Archive for June, 2007
Even after moving to land, the Suku Laut sea tribe of Air Mas Island in Batam, Riau Island province, has not escaped a life of poverty.
Dozens of the tribe’s families remain poor and uneducated, and officials and other residents consider them a backward people.
Some tribe members say the government has failed to make efforts to educate them, and help them live independently and according to social norms on land.
There are a large number of children in each Suku Laut family; one family in the tribe has 14 children.
A Suku Laut tribal chief at the Air Mas settlement, Muhammad Din, 62, said the families started moving to the island in 2002, with assistance from various agencies and non-governmental organizations that provided them with permanent wooden homes.
Din said their lives had not changed much since moving to land. The income they earn from fishing is still far from sufficient, so too is their children’s education.
Din acknowledged that he did not pay much attention to his children’s education due to limited resources.
“I sometimes earn only Rp 20,000 (US$2.20) a day. Thankfully, my children will eat whatever food is laid on the table,” he said.
The father of 14 said facilities on the island were limited and far from expectations, despite its close proximity with Batam, which is known as an industrial city.
He said his tribespeople had a habit of asking visitors to the island for money.
“But, they seem to be growing out of this habit, since TV stations have been paying them to film their daily activities.”
His fellow tribesmen and women, he said, are willing to act out their everyday lives — such as cooking activities, bathing and sleeping on their boats — depending on the amount they are paid.
“It all depends on how much the TV stations are willing to pay.”
However, Din says this role as accidental “actors” has not provided long-term improvements to the lives of the people in the tribe, as most of the money they earn from their filming is immediately spent.
There is no furniture in Din’s house. A piece of mat covers the floor of the guest room. Only a kerosene stove and a few plates and glasses can be seen in the kitchen, with no table to place them on.
“There are too many things I must think of. I sometimes even forget my own children’s names,” said Din, taking a long drag on a clove cigarette.
Din’s children must travel to another island to attend school. Transportation is limited and motorboats are seldom used due to the high cost of fuel.
The island also lacks a community health center or clinic.
When members of the Batam municipality council visited the island on May 31, they were greeted by ramshackle houses built for the Suku Laut tribe at a cost of Rp 1.8 billion from the 2006 provincial budget.
Houses occupied by the Suku Laut were not equipped with doors and windows, thus requiring residents to cover open areas with plastic sheeting.
The council’s deputy speaker, Aris Hardy Halim, who was on the visit, expressed concerns over the condition of the houses, which had been built by the Batam municipality.
“Why do these houses have no doors and windows, despite the fact these items were included in the budget?” Aris asked. He said his office received a report from the tribe saying their houses had not been equipped with fixtures due to difficulties in obtaining the materials from Batam.
“We regret this situation and will endeavor to sort it out.”
Fadli, The Jakarta Post/Batam
June 29th, 2007
The Riau Islands provincial administration has offered the Haj Fund Board of Malaysia the opportunity to lease one of its islands for development.
Riau Islands Governor Ismeth Abdullah made the offer Monday to Minister in the Department of the Prime Minister Abdullah Mohammad Zein, during a ceremony to mark the opening of the fund board’s first palm oil refinery in Batam.
The new refinery will allow the fund board to enter the Chinese market, Malaysia’s top palm oil buyer for the past several years at more than two million tons annually.
The Haj Fund Board of Malaysia, or Lembaga Tabung Haji, owns oil palm estates in Malaysia and Indonesia, as well as teak plantations in Sabah and Sarawak, totaling about 129,663 hectares, according to Business Times.
“If interested Tabung Haji can lease one of the islands in Riau Islands for business development. There are many islands in Riau Islands province and they have the potential for the development of tourism and other businesses,” Ismeth said.
Ismeth said Tabung Haji had the financial clout to properly develop an island.
“Indonesia should learn from Tabung Haji Malaysia. Why doesn’t Indonesia, which sends up to 190,000 pilgrims on the haj annually, have any haj funds like Malaysia. We need to answer this question.”
The governor said the ability of Tabung Haji to build a refinery in Batam with an investment of up to US$15.5 million was an impressive achievement for the fund.
