Jakarta museums work to meet public's tastes

Agnes Winarti, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The good news is more and more people today visit museums in Jakarta. But unfortunately museum curators and visitors alike are not always privy to the information or surroundings they need to truly appreciate all there is to learn from the country's cultural heritage.

Museum caretakers, according to MR Manik, head of the Jakarta History Museum, are responsible for the continued flow of visitors into museums, to help others learn and grow from their experiences.

"But most museum caretakers here don't have a clue about what the visitors want," Manik said.

"People now are more accustomed to the attractive displays inside shopping malls.

"We can not simply blame the public's lack of appreciation -- it is correlated with their education and economy levels.

"They are often more concerned with other important bread-and-butter issues."

Manik said most museum caretakers did not know how to look after visitors wanting to see attractive displays, to speak with an hospitable guide or to find clean restrooms.

"We also need to think of creating collectible entrance tickets visitors would love to keep as souvenir."

Manik, a civil servant at the City Culture and Museum Agency for 33 years, was recently assigned to head the Fatahillah Museum.

At first, he said he was not able to grasp the history of Jakarta by observing the collections on display -- even after several viewings.

"The exhibition was not displayed in order, or thematically," he told The Jakarta Post last week.

So Manik said he insisted on a range of changes, which at first met objections from his staff.

"They told me the exhibition was fine as it was and they said it did not need to be changed."

Fatahillah Museum is the city's largest and receives the most visitors, but Manik is determined it can be better.

"Appreciation of the museum has been improving in the last five years .. but it is not enough," he said.

Indra Riawan, head of the Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum near the Fatahillah Museum said it was a sad fact so many Indonesians living abroad would experience museums overseas, but would not think to visit one in Jakarta or their home town.

Indra said many civil servants did not know which museums were run by the city administration -- let alone a museum's address.

"We need to sort out this internal matter first," she said.

"That's why I always suggest having meetings at different venues, moving from one museum to another.

"In that way, at least, officials become aware of the museums run by their office."

The Jakarta administration currently manages 11 historical sites: the National Monument; Proclamation Park; Jakarta History Museum; Prasasti (ancient inscription) Museum; Wayang (shadow puppet) Museum; Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum; Maritime Museum; Joang 45 Museum; MH Thamrin Museum; Textile Museum and the Onrust Archeology Park in the Thousand Islands.

The Jakarta History Museum, the Wayang Museum, the Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum, as well as the Maritime Museum are located around the city's Old Town area -- or Kota -- in West Jakarta.

Ade Purnama, who established a program that encourages the community to visit heritage sites, Sahabat Museum (museum friends) in 2002, said the public's apathy toward museums was understandable.

He said people's attitudes were more than likely grown from childhood and negative experiences during compulsory school visits to museums.

"I never like how we as students were forced to learn history with that kind of program.

"Although I like history, but back in the school days, my mark in history was not good," he said.

"The museum-visit program was boring.

"It still is ... no one enjoys that kind of study excursion."

But the majority of visitors to Jakarta's museums are in fact still students.

Last year, some 70 percent of the 17,000 visitors to the Fine Arts and Ceramics Museum and of 9,878 visitors to the Maritime Museum were students.

Ade said museum caretakers also had to start promoting the history of the museum's building, as well as the history of social-political life surrounding its location.

"We dig into the history of places along each of our Sahabat Museum excursions," Ade said.

"To keep it attractive, I try not to repeat the same route or the same way of storytelling in each trip," he said.

In the last five years, the community has held 50 visits around various historical sites in Jakarta, as well as around the archipelago. Ade said he has seen a significant increase to participant numbers for each new trip.

Tourist industry enjoys rebound

I Wayan Juniartha, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar, September 12, 2007

The island's tourist industry enjoyed a strong first semester of 2007, with a sizable increase in foreign tourist arrivals from the same period last year.

"I believe that this is the long-awaited good news for the tourism industry here. The growth signifies that the industry is on the right track toward full recovery," Bali Tourism Agency (BTA) head Gde Nurjaya said.

According to BTA data, a total of 910,567 foreign tourists visited the island from January to July this year. This was a 34.99 percent increase from the 674,561 foreign tourist arrivals in the corresponding period of 2006.

"Moreover, the increase took place in each and every month of this semester. It ranges from 20.46 percent to 61.07 percent. The highest increase took place in February," he said.

This trend is expected to continue, with the number of foreign tourist arrivals also rising in August. A total of 165,738 foreign visitors arrived in Bali in August, up 40.33 percent from August 2006.

If this trend continues, Nurjaya stressed, the island will meet its 2007 target of 1.4 millions visitors ahead of schedule.

"By August, more than 1.1 millions visitors had visited the island so we are quite optimistic that we will meet and, probably, surpass the target," he said.

The increase in foreign tourist arrivals has boosted the average occupancy rate at major hotels.

According to BTA data, occupancy rates have steadily climbed since February.

In February the average occupancy rate was 41.12 percent, in March it rose slightly to 43.59 percent and in April it was 48.82 percent. The rate went up to 52.69 percent in May and was at 55 percent in June.

"By July, the occupancy rate had surpassed 60 percent and in August it was well above 70 percent," he said.

Nurjaya believes the first semester tourist numbers indicate people are no longer being put off travel to the island by different threats.

"It seems that people eventually will realize that terrorist attacks, epidemics or natural disasters can take place in any part of the world," he said.

The island has been hit twice by terrorist attacks. In 2002, two powerful bombs exploded in Kuta, killing 202 people, most foreign tourists. In 2005, 20 people were killed in bombings.

