundreds of shacks. A potent
smell of garbage is everywhere in the district where stray animals wander along
its muddy roads.
More than
200 children are participating in the seven-a-side tournament, which kicks off
ahead of this year's Russia-hosted World Cup.
Off the
pitch, the kids will take part in art lessons, workshops and there is a
conference focused on disadvantaged youth.
"I
want to help Indonesia win the competition. But if we do win, I don't want to
show off," says striker Bayu, picked for the Indonesian contingent from
among more than 90 children.
"I
want to share the experience with my friends when I'm back."
In 2014,
the boy's team from Tanzania won the tournament while the girl's trophy was
claimed by hosts Brazil.
The
inaugural 2010 event, started by British charity Street Child United, was
played in South Africa.
More than 200 children
are participating in the seven-a-side tournament, which
kicks off ahead of this
year's Russia-hosted World Cup (AFP Photo/Elisabetta ZAVOLI)
|
Indonesian
team coach Wahyu Kurniawan said children from poor neighbourhoods have a
vitality that is key to breaking into professional football.
"Kids
from the street are more active and tend to have more power and spirit,"
he told AFP.
"My
job is to convert those qualities into good football skill and sportsmanship on
the field."
But the
tournament is about more than just sports -- it's to give a voice to
marginalised children.
"Achievement
in the tournament is not our main priority, it's a bonus," said Jessica
Hutting from Kampus Diakoneia Modern (KDM), a children's rights NGO that
selected the Indonesian players.
"We
use football as a tool to bring street-connected children together in a safe
space where their voices can be heard."
Sunday, April 15, 2018
Aboriginal abuse victim throttles himself in Games protest
Yahoo – AFP,
Apr 13, 2018
Gold Coast (Australia) (AFP) - An Aboriginal man whose abuse in custody shocked Australia tried to throttle himself in the back of a police van following angry protests at the Commonwealth Games on Friday.
Aboriginal protesters have led repeated protests against this year's Commonwealth Games in Australia (AFP Photo/Ye Aung THU) |
Gold Coast (Australia) (AFP) - An Aboriginal man whose abuse in custody shocked Australia tried to throttle himself in the back of a police van following angry protests at the Commonwealth Games on Friday.
Police said
Dylan Voller, whose mistreatment in juvenile detention triggered a national
inquiry, tied part of his T-shirt around his neck and was gasping for air
before he was cut free.
Voller, 21,
was one of five activists who were arrested during Friday's confrontation with
a heavy police presence, the latest in a series of protests during the Games.
"(Police)
found that the individual had actually torn part of his T-shirt and tied it
around his neck and tied a knot and appeared to be grasping for air and choking
as a result of that," police assistant commissioner Brian Codd said.
Police
stopped the van and used a penknife to cut through the material, Codd said.
Voller received medical attention under police custody but is not in a serious
condition.
"My
fear is that if they hadn't of done that we could have had a very, very serious
outcome," Codd said.
Voller and
four others were arrested after dozens of indigenous activists attempted to
disrupt a live TV broadcast on a beach at Gold Coast, the Games' host city.
They
chanted "No Games, no justice!" as they were blocked by a heavy
police presence who stopped them marching to the scene of the TV broadcast.
Protesters
who have dubbed the event the "Stolenwealth Games" have staged a
number of demonstrations including at the opening ceremony, where three people
were arrested in clashes with police.
The
treatment of Voller became the focus of public outrage after footage was
broadcast of prison guards assaulting mostly indigenous boys in the Northern
Territory, including stripping them naked and using tear gas.
Images
released in 2015 showed Voller, then 17, hooded and shackled to a mechanical
restraint chair and left alone for two hours.
It prompted
a Royal Commission into treatment of children in detention, which last year
made multiple recommendations, including the immediate closure of the Don Dale
detention centre in which Voller was held.
Aboriginal
culture stretches back tens of thousands of years but indigenous people are now
the most disadvantaged in Australia, with higher rates of poverty, ill-health
and imprisonment than any other community.
Thursday, April 12, 2018
Trouble in Paradise: Tourism surge lashes Southeast Asia's beaches
Yahoo – AFP,
Lillian SUWANRUMPHA with Joe FREEMAN in Bangkok and AFP bureaus, April 11, 2018
Thailand received 35 million tourists last year, of whom nearly 10 million hailed from China, according to official data (AFP Photo/Lillian SUWANRUMPHA) |
Hordes of
tourists clamber across the white sand with selfie sticks as Thai park rangers
wade into turquoise waters to direct boats charging into the cliff-ringed cove.
Made famous
by the 2000 movie "The Beach" starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Maya Bay on
the western Thai island of Koh Phi Phi Ley is now a case study in the ruinous
costs of runaway tourism, swamped by up to 4,000 daily visitors.