Responding to the offer, Abullah Mohammad Zein said the proposal was interesting and he would look into it.
“If leasing an island is possible for business development, we will possibly do it. This is a good offer.”
Ismeth said if Tabung Haji invested in an island in the province, it would have a multiplier effect on the investment climate in Riau Islands and encourage similar institutions to follow suit.
According to data from the provincial administration, there are at least 2,408 islands in Riau Island province, located in four regencies and two mayoralties. Nearly 40 percent are unoccupied and have not been officially named.
Ismeth also said Tabung Haji planned to build a residential complex in Batam for workers at companies owned by the fund.
Fadli, The Jakarta Post, Batam
June 29th, 2007
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government`s culture and tourism department is currently making preparations for the launching of a “Visit Indonesia Year” in the middle of 2007, a spokesman said.
“A `Visit Indonesai Year` (VIY) is now in the final phase of preparation. We will launch it in July or August,” Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik said here Tuesday.
Speaking after witnessing the signing of a cooperation agreement between the department and PT Garuda Indonesia, the minister said the preparations included the production of brochures, composition and arrangement of programs of events.
Meanwhile, Thamrin B Bachri, the culture and tourism department`s director general of marketing, said VIY 2008 would be declared as soon as its logo was completed.
“So what we are waiting for now is the completion of the logo. As soon as the logo and a guide on its use are finished, we will conduct a soft launching.” he said.
He said the most crucial thing in organizing the VIY was coordination between the department in Jakarta and the tourism offices in all of the country`s regions on the time and venues of as many as 100 top touristic events during the year.
“The events must be prepared and executed with high accuracy,” he said , adding that the 100 planned events were expected to induce foreign tourists to come to Indonesia.
The department would also publish a booklet listing all the 100 events to be organized in many parts of the country, Thamrin said.
Minister Wacik said his ministry had proposed a budget of Rp153 billion for tourism develoment in 2007. Some 80 percent of the amount was to cover the cost of promoting Indonesia`s tourist destinations through advertisements in international televisions abroad.(*)
ANTARA News
June 29th, 2007
While cetaceans such as whales and dolphins are widely hunted in some parts of the world, they could soon find the deep Sawu Sea in East Nusa Tenggara province a safe haven.
Representatives from the provincial administration, three surrounding regencies, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Indonesia, and the Nature Conservancy (TNC) recently signed an agreement to protect sea biodiversity, especially marine mammals.
“The province and regencies are committed to protecting the sea and its biodiversity and will develop sustainable marine tourism,” East Nusa Tenggara Deputy Governor Frans Lebu Raya said during the signing ceremony.
Frans believes that the establishment of the Sawu Sea as a marine conservation area will increase the welfare of local fishermen.
Research conducted by WWF and TNC in 2001 and 2002 suggests that seas in the regencies of Alor, Lembata and East Flores are important habitats for 11 whale species, including the endangered blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) and sperm whale (Physeter macrochepalus).
Whales pass through the sea, which connects the Indian and Pacific oceans, during their migration thanks to its one-kilometer depth.
The Sawu Sea is known among global environmentalists as part of a coral triangle — mainly spanning from west to east and south to north of Indonesia and part of the Philippines — which is also recognized as one of the richest marine biodiversity areas in the world.
Lembata island is famous for its traditional whalers. Using sailing wooden boats and bamboo spears, they can catch dozens of whales and dolphins every year.
Although the number of local whalers is small compared to their counterparts in Japan, Norway and Iceland, who together kill some 2,000 whales a year with their sophisticated ships and harpoons, they still raise concerns among environmentalists.
Nevertheless. the agreement to protect the Sawu Sea does not in any way aim to ban local fishermen from whaling, which has been their main way of life for hundreds of years.
“No, we do not ban them from whaling. But we want to educate them to conserve the whales for the welfare of the fisherman themselves, their children and their grandchildren in the long term,” WWF marine program leader Wawan Ridwan told reporters after the signing ceremony in Lewoleba, Lembata island.