The attacks almost destroyed the tourist industry, the island's economic backbone. In the aftermath of the first bombing, the island recorded for the first time in its history a decrease in foreign visitor arrivals, which were down about 23 percent in 2003.

Another decrease took place in 2006 following the second bombings. This time, however, the numbers were only off 9.1 percent.

"The main lesson we get is that the way the affected people respond to a tragedy will influence greatly the recovery of the tourism industry," Nurjaya said.

"Bali and its people have always responded in a peaceful and decent manner. There haven't been any riots, mob justice or any display of offensive and violent vendettas following the terrorist attacks. That's the reason why Bali was able to recover in a relatively short time. That's the main reason why the foreign visitors began trickling back to Bali," he said.

Through July 2007, Japanese, Australians, Taiwanese, South Koreans and Malaysians led the foreign tourist arrivals.

"We are currently devising a more comprehensive program to attract visitors from China and Russia. The global tourism market is very huge and has so much untapped potential. We need to look beyond those top five," Nurjaya said.

China is seen as a particularly attractive market. The number of Chinese visitors to Bali in 2006 rose 137.4 percent from 2005.

"But the numbers, around 40,000 visitors, are still minuscule compared to the gigantic potential of the Chinese tourism market," he said.

RI expands tourism market to eastern Europe

The Jakarta Post

Journalist Urip Hudiono from The Jakarta Post joined the Culture and Tourism Ministry's recent road show to Ukraine's capital Kiev, Norway's Oslo and Italy's Milan to promote Indonesian tourism. Below is his report on the tour.

Come rain or high water, Indonesia in the end still manages to remain a sunny paradise for tourists worldwide. Its white sandy beaches, pristine nature and rich culture are unscathed by security problems, natural disasters and even outbreaks of disease.

Yet, in today's increasingly competitive tourism sector, Indonesia can no longer afford to take for granted its ability to attract more visitors to come. Other countries, including developing ones, are polishing their own attractions -- and sometimes even "stealing" others-- to grab a piece of that lucrative market of globe-trotters.

It is against this background that the Culture and Tourism Ministry organized a promotional road show in June to keep Indonesia on the tourism map.

The three-leg tour to Ukraine's capital Kiev, Norway's capital Oslo and Italy's fashion capital Milan was intended to open up new tourist markets, reintroduce Indonesia's cultural attractions to the world, and roll out the country's latest tourism promotion strategy: promoting events at major tourist destinations.

Regarding this strategy, known in the trade as the "Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions" (MICE) strategy, the Culture and Tourism Ministry's secretary-general, Sapta Nirwandar, said that this promotional approach was common nowadays, and Indonesia needed to do all it could not to miss out.

"The new paradigm now is not just about attracting ordinary tourists, but ensuring that all visitors become tourists," he said.

"We can do this through MICE, because by holding events, attendees are likely to visit tourist destinations during their stay. Everyone is now doing this, so we have to as well."

Indonesia already has two large events lined up -- the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Travel Mart in Bali on Sept. 25-28, which is expected to attract 1,500 travel firms and lead to deals worth some US$500 million, and the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on Dec. 13-14, also in Bali.

The "incentives" element of MICE involves actively attracting large multinational corporations to send their employees here on all-expenses-paid vacations as incentives.

"Everyone needs a holiday once in a while to stay productive, and companies know that. So they facilitate their employees in this regard," Sapta said. "We can approach such companies, and offer them our best tourism package deals."

Indonesia is hoping to attract 6 million tourists this year, and generate US$6 billion in earnings. It wants to increase the figure to 7 million next year, during Visit Indonesia Year 2008.

The number of overseas visitors from January-July amounted to nearly 2.57 million, up nearly 13 percent from the same period a year ago, the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) reported earlier this month. Last year, only 4.87 million foreign tourists visited Indonesia, generating $4.4 billion in earnings. The original target had been 5 million.

Meanwhile, the road-show's stop in Kiev was aimed at opening up new markets in eastern Europe.

"Since the Ukraine's political and economic reform, there are now many Ukrainians who can afford and are eager to go out and see the world," said Indonesian ambassador to the Ukraine, Alexander Laturiuw.

During a meeting with local tourism officials, Indonesian and Ukrainian officials agreed to work on visa-on arrival agreements and direct flights to increase the number of Ukrainian tourists, which by June had reached 1,400, compared to 2,939 last year. Indonesia hopes to increase the figure to 4,000 this year.

From Norway, which has long been a tourism market for Indonesia but has yet to be fully exploited, Sapta expects a 20 percent increase from last year's 16,000 visitors. Similarly, Indonesia wants to increase the number of visitors from Italy, one of Indonesia's main markets in Europe, from 40,992 tourists last year.

Indonesia's tourism industry received a blow just after the road show when the European Union decided to ban Indonesian airlines from flying to the region on safety concerns.

The lifting of the ban is now being reconsidered, while figures from the BPS show that it resulted in no significant drop in tourist arrivals.

On Indonesia's hopes to consolidate its unique cultural products through the road show, the ministry's head of foreign cooperation, Nies Anggraeni, said this was important given the growing trend among neighboring countries to promote a number of Indonesian traditions as their own.

"Our batik, the Dayak traditions in Kalimantan, and even the West Javanese 'angklung' traditional musical instrument are among the things that could be lost to other countries if we do not promote them ourselves," she said.

The road show presented cultural shows in all three cities, and a batik fashion show in Milan -- all of which received positive responses from the audiences, many of whom said they would like to visit Indonesia some day.