"There
is too many people here, it's bad," lamented Saad Lazrak, a 61-year-old
from Morocco, as crowds around him swallowed the stretch of sand encircled by
an amphitheatre of limestone cliffs.
Across the
region, Southeast Asia's once-pristine beaches are reeling from decades of
unchecked tourism as governments scramble to confront trash-filled waters and
environmental degradation without puncturing a key economic driver.
Thailand's
Maya Bay will be off limits for four months from June to September, officials
announced last month, in a bid to save its ravaged coral reefs.
In the
Philippines, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered this month the Boracay beach
resort closed to tourists for up to six months from April 26, describing the
destination as a "cesspool" tainted by sewage dumped directly into
the sea.
Indonesian
officials, meanwhile, declared a "garbage emergency" last year
swamping a six-kilometre stretch of coast along the island of Bali.
The
island's grim coastal pollution was highlighted in March by British diver Rich
Horner's viral video of swimming through a sea of trash swirling off shore.
"Plastic
bags, more plastic bags, plastic, plastic, so much plastic!" Horner said
in a Facebook post that has been viewed more than a million times.
Thailand's
Maya Bay will be off limits for four months from June to September
in a bid to
save its ravaged coral reefs (AFP Photo/Lillian SUWANRUMPHA)
|
Breathing
space
Conservationists
and governments are worried about the health of coral reefs, which are in a
dire state globally due to climate change and rising sea temperatures.
When
exposed to warmer waters, they shed the algae that dazzle the eye and are vital
to marine eco-systems, leaving the corals diseased or bone-white in a process
called bleaching.
Environmental
stress, including pollution, human contact and exposure to plastics that comes
with mass tourism are also major threats to reefs that are part of the draw for
snorkellers and scuba-divers.
"Tourism
has a series of detrimental effects on coral health," said Eike Schoenig,
a Thailand-based marine biologist at the Center for Oceanic Research and
Education.
Countries
in Southeast Asia are looking to stem the threats without cutting off the cash
flow of a regional tourism boom, led by China, the top source market for
travellers to the region.
Thailand
received 35 million tourists last year, of whom nearly 10 million hailed from
China, according to official data.
But what is
good for business can be bad for beaches.
Songtam
Suksawang, Thailand's National Park Office Director, told AFP he personally
inspected the beach at Maya Bay and said it "must definitely be
(temporarily) closed" in order to rehabilitate it.
He said
authorities are discussing new rules once the shut-down is lifted, such as
restrictions on the number of daily visitors, better regulation of boats and a
higher entrance fee.
Tourism costs
Tourism costs
Thailand is
also conducting studies on six other marine parks, while the Philippines is
weighing action on other top destinations buckling under mass tourism.
But
governments are wary of curtailing an industry that creates jobs and buoys
economies.
Spending on
travel and tourism contributed nearly $136 billion to the region's GDP in 2017,
a figure forecast to rise to $144 billion this year, according to the World
Travel & Tourism Council.
The cost of
the closures is already being felt in the Philippines, where hundreds of
Boracay hotels and tour companies are facing steep losses from cancelled rooms,
flights and other bookings.
But some
countries are not taking such dramatic steps.
In
Indonesia, the tourism ministry said there were no plans to close Bali or any
other holiday destination in the archipelago, although it acknowledged that
pockets of the tropical paradise were under strain from heavy tourism.
"Shut
down Bali? I don't think we will need to do that yet," said ministry
spokesman Guntur Sakti. "Bali is the centre of Indonesian tourism."
In fact,
Indonesia has identified 10 other destinations where it is trying to boost
visitors and replicate Bali's success, including neighbouring island Lombok and
Lake Toba in Sumatra.
Experts are
also sceptical that short shut-downs will have lasting effects.
Fire
dancers perform for tourists on the southern Thai island of Koh Phi Phi, which
is swamped by up to 4,000 daily visitors (AFP Photo/Lillian SUWANRUMPHA)
|
"Bottom
line is that temporarily closing the beach is probably not the optimal solution
to these problems. It only take a day for a bunch of incompetent snorkellers to
trash a small reef," said Andrew Baird from the ARC Centre of Excellence
for Coral Reef Studies in Australia.
In
Thailand, the government hopes to draw people to lesser known beaches.
"We
are working very hard to spread people out, not to go to one condensed
area," said Thon Thamrongnawasawat, a marine expert working with the parks
and tourism authorities.
Travellers
to Maya Bay might like the idea.
"It's
very touristy. There wasn't a patch of sand that didn't have people laying down
on it, taking photos," Oliver Black, a 22-year-old tourist, said of his
afternoon at the destination.
As for his
thoughts on the looming closure?