Hopefully, Wawan said, the whalers could only catch mature and unproductive whales and avoid endangered species, such as blue whales and sperm whales.
Whales take between six to 13 years to reach maturity. Their gestation period lasts for between nine and 16 months and they usually give birth to one single calf which needs to be weaned for between eight months to two years. Unproductive whales, on the other hand, are usually those more than 10 meters in sizes.
The 70-nation International Whaling Commission (IWC) has actually agreed on a moratorium on commercial whaling, but commercial whaling still persists. Indonesia is not a member of that commission and is thus not obliged to comply with the policy.
Some countries argue that their whaling is for scientific research, which is allowed by IWC, but in practice they sell whale meat in restaurants.
Besides meat, the marine mammals provide oil for lamps, candles, soaps and perfumes.
The latest IWC scientific survey estimates that there are some 760,000 whales in Antarctic, 149,000 in North Atlantic and 25,000 in the North Pacific. Some species of whales have decreased in number drastically because of overfishing.
Many whales have also been stranded on beaches and died because of heavy pollutants and sonar waves from submarines, which disturb their “navigating sense”.
Of the 27 species of whales in the world, 11 species are seen in Indonesia’s marine area.
Wawan said the conservation program in the Sawu Sea should also improve the welfare of local whalers.
To increase the fishermen’s income, the WWF plans to train locals on other marine-related jobs, such as how to cultivate sea weed and market the product.
“It will take time to educate locals on the importance of the conservation program for them,” Wawan said.
Along with the establishment of the Sawu marine conservation area, WWF Indonesia launched the Phinisi ship as a facility in educating whalers, especially local students, on the importance of the conservation program.
The wooden ship, which is 22.5 meters in length and 5.5 meters wide, can accommodate 35 training participants. The construction of the ship, which is also equipped with audio visual devices on environmental education, cost around Rp 600 million.
Besides the ship, the WWF is cooperating with the New York-based Photovoices to make a documentary project on the life of whalers in Lamalera village in Lembata island.
As many as 50 villagers were lent 50 digital cameras and trained by photographer and chief editor of National Geographic Indonesia magazine Tantyo Bangun.
Photovoices director Virginia Ann McBride said that selected photos taken by the villagers would be exhibited in Jakarta and in the Natural Museum of New York.
A. Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Lembata island, East Nusa Tenggara
June 28th, 2007
A lack of funding to promote tourism in Indonesia internationally is largely responsible for a steady decline in the number of foreign tourists visiting the country, an official from the Culture and Tourism Ministry said Saturday.
After more than 5.3 million foreign tourists visited the country in 2004, the ministry recorded a drop to approximately five million visitors in 2005 and 4.7 million visitors in 2006.
Deputy of Resources at the Culture and Tourism Ministry Putu Laksaguna said the government allocates insufficient funding to develop Indonesia’s tourism potential, resulting in many regions not being promoted internationally.
“This year, the Culture and Tourism Ministry was allocated a budget of Rp 900 billion, of which Rp 100 billion will be used to develop tourism.
“It is impossible for us to promote the country’s tourism potential with that much money,” Putu told journalists after the opening of the 2007 Sumatra International Travel Fair in Medan, North Sumatra.
More than 80 delegations and 160 buyers from 16 countries have taken part in the fair, which ends Sunday. Aside from hosting exhibitions and tourism business forums, the event also provided visitors with the opportunity to make business contacts.
Putu said the country’s budget for the promotion of tourism is much smaller than that of neighboring countries.
He said Malaysia’s tourism budget is much larger, spending Rp 40 billion alone to advertise the country’s attractions on the CNN television network.
“Our entire budget to promote tourism in Indonesia abroad is only Rp 30 billion,” Putu said, adding that he is hopeful in the next few years the government will set aside more funding for the promotion of tourism.
The ministry, he said, currently promotes five provinces in Indonesia every year internationally.
This year, the five provinces being promoted are East Nusa Tenggara, North Sulawesi, South Sulawesi, West Nusa Tenggara and West Sumatra.
Putu said the selection process to determine the five provinces to be promoted abroad was complicated, but was largely influenced by each provincial administration’s enthusiasm and support for promoting tourism.