Cultural and economic factors cause illiteracy: Kalla

MATARAM (Antara): Indonesian Vice President M Jusuf Kalla said Saturday the high illiteracy rate in Indonesia was caused by cultural and economic factor.The Vice President made his speech at an International Literacy Day function in Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara (NTB)."We have been conducting various programs to free the nation from illiteracy for a long time," he said.

Currently the government was intensifying a nine-year compulsory education program as part of the national literacy program, he said, citing that in general, provinces which had sent workers abroad had relatively high illiteracy rates.

"For instance, East Java, West Nusa Tenggara and Bugis (South Sulawesi) where many of their residents working abroad have high illiteracy rates," he said.

Education Minister Bambang Sudibyo said the International Literacy Day was initiated by UNESCO (United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization) members in 1965.

"Illiteracy is closely linked with ignorance. Therefore, UNESCO and a number of its member countries have launched a fight against illiteracy program," the minister said.

UNESCO said that the vital relationship between literacy and health is the focus of this year's International Literacy Day celebrated around the world on Sept. 8.

In his message. the Director-General of UNESCO, Koichiro Matsuura, said "Literacy strengthens the capabilities of people to take advantage of health care and educational opportunities - for example, by seeking medical help for themselves and a sick child, by adopting preventive health measures such as immunization, and by acquiring greater knowledge of family planning methods."

"Educated parents, especially mothers - whether through formal schooling or adult programs - are more likely to send their children to school and have a better understanding of their health care needs," he said.

Despite the various effort to fight against illiteracy, some 774 million adults lack minimum literacy skills; one in five adults is still not literate— with two-thirds of them are women; 72.1 million children are out of school and many more attend irregularly or drop out, UNESCO data read

Air France, Qantas eye travelers to Bali

PARIS: Air France vice president for Asia Pacific Jean-Louis Pinson said Wednesday that the carrier would launch a service between Bali and Singapore based on a code-sharing agreement with Qantas Airways.

The partnership will commence Sept. 11, Pinson told The Jakarta Post, in what he said was an opportunity to explore the possibility of opening up more routes to Indonesia.

He added, however, that the carrier had no immediate plans to serve Jakarta directly.

"Perhaps in the future as Indonesia has great potential. We are confident of that."

Night museum tour blasts residents back to old Jakarta

Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

For one group of Jakarta residents, Saturday night was the night when the city's former colonial grandeur appeared to return to life, if only for a few hours.

Saturday's night museum tour by the group Sahabat Museum (Museum Friends) gave around 180 participants in Kota, West Jakarta, a window back to the 17th century, when the Dutch ruled and the city went by a different name: Batavia.

Sahabat Museum coordinator Ade Purnama said the community held its tours to teach the younger generation about Jakarta's history.

"It's good to know your own history, the history of Jakarta in particular, instead of always going to malls and ending up finding boredom there," he said.

Museum security guards, standing at the entrance to Bank Mandiri wearing old-style military uniforms and carrying rifles, greeted guests on their arrival.

Sixty-two-year-old Woro Dhewati Soeparto said she was thrilled at the chance to go along with the tour.

"I'm an adventurer and I'm so excited about being here. It's not only the history of Jakarta I'm curious about, but also the scenery of the buildings around here at night," she said.

Woro, who has lived on North Jakarta's Jl. Angke since 1930, was one of several older guests who joined the tour to get in touch with their feelings of nostalgia.

Yvonne, 77, said she came along after being invited by her daughter, and said she was amazed by the memories that hit her before the tour even started.

"I'm recalling what it was like in the past, comparing what the bank is like now to what it was like (then)," she said.

"There was a time when the bank's employees were very active. There were also so many Dutch employees here. But the bank is so quiet now," said Yvonne, who has lived in Jatinegara, East Jakarta, for her entire life.

The bank was established on Feb. 27, 1826, by the Dutch, who named it Factorij and made it the first local arm of the Netherlands-based Nederlandsche Handel Maatschappij (NHM).

In 1960, 15 years after the Indonesia declared its independence, the bank was nationalized, ending its days as the bank for colonial planters once and for all.

The government changed Factorij's name to the Cooperative Bank for Farmers and Fishermen, an institution focused on exports and imports.

In 1968, the government changed the bank's name to Bank Ekspor Impor. In 1999, the bank changed its name again to Bank Mandiri, which was born after Bank Ekspor Impor, Bank Dagang Negara, Bank Bumi Daya and Bank Pembangunan Indonesia were merged together into a single state-owned institution.

Standing on 10,039 square meters of land with 21,000 square meters of floor-space, the bank remains a silent testament to the march of time. The building's most remarkable feature is it's 924-square-meter safe room.

After Bank Mandiri, the next stage of trip was a convoy of two-seater bikes driven by local bicycle taxi drivers.

The bicycle rides took 10 minutes in thick traffic to reach the next stop on the tour, North Jakarta's Maritime Museum.

Standing on the edge of the port of Sunda Kelapa, the Maritime Museum is made up of antique buildings still standing at this once-great international port, including the historic Syah Bandar tower.

The 135-meter tower was initially built in 1600s and renovated in 1839, according to Bank Mandiri Museum historian Kartum Setiawan.

Local people compare the tower, he said, to the famous Leaning Tower of Pisa for its own precarious tilt toward a main street.

According to Kartum, the tower's off-kilter angle is the result of a combination of unstable foundations and the vibrations of passing buses and trucks.

"The tower will definitely collapse one day if no immediate action is taken," he said.

The tower, he said, was a watch tower operated by the then Verenigde Ost-Indische Compagnie (VOC) -- the Dutch East India Company.

Participants were then taken to Jakarta's poultry market bridge, a three minute bicycle ride from the Maritime Museum.

Kartum said the bridge, which was built in 1628, once led directly to the poultry market.

Sitting in a state of disrepair, the wooden bridge crosses the Kali Besar River, which, in the days before cars, was one of the city's main thoroughfares.

The bridge, Kartum said, was once an important connection between the east of the river, where the Dutch Embassy was located, to the west of the river, where England had its embassy.

"The bridge is now called the Jembatan Kota Intan (Diamond City Bridge) because it is where a fortress called Benteng Intan (Diamond Fortress) once stood," he said.

The journey took the participants back to the Bank Mandiri Museum where they enjoyed a live Keroncong Tugu music performance.

Kartum said Keroncong Tugu's melodious songs were influenced by Portuguese marooned in the village of Kampung Tugu in Marunda, North Jakarta.

The history of Kampung Tugu began, he said, when the VOC defeated the Portuguese in the Malacca straight, taking the vanquished Portuguese as prisoners and slaves.

"The VOC freed the Portuguese in 1700s after (the Portuguese), who were Catholics, converted to Protestantism -- the religion of most Dutch," he said.

"(The Portuguese) and their descendants have lived in Kampung Tugu in Marunda, Cilincing, since then."

The journey wrapped up with a history lecture on the Bank Mandiri Museum itself and the screening of a history documentary.

European tourist arrivals in Indonesia unaffected by flight ban

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The ban by the European Aviation Authority for the Indonesian airlines to fly over its airspace does not affect the flow of European tourists arriving in Indonesia, a spokesman said.

"We do not see any impact of the ban on the flow of European tourists into Indonesia because in reality we have no airlines flying the European space," Central Board of Statistics (BPS) head Rusman Heriawan said on Monday.

He said that the European tourists came to Indonesia aboard foreign flights.

Citing as an example, Heriawan said that the number of British tourists arriving in Indonesia in July reached 12,083, or an increase by 11.83 percent compared with that of the previous month which totaled 10,805.

He said the same case also happened to the number of German tourists which increased 26.73 percent from 8,017 to 10,160 in June. Drastic increase happened to the number of Dutch tourist arrivals which rose 93.30 percent from 9,124 to 17,637.

The BPS chief said that the overall number of tourists arriving in Indonesia in July increased 16.31 percent to 423.5 thousands if compared with that in the same period in 2006. But if compared with that in the previous month (June), it rose 2.57 percent only.

Krakatau Fest to charm and bring tourists to Lampung

Oyos Saroso H.N., The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung

Kite-flying at popular Mount Krakatau, fishing in Kiluan Bay and a Japanese couple's wedding ceremony atop elephants are just some of the highlights of the 2007 Krakatau Festival, which kicks off in Lampung province Thursday.

Participants of the festival, which will continue through to Aug. 30, will also be able to witness traditional Lampung arts performances, buy handicrafts or join the International Kite Festival.

The Krakatau kite-flying event, which will be held July 25, is part of the international kite festival.

"Several world-renowned kite enthusiasts will join the event," said Anshori Djausal, chairman of the Indonesian Kite Association in Lampung.

He said the International Kite Festival itself would be held at three places in Lampung; the Bandarlampung city forest, Kalianda resort in South Lampung and on Krakatau island.

"Participants can enjoy fishing in the waters around Mount Krakatau while flying kites," Anshori said.

He said the volcano was selected to host the international festival since the mountain, which is located in the middle of the Sunda Strait, is known around the world.

"The mountain is Lampung's icon. Even in European countries, the volcano is better known than Lampung itself."

The festival will also include an aerial photography event on July 24-25 at Kalianda resort.

A kite-making workshop for children will be held July 22-23, while an exhibition of various forms and colors of kites is scheduled for July 22-25.

Anshori said the festival will also include exhibitions of kites from several regions around the country.

He said foreign participants could take part in the International Kite Festival in Lampung on July 22-25, before going to other regions to watch other kite exhibitions.

A kite exhibition will be held in Padang, West Sumatra, on July 28 and another in August in Kendari, South Sulawesi, and Bali.

"Before going to Lampung, foreign participants can take part in a kite exhibition at Ancol beach, in Jakarta, from July 20-22," he said.

The annual Krakatau Festival involves many communities. The event will also involve the Cikal Foundation, which has organized the upcoming Kiluan Fishing Week, from Aug. 10-17.

Cikal's coordinator, Rico Stevanus, said tourists from Finland, Switzerland and England have expressed interest in taking part in the fishing event.

"Fishermen have even prepared their homes, so tourists can stay overnight. Participants will also be able to enjoy grilled fish along the shore," he said.

Head of Lampung Tourism Office, Suresmi Ramli, said the 17th Krakatau Festival will also feature the wedding of a Japanese couple in Lampung tradition, while riding a pair of elephants.

"The wedding will be held on Aug. 25 at Way Halim sports center in Bandarlampung. The Japanese couple want to get married according to Lampung custom.

"They want the wedding ceremony to take place while they ride atop elephants."

Lampung Arts Council secretary-general, Harry Djayaningrat, said the Lampung Art Festival will also be held as part of the Krakatau Festival.

Bali hotels go green

The Jakarta Post

DENPASAR: The Bali Hotels Association (BHA) has registered its 76 member hotels to take part in a community-led environmental campaign, Clean Up the World, joining 35 million volunteers in more than 120 countries that will take action to reduce the causes of climate change.