North Sumatra Governor Rudolf Pardede said he hopes his province will be selected as one of the provinces to be promoted next year.
He said his administration has set aside Rp 9 billion in its annual budget to develop the tourism sector, adding that this figure was much smaller than that of the Medan city administration, which allocates Rp 30 billion per year.
“However, hopefully we can increase our budget for tourism next year in order to boost the North Sumatra tourism sector,” Rudolf said.
Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan
June 27th, 2007
This week, the city administration invited non-governmental organization Pacific Rim Council on Urban Development (PRCUD) to discuss the issue of reviving Jakarta’s Old Town. With experience in heritage revitalization in 15 cities — in South Korea, China (Nanjing), Singapore and Malaysia (Malacca) — and counting, PRCUD will engage in round table discussions to devise a strategic plan for Jakarta’s Old Town. The Jakarta Post’s Anissa S. Febrina spoke with PRCUD president Cor Dijkgraaf on the possibilities for the plan.
Question: People have repeatedly pointed to the Old Town’s decline. What can actually be done with it?
Answer: I will begin by saying that the Old Town is unique. It has, for an Asian town, a large area of heritage. If you do not like the architectural heritage from a cultural aspect, at least see the economic aspect it offers. And if I look at other Asian and European towns, heritage is important as a source of income and employment. The renovation of buildings is creating more employment than constructing new ones would, as it creates more jobs from people visiting it later on.
Nearby, Malacca in Malaysia attracts five million tourists a year. That is the number of those who at least stay one night, not a day visit. It is a small town with less heritage than Jakarta, but they can sell it. Similarly, European cities generate a lot of income from their heritage.
Jakarta must be very, very rich if it can ignore its heritage. It is a matter of having the vision.
Another thing: The number of Asian tourists is growing. You now have a rising class in mainland China. They want to travel and see attractive places.
Then, of course, tourists are not coming there to look at old buildings. They would like to go to cafes, a place to sit. There are so many nice places here, such as the courtyard in Museum Keramik, but you do nothing with it. You should have some souvenir shops. In fact, what you have on Jl. Surabaya — an antique goods center — should be in the Old Town. Then, it becomes attractive.
Indonesia is prone to security threats and there are concerns that if it is only sustained by tourism, once we have such problems again, it will decline. Could we also insert other functions for the Old Town?
If the Old Town becomes a cultural center, it should not be only for foreign tourists. It should also be for the local inhabitants who would still go there on Sunday afternoons on the condition that there are activities.
And it has to cater to different markets of tourists. Those from Holland, Japan and locals have different expectations. In European cities, the heritage area is also for the local people themselves.
A cultural center is still the most suitable function because the business center has moved to (the main thoroughfares of) Thamrin and Sudirman. Shops can reside there, not big malls, but small ones selling antiques, secondhand books, old maps.
How should we best deal with the socio-economic problems in Old Town?
If you can get different functions, then (the condition) can change. First of all, you need strong political commitment. Otherwise, forget about it.
The government has to take the lead to start improving it, not only one street for pedestrians. That is not enough. There has to be some real efforts, then the private sector will move in. They will not open shops there now because there is nobody. And since there is nobody, there are criminals hanging around. Once it is fully active, it will be completely different.
In Malacca, the government is taking the initiative, then you get the little shops opening up.
Considering the government’s limited resources, is it possible to form a public-private consortium to revitalize the Old Town?
It is possible, as in many places around the world it works like this. You set up, let’s say, the Kota Tua Development Company or something like that. The private sector will always look to whether there is real political commitment from the government. Only then can you make a deal. Investors will say: “We will renovate the buildings, provided you make a nice pedestrian (area) and proper public transport.”
There is another role for NGOs, such as the Jakarta Old Town Kotaku. They represent small-scale businesses that are interested.
The changes in Glodok, where the government has renovated and planted trees, is an example. Suddenly, the shops are painting their buildings and it looks so much more attractive.
So, you see, if the government does a little bit, the private sector will do more.