From national clean up campaigns to recycling and water reuse projects, volunteers across the globe conduct a variety of environmental projects throughout the year with activities culminating over the Clean Up the World Weekend, celebrated this year on Sept. 14-16.

"In Bali we will be organizing clean-up activities in many of our members' communities, beaches, rivers and scenic sites and attractions," said Urs Klee, the BHA's environmental committee chairman.

"With the support of Clean Up the World, we hope to bring together the tourism industry, banjar (traditional neighborhood associations), schools, tourists and local citizens to collect as much rubbish from their own communities in order for others to reconsider their waste management on the island of the gods."

He urged the local community to join and do their part to create a cleaner and safer world.

Clean Up the World Chairman and Founder, Ian Kiernan, AO, congratulated BHA for joining the global effort and on its plans to clean up their local environment.

In 2007, Clean Up the World is encouraging and supporting members to take action at a local level to help address climate change.

Energy conservation education programs, planting trees, walking to school or workplaces, and waste reduction projects are just a few of the possible options the members can choose from.

Clean Up the World originated in Sydney, Australia, in 1993 and is held in partnership with the United Nations Environment Programme.

For more information on Clean Up the World or Bali Hotels Association contact: urs_klee@discoverykartikaplaza.com.

Bali finds Aussies still lucrative

Ary Hermawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The latest travel warning slapped against Indonesia by the Australian government, particularly against Bali, will not discourage the exotic and culturally-rich island from continuing to lure visitors from the southern neighbor it warmly calls "the land of the kangaroos".

"We are currently eying emerging markets such as China, India and Russia, but Australia will remain a lucrative market.

"Australian visitors are one of the largest groups coming to Bali, seconded only by Japanese," Gde Nurjaya, head of the island's tourism agency, said Tuesday on the sidelines of a hearing with regional councilors.

Nurjaya said the Australian travel advisories, which have been consistently renewed and reissued each time the country has received what it calls reliable information of an "imminent" terror attack, should be understood in the proper context.

"If Australia is a father, then it is just trying to protect its children. It is indeed understandable," he said.

Many officials, especially lawmakers, have reacted negatively to the travel warning and feared the adverse impact it could have on Bali's tourism industry.

However, Nurjaya said he remains upbeat that the warning "would not severely affect" the number of foreign tourists visiting Bali.

"We can only evaluate the impact of the latest advisory after the next three months have passed," he said.

The Bali Tourism Board says that on average around 215,000 Australians have visited Bali annually since 2001. The figure fell to 139,000 in 2003 as a result of a first deadly Bali bombing, but rose back to 267,000 in 2004.

However, after the second Bali bombing in 2005 in Jimbaran and Kuta -- which was perhaps amplified by the complications surrounding the Bali nine case in which three Australians were sentenced to death for drug trafficking -- the number plunged to below 120,000.

Despite all this, with the number of local and foreign tourist arrivals on the increase and confidence that the island's tourism industry has somewhat recovered from the damaging reputation of being a terror target, travel agencies and tourism officials were optimistic about 2007.

As of May this year, the number of Australian tourists had reached 65,551, accounting for 10 percent of all foreign tourist arrivals on Bali. Around 129,000 Japanese tourists flocked to Bali's beaches in the same period. "International tourist numbers from the Asia Pacific increased by 35 percent," Nurjaya said.

However, the Australian government's travel advisory early this month shook the island's newfound confidence as it abruptly followed a European Union flight ban on Indonesian airlines. Travel agencies believe that the number of tourists traveling from Europe to Bali will likely drop by at least 30 percent as a result.

"Australia is of course a market that we have to continuously develop," he said when asked if the travel advisories from Australia would force Bali to turn to other markets such as China and Russia.

He said the island's tourism agency was currently looking into training a portion of its workforce to speak Russian, Indian or Chinese in a bid to begin developing those markets.

Netherlands, NZ to take part in Bali's kite festival

DENPASAR(Antara): The Netherlands and New Zealand will take part in Bali's four-day national kite-flying festival to be held from August 9 to 13, 2007, organizers said Tuesday.

"Two kite-flying organizations from the Netherlands and New Zealand will take part in the national kite-flying festival," committee organizer Nyoman Adnyana said.

He said that the number of foreign participants could increase because many foreign kite-flying lovers were interested to take part in the festival while holidaying in the Indonesian tourist resort island of Bali.

"While taking a vacation in the island of god, the kite-flying lovers could also show their expertise in flying kites," Nyoman Adnyana said.

At least 18 provinces in Indonesia have confirmed a plan to send participants to the festival which will be held at Padanggalak beach, Sanur, one of the most popular beaches in Bali.

Australian PM to open Bali clinic dedicated to bombing victims

The Jakarta Post

JAKARTA (AP): Australian Prime Minister John Howard will open an eye clinic dedicated to victims of the 2002 Bali bombings during a visit to Indonesia next week, a senior official said Tuesday.

Howard will open the new clinic at a hospital on the resort island before meeting with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Indonesian Foreign Minister Hassan Wirajuda said.

Australia lost 88 citizens in the Oct. 12, 2002, Bali nightclub blasts that killed 202 people.

Regional terror network Jemaah Islamiyah, which officials say wants to create an Islamic state across much of Southeast Asia, has been blamed for the blasts, as well as attacks in 2003 and 2004 on the J.W. Marriott Hotel and Australian Embassy in Jakarta, and triple suicide bombings in 2005 on restaurants in Bali.

Together they killed more than 240 people, many of them Western tourists.

Jakarta Fair wraps up 'most successful' year ever

The Jakarta Post

This year's Jakarta Fair completely outdid its predecessor and not only because it recorded sales of Rp 1.5 trillion (US$166 million).

Governor Sutiyoso spoke at the closing of the 40th annual city fair and said the fair's success "was not only measured by the high number of transactions and visitors, but by the security and transportation access."

Fair committee chairwoman Siti Hartati Murdaya said total sales were three times that of the city's 39th fair.

According to the survey conducted by the University of Indonesia, sales of automotive products led with Rp 800 billion, followed by electronic products, home appliances, food and beverages, furniture and handicrafts.

"The numbers will keep increasing as many transactions need to be followed up after the fair is finished," Hartati said.

The 32-day event was held from June 14 to July 15 at the Jakarta Fair Ground in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, as part of the commemoration of the capital's 460th anniversary on June 22.

"More than 3 million people have visited the fair, which is an increase of 10 percent from last year," she said.

Hartati said the fair was also good for employment with some 30,000 people hired for the event.

Old Town site excavation ruins artifacts

Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Excavation during the construction of a pedestrian tunnel in Old Town, West Jakarta, has destroyed artifacts and hampered historical analysis, an archaeologist said Thursday.

"The cultural and museum agency should have been informed about the excavation at the Old Town site... a permit should have been sought before the project began," University of Indonesia professor of archaeology Mundardjito said.

"Digging beneath a historical site without an excavation permit is illegal," he said.

Late last year, workers who were excavating at the Old Town site -- to make way for a western entrance to the pedestrian tunnel in front of Bank Mandiri Museum -- found an old tram track, timber poles, terra-cotta pipes and a thick brick and andesite wall.

A preliminary analysis carried out by the agency's archaeological team revealed the wall position did not match that of the old city wall.

According to the team, the old city wall was a leaning structure, while the wall uncovered during excavation stood erect.

But since the structure was found near the possible location of the old city wall, experts and heritage buffs assumed it was part of the old wall. Further research was conducted.

A terra-cotta pipe, found several meters from the underground wall, was identified as resembling the pipes used in Banten's water purification system during the 18th century.

Similar pipes were later found inside the Bank Indonesia Museum.

According to Mundardjito, anything found buried in the vicinity of the old city wall area is worth analyzing.

"A Dutch map was not drawn to scale, so it is difficult to determine where the exact location of the wall is," he said.

It takes meticulous calculations to determine a suitable spot for excavation.

For archaeologists, he said, it was important to know what was found in which location, to be able to build a contextual historical analysis.

Unfortunately, the old buried structure, and other artifacts found during the construction of the pedestrian tunnel, have been removed from the site.

A source close to the agency confirmed there was no archaeological study conducted before the tunnel project began.

The project was led by the Jakarta Transportation Agency. Projects involving an official heritage site should involve the cultural and museum agency, Aurora said.

Education to get biggest state budget allocation

JAKARTA(Antara): President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said he had agreed to give education the biggest state budget allocation among all state-financed sectors in order to support the improvement of the quality of education in the country.

"The education sector will be given priority and the largest amount of subsidy. Believe me, the government with a clear and rational mind will strive to manage and spend the budget more fairly," he said at a meeting with participants of the 3rd national meeting of the Association of Indonesian Private Universities (APTISI) at the State Palace.

The President, flanked by Education Minister Bambang Sudibyo, Minister/State Secretary Hatta Rajasa, Manpower and Transmigration Minister Erman Suparno, said he had agreed to continuously increase the education budget to fulfill the mandate of the constitution.

According to the Global Competitiveness Index of the World Economic Forum 2006-2007, Indonesia now ranks 50th out of 125 countries or 19 grades higher than before in the matter of economic competitiveness.

In the same period, the quality of the country`s education system ranks 23rd. "It is improving. Only Singapore and Malaysia rank above us while other Asean countries are below us," the president said.

Indonesia working to fix lights in venue for Asian Cup final

The Jakarta Post

JAKARTA (AP): Technicians were working to boost the power capacity at Indonesia's Soviet-era soccer stadium after a blackout stopped play between South Korea and Saudi Arabia in Wednesday night's Asian Cup match.

"It was embarrassing, no question about that. Everyone was panicking," John Halmahera, a spokesman for the local organizing committee, said Thursday. "But the stadium guys are sure it will not happen again."

The 25-minute blackout late in the second half was the latest snag to hit the event in Indonesia, which is hosting all the Group D matches, a quarterfinal and the July 29 final.

On Monday, hundreds of fans attempted to storm the stadium after failing to get tickets for Indonesia's first home match. The Saudi coach called the state of the training pitches a "disaster" and also questioned the quality of the turf at the 88,000 capacity Gelora Bung Karno Stadium in Jakarta.

Halmahera said the power went out at the stadium because the electrical system was overloaded.

"They are trying to add capacity now," he said, adding that the Asian Football Confederation had full confidence in Indonesia to stage the final.

The South Korea vs. Saudi Arabia match ended in a 1-1 tie.

Gelora Bung Karno stadium was built in 1962 to host the Asian Games with money from the former Soviet Union, which was then trying to expand communist influence in Asia.

The arena, where former president Sukarno made historic speeches against the West to massive crowds in the 1960s, remains one of the biggest in the region.

Indonesia spent around US$8 million on renovations to get the venue ready for this year's tournament.

Rock 'n' roll marketing to promote Bali worldwide

Trisha Sertori, Contributor The Jakarta Post, Ubud

Jakarta-based band Hallo Mister has taken a novel approach to promoting Bali.

Band manager David Stone said the band recently released a royalties-free song and video clip to promote Bali via marketing's back door -- the music industry.