The Jakarta Post
June 26th, 2007
While cetaceans such as whales and dolphins are widely hunted in some parts of the world, they could soon find the deep Sawu Sea in East Nusa Tenggara province a safe haven.
Representatives from the provincial administration, three surrounding regencies, the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Indonesia, and the Nature Conservancy (TNC) recently signed an agreement to protect sea biodiversity, especially marine mammals.
“The province and regencies are committed to protecting the sea and its biodiversity and will develop sustainable marine tourism,” East Nusa Tenggara Deputy Governor Frans Lebu Raya said during the signing ceremony.
Frans believes that the establishment of the Sawu Sea as a marine conservation area will increase the welfare of local fishermen.
Research conducted by WWF and TNC in 2001 and 2002 suggests that seas in the regencies of Alor, Lembata and East Flores are important habitats for 11 whale species, including the endangered blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus) and sperm whale (Physeter macrochepalus).
Whales pass through the sea, which connects the Indian and Pacific oceans, during their migration thanks to its one-kilometer depth.
The Sawu Sea is known among global environmentalists as part of a coral triangle — mainly spanning from west to east and south to north of Indonesia and part of the Philippines — which is also recognized as one of the richest marine biodiversity areas in the world.
Lembata island is famous for its traditional whalers. Using sailing wooden boats and bamboo spears, they can catch dozens of whales and dolphins every year.
Although the number of local whalers is small compared to their counterparts in Japan, Norway and Iceland, who together kill some 2,000 whales a year with their sophisticated ships and harpoons, they still raise concerns among environmentalists.
Nevertheless. the agreement to protect the Sawu Sea does not in any way aim to ban local fishermen from whaling, which has been their main way of life for hundreds of years.
“No, we do not ban them from whaling. But we want to educate them to conserve the whales for the welfare of the fisherman themselves, their children and their grandchildren in the long term,” WWF marine program leader Wawan Ridwan told reporters after the signing ceremony in Lewoleba, Lembata island.
Hopefully, Wawan said, the whalers could only catch mature and unproductive whales and avoid endangered species, such as blue whales and sperm whales.
Whales take between six to 13 years to reach maturity. Their gestation period lasts for between nine and 16 months and they usually give birth to one single calf which needs to be weaned for between eight months to two years. Unproductive whales, on the other hand, are usually those more than 10 meters in sizes.
The 70-nation International Whaling Commission (IWC) has actually agreed on a moratorium on commercial whaling, but commercial whaling still persists. Indonesia is not a member of that commission and is thus not obliged to comply with the policy.
Some countries argue that their whaling is for scientific research, which is allowed by IWC, but in practice they sell whale meat in restaurants.
Besides meat, the marine mammals provide oil for lamps, candles, soaps and perfumes.
The latest IWC scientific survey estimates that there are some 760,000 whales in Antarctic, 149,000 in North Atlantic and 25,000 in the North Pacific. Some species of whales have decreased in number drastically because of overfishing.
Many whales have also been stranded on beaches and died because of heavy pollutants and sonar waves from submarines, which disturb their “navigating sense”.
Of the 27 species of whales in the world, 11 species are seen in Indonesia’s marine area.
Wawan said the conservation program in the Sawu Sea should also improve the welfare of local whalers.
To increase the fishermen’s income, the WWF plans to train locals on other marine-related jobs, such as how to cultivate sea weed and market the product.
“It will take time to educate locals on the importance of the conservation program for them,” Wawan said.
Along with the establishment of the Sawu marine conservation area, WWF Indonesia launched the Phinisi ship as a facility in educating whalers, especially local students, on the importance of the conservation program.
The wooden ship, which is 22.5 meters in length and 5.5 meters wide, can accommodate 35 training participants. The construction of the ship, which is also equipped with audio visual devices on environmental education, cost around Rp 600 million.
Besides the ship, the WWF is cooperating with the New York-based Photovoices to make a documentary project on the life of whalers in Lamalera village in Lembata island.
As many as 50 villagers were lent 50 digital cameras and trained by photographer and chief editor of National Geographic Indonesia magazine Tantyo Bangun.