"It doesn't get any better than this", a bouncy little rock and roll number, is about the fun that can be had in Bali and the fact life doesn't get better than a week or two on the island of the gods.

"Bali has always been promoted for its traditions and culture. We wanted to add to that by showing the fun of Bali, the dancing and clubs as well," Stone said.

The song and its video clip have been given free to Bali and Indonesia for the purpose of promoting the area around the world on music video programs such as MTV Asia, Much Music, Canada and music shows in the UK, U.S., Europe and India.

"The song and video are royalties free so it makes it very easy for music shows, tourism expos, radio and the print media to use any part of the song and video. It can be cut to fill any available space in air time, and that makes it a very attractive package for media around the world," Stone said.

He said the high cost of buying commercial air time for promotional advertising campaigns was a major stumbling block for the promotion of Indonesia around the world.

"It doesn't matter how brilliant a promotional campaign is, the cost of getting the message out is always going to be prohibitive. Singapore spends around US$150 million a year to promote the country, but that's tough for Indonesia.

"Hallo Mister wanted to do something to try and get promotion for the country without the costs. We've done this as a gift to Indonesia and we believe that because of the royalties free status, the song and video will be picked up around the world," Stone said.

Some clever marketing planning has gone into the production of the video and song, with cartoon images and generic information that does not advertise any specific product or company, he said.

"As soon as you put merchandise or specific products into a video or song lyric for that matter, you are going to be coming up hard against the gatekeepers of programming. Specific products turn the video and song into advertising and it won't get the free run, which is the whole point.

"We have kept the video generic so it can be placed anywhere without programmers having to sift for potential hidden advertising in the work. It can also be cut just about anywhere, which again makes it very attractive as a filler for programs around the world."

Stone said the band has had great support from the Bali Tourism Board, which has endorsed the song as a promotional tool for the island.

Written by Hallo Mister's lead vocalist, Canadian singer song writer Gary Gray, the song forms part of a full album released recently in Ubud and Canggu by Hallo Mister.

The band is made up of four lads that love to play music, and do it well. They can be seen having a musical ball in Jakarta most weeks at Eastern Promise.

Their album is available at hotels, restaurants and record shops.

Stone said when people purchase the album as a souvenir, they will be doing their bit to promote Bali to the world.

GromSearch surf comp visits Kuta

The Jakarta Post

KUTA: The second-to-last event of the Rip Curl GromSearch series will be held at Kuta Beach on July 15.

The waves off Kuta Beach are a perfect venue for the under-17 grommet surfers, who are expected to go all-out to win the event in front of the many tourists who throng the beach.

This is the fourth leg of the 2007 season. Previous event locations included Cimaja, in West Java; Lakey Peak, in Sumbawa; and Medewi, in North Bali.

The final event in the series will be held in October at Keramas Beach, in Gianyar, with the winner of the under-17 category pocketing an all-expenses-paid ticket to Australia to compete in the World GromSearch Finals, which will take place at Bells Beach in April 2008.

The winner of the under-15 category will win a brand-new surfboard.

The current leader of the under-17 category is 14-year-old One Anwar from Lakey Peak, in Sumbawa, who is closely followed by Putra Hermawan from Nusa Lembongan and One's older brother Gazali Hamzah.

The GromSearch has been sanctioned by the Indonesian Surfing Championship (ISC) and the points collected over the series will determine who will be crowned the 2007 ISC Junior Champion.

Government encourages development of creative economy

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government will encourage the development of a creative economy which produces culture-based products to increase the state`s foreign exchange earnings.

"The challenge to us is giving an added-value to the products and branding both on the local and global market," Minister of Trade Marie Elka Pangestu told a seminar on fourth stage development: "Cultural Heritage and Creative Economy", here on Wednesday.

Right now, products of the culture-based creative industry contributed only 1.9 percent to the GDP, while in the industrialized countries the contribution reached 30 percent.

Singapore started developing a creative economy in 2005, and its contribution to their foreign exchange revenue had reached 3-4 billion US dollars.

Globally, culture-based creative economy contributed 2 trillion US dollars to the world`s GDP, and may reach 10 trillion US dollars by 2010.

Therefore, the seminar and discussion held during the Cultural Exhibition dedicated by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Wednesday (July 11), are expected to produce an action plan and blueprint on the development of creative economy.

In the meantime, the Central Bureau of Statistics is determining the share of cultural products of the creative industry in the GDP. And the trade ministry is finalizing the mapping of a culture-based handicraft industry scheduled for completion in October this year.

"All of Indonesia`s cultural creative industries have good prospects on the export market, and it is therefore necessary to be boosted," she said.

She also said that some of the commodities which could be developed as cultural creative industrial products are food spices, advertisement, work designs, the art of dancing, and some other arts and cultural product, like coffee, tea and spices.

"Imagine a country like Korea which has only ginseng, but it can produce beverages, cosmetics and other products from ginseng only," she added.

The minister also said that Indonesia needed a new promotion agency carrying Indonesia`s good image around the world.

"A favorable image will boost investment and trade," she said.

Players in the cultural creative industry would have to make an adaptation on the domestic and overseas market to develop cultural creative products and improve human resources.

Giving an example, she said that "lurik" (kind of striped woven cloth) can be developed into a kimono, and sold to Japan. "Sasando" from East Nusa Tenggara if electrified becomes an electric bass guitar.

Booming business at tourism school

The Jakarta Post

DENPASAR: The struggling tourism industry in Bali has not discouraged the island's newest high school graduates from enrolling in vocational schools of tourism.