Photovoices director Virginia Ann McBride said that selected photos taken by the villagers would be exhibited in Jakarta and in the Natural Museum of New York.
A. Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Lembata island, East Nusa Tenggara
June 25th, 2007
Jakarta/Rome - After being hit by a string of terrorist attacks, earthquakes, tsunamis, transport accidents and outbreaks of bird flu, Indonesia’s tourism sector is to get a boost as the government plans to intensify its efforts to promote the Southeast Asian country abroad. “The way to convince them [the tourists] is to give them more information and be more transparent about what happened,” Thamrin B. Bachri, Indonesia’s Culture and Tourism ministry’s marketing director told Adnkronos International (AKI).
“By giving them more information, I think they will understand that we have done something to protect them,” Bachri told AKI.
Ever since the 2002 Bali bombings, Indonesia’s five billion dollar tourism industry has been hit hard. Visitor numbers plunged even further after natural disasters like the 2004 tsunami and various earthquakes, incidents of avian flu and accidents in the country’s air and sea transportation, made headlines around the world.
In 2006, foreign tourist arrivals in Indonesia dropped by 2.6 percent to 4.87 million from five million in 2005.
However things appear to be improving in 2007. In the first quarter, the number of foreign tourists rose by 14 percent over to the same period last year, to one million.
To ensure that this trend continues, the Indonesian government has plans to vigorously promote the country’s tourist destinations including using Indonesia’s foreign mission abroad and even opening new tourist promotion offices.
One such intiative is the “Festival Indonesia 2007″ organised in the northern Italian city of Milan on Friday. Besides being a showcase of Indonesian culture in the Italian financial and fashion capital, the event is also a chance for government and business representatives of Italy and Indonesia to meet and discuss greater investment and cooperation in the fields of culture and tourism.
The event held in Milan on Friday - which includes the best of traditional Indonesian music and dance as well as a fashion show by the “Prince of Batik” Indonesian designer Daud Wiryo Hadinagoro - is the third in a series of such presentations in Europe, coming after similar stops in the Norwegian capital, Oslo and Kiev, the capital of Ukraine.
Through these special events, the government is hoping to highlight other destinations in Indonesia that have not been affected by negatively.
“Our strategy is isolated marketing, where we try to isolate the areas impacted by a certain negative, for example a bomb or natural disaster, because still we have other areas to be promoted,” said Bachri emphasising the fact that there are over 17,000 islands in Indonesia - and not just the world-famous island of Bali - which provide a variety of attractions to be marketed.
“Secondly, we also continue to have a ’seeing is believing’ programme by inviting the press and media from various markets and bringing them to certain destinations in Indonesia ..so they will then tell the world that Indonesia is quite safe to be visited,” Bachri told AKI.
This year the Indonesian government has set aside 10 million dollars to market Indonesia as a tourist destination. However there are concerns that this is not enough.
“We need more funds to market our tourist destinations,” said Andri Haid, the director general for information and public diplomacy at the Indonesian foreign ministry, in an interview with AKI. “Compared with other countries, we spend less on promoting tourism,” said Hadi.
According to Bachri, the United Nations World Tourism Organisation, says that to reach Indonesia’s target of six million visitors this year, as much as 60 million dollars is needed.
According to reports, a request has already been made for additional funds. The government is set to stage a “Visit Indonesia Year” in 2008.
Besides marketing Indonesia’s idyllic beaches, ancient monuments and diverse culture, the government is also very open to foreign direct investment in the tourism industry, part of its efforts to improve infrastructure and services.
Earlier this year, the government signed an agreement with a Dubai investor for the development of a resort on the island of Lombok at a cost of 600 million dollars. According to Bachri, there are plans in the pipeline to offer Indonesian islands for rent to local and foreign investors for tourism purposes.
Yet while a lot is being done to encourage foreign tourists to visit Indonesia, the government is also targeting its own citizens.
“Indonesia is a big country,” said Bachri. “Even without foreign tourists, we can still move between ourselves,” he said, adding that in this way the tourism is not only for economic needs for also serves as a “vehicle for unity” as Indonesians discover more about their own vast and varied country.