The Kertayasa vocational school of tourism in Singakerta, Ubud, Gianyar regency, has received applications from 230 new graduates.

The applicants come not only from Gianyar, but also from Badung, Bangli, Klungkung and Karangasem.

The school's head, A.A. Gede Sugiantara, said the number of applicants had increased from last year. He plans to add one more class to the current four.

"Each class will have 48 students. An increase like this happened two years ago," he said.

Surf competition in south Bali

The Jakarta Post

DENPASAR: Oakley Indonesia will hold the third annual "Oakley Thump Pro" surf competition at the infamous razor-sharp reef of Bingin Beach, on the Bukit Peninsula in south Bali, on Friday and Saturday.

Internationally known to surfers for its hollow and mechanically perfect tubes, Bingin Beach is also a delight for spectators, who can view the action from beachside warung.

The event will begin early Friday morning with 60 of Indonesia's best pro surfers taking part, including Rizal Tanjung, Marlon Gerber, Tipi Jabrik and Dede Suryana, as well as four international surfers. They will be competing for their share of the Rp 30 million (US$3,300) prize and valuable Indonesian Surfing Championship (ISC) points.

Also participating in the event are wildcard Oakley International Team riders Adam Melling from Australia and Sebastian Zietz from Hawaii. There will be a Masters Division on Saturday for surfers 35-years and over currently on the ISC circuit.

An awards presentation will be held Saturday afternoon, which is to be followed by a BBQ and live performances by Bondan Prakoso, Fade 2 Black and DJ James Hendrix and a special appearance by the FHM 2007 Girl Next Door contestants.

The Oakley Thump Pro is a six-star ISC event, where points are awarded and tabulated at the end of the year to crown a champion in the Pro, Masters, Pro Junior and Junior divisions.

For more information log on to www.isctour.com.

Nusantara arts expo being held in Jakarta

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - A total of 81 Indonesian artists from 21 regions are displaying their works of arts at "The Nusantara Arts Exhibition" being held at the Indonesian National Gallery (GNI) here, from July 11 to 27, 2007.

The works of arts being displayed include paintings, statues, sculptures, photos, and videos.

Of the total 81 artists, some 70 percent of them are young and talented artists capable of producing original works of arts.

A seminar discussing the Indonesian arts would be held on July 12 and 13, as part of the expo`s activities.

Govt`s agencies to hold cultural products weeks 2007

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - For the first time 12 government agencies with the Chamber Of Commerce and industry (Kadin) and the National Handicraft Council will hold an "Indonesian Cultural Products Week 2007" at the Jakarta Convention Center on July 11-15, 2007.

The activity, which will carry the theme: "A Bunch of Flowers of Indonesian Cultural Products for the World", will present the best handicraft products from various areas in Indonesia.

It will also show traditional food from 33 provinces, arts performance from 5 tourist destination areas and cross-Malay traditions from six regions.

Several provinces that will present performance of arts are East Nusa Tenggara, Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam, Riau, Riau Islands, West Nusa Tenggara, West Sumatra, and West Kalimantan.

Chairman of the Cultural Product Week 2007 committee, Sakri Widianto said the event constitute a meeting site of policy makers, professional associations, businessmen, artists, craftsmen, financial agencies and the community.

"This meeting is important to increase the commitment and synergy in developing cultural products as the strength of national economy," said Sakri.

During the Cultural and Tourism National Coordinating Meeting June 27-29 in Jakarta, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stated that the economic prospect in the fourth wave of civilisation would originate in the cultural wealth, including the legacy of the past that was united with tourism, including ecotourism as one integrity.

"To welcome this matter and to develop the positive image for the Indonesian cultural product in the eyes of the world, we will hold this event in one week time by producing exhibitions, seminars and training as well as performance of cultural art," said Sakri.

Bearded, graying baby a gift from God, say family

Ruslan Sangadji, The Jakarta Post, Parigi

A gray beard and whiskers might be common on adults, but in Parigi Moutong regency in Central Sulawesi they can be seen growing on a one-month-old baby.

Rasya Alansya -- the son of Muhammad Rifai and his wife Mitra Jayanti of Maesa subdistrict, in Parigi Kota district -- has attracted many visitors wanting to see the rare sight with their very own eyes.

There was even a rumor he was born with the Arabic word for "God" written on his ear. That rumor was found to be untrue, but the gray beard, some five centimeters long, and the whiskers are clearly visible.

"I don't have the medical explanation for the beard and whiskers on this baby," Central Sulawesi Health Office head, Abdullah, told The Jakarta Post.

Parigi Moutong Regent Longky Djanggola was among the onlookers. He advised the baby's parents to keep the beard and whiskers unshaved as a sign of gratitude, and to monitor growth on a day-to-day basis.

The 4.5 kg baby appears to be blissfully unaware of all the attention he is receiving. His parents say he loves to smile and rarely cries like other babies.

The baby's mother, 16-year-old Mitra, said she never thought her child would be born with a beard and whiskers.

At first, she thought the beard and whiskers were pieces of cotton and tried to brush them away, but couldn't. "So, I just let it be and it turned out there was a beard and whiskers," she said.

But the boy's father, 20-year-old Rifai, said the placenta was extraordinary; colored red, white and blue.

"I was surprised when I saw the placenta upon burying it," he said.

Burying the placenta after birth is a common practice throughout the country. In Central Sulawesi, the placenta must be buried next to the family home, after being wrapped in a clean, new white cloth.

Mitra said she was grateful for what God had given them.

"I hope my son grows up to have a special gift."