AKI - Rome,Italy
June 25th, 2007
She’ll visit Indonesia, Japan and Okinawa to promote fruit sales, tourism and security
Gov. Linda Lingle leaves tomorrow for a 10-day trip to Indonesia, Japan and Okinawa.
Lingle will head a 24-person delegation to Jakarta, Indonesia, to sign a partnership agreement between the Hawaii National Guard and the Indonesian military. The partnership will cover areas of mutual security cooperation and disaster preparedness.
“It is an important opportunity for us to establish a relationship with their military and our Guard,” Lingle said yesterday in an interview.
“It isn’t in a military sense, but in a civil preparedness and civil defense arrangement,” Lingle said, adding that Indonesia and Hawaii share the same legacy of volcanic eruptions, earthquakes and tsunamis.
Traveling with Lingle will be state Adjutant General Robert Lee, Maj. Gen. Vern Miyagi, assistant to the commander, U.S. Pacific Command; and Charles McCreery, director of the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.
Also on the trip will be Republican state Reps. Barbara Marumoto (Kalani Valley-Diamond Head) and Gene Ward (Kalama Valley-Hawaii Kai).
Ward is a former Peace Corps director for East Timor and speaks Bahasa Indonesia.
Lingle said the trip — her third journey to Indonesia, but her first as governor — will include meeting with U.S. forces participating in a disaster management exercise. She also plans to meet with Indonesian women’s leaders.
In Japan, Lingle’s group will be joined by three more state legislators, Reps. Cliff Tsuji (D, Hilo-Glenwood) and Ryan Yamane (D, Waipahu-Mililani) and Sen. Clarence Nishihara (D, Waipahu-Pearl City).
The trip to Japan will include talking up tourism from Japan to Hawaii, Lingle said, noting that there has been a decline in the number of visitors from Japan.
“Obviously, we want more people from Japan coming to Hawaii and we will also update travel writers in Tokyo,” Lingle said.
Sandy Kunimoto, state agriculture director, will also be on the trip to discuss Japan’s refusal to allow imports of Rainbow papaya and potted anthuriums.
“We have been working with the Japanese government for quite some time on this and we will be offering to give them more information and make it clear why it is a positive thing for them,” Lingle said.
Concerns about genetically modified crops and pests in the soil have precluded the importation of the plants and fruits, Lingle said.
Finally, while in Japan, Lingle hopes to go to the port of Yokohama to meet with the crew of the Polynesian canoe, Hokule’a, she said.
By Richard Borreca
rborreca@starbulletin.com
Honolulu Star-Bulletin - Honolulu,HI,USA
June 22nd, 2007
A new exhibition is bringing Buddhist spirituality to that shrine of consumerism, the shopping mall.
Late Saturday night, at Mangga Dua Square in North Jakarta, a group of youngsters whipped out their cell phones cameras and took turns posing in front of a model of Borobudur temple and an unfinished Buddha statue.
“Swell. We don’t have to travel all the way to Yogyakarta,” said 22-year-old Syukri Diwangkara after posing in front of the statue on the mall’s upper ground level.
Several meters away a boy could not take his eyes off a stack of stones that dated back to the 8th century.
Banners hung from the ceiling offered a concise explanation of what was going on: archaeology goes to mall.
For the next seven days starting Sunday, the seemingly distant topic of archaeology will be bridged by the exhibition, “Tracing the Nusantara civilization from the 9th to 12th centuries, Maha Karmawibhangga: The hidden legacy at the foot of Borobudur.”
“We want to bring this topic closer to the public and reveal things that previously remained exclusive to academics,” the Tourism and Culture Ministry’s head of cultural research and development, Junus Satrio Atmodjo, said last week.
The famed Borobudur serves as a lure to bring people in and pique their interest in Indonesia’s ancient past.
The timing of the exhibition was impeccable, with Buddhists commemorating Buddha’s Day of Enlightenment, or Waisak, the Friday before its opening.
Working with the Indonesia Sangha Conference, the ministry is putting on a full week of events as part of the exhibition, including art performances that will highlight the country’s rich cultural past.
In building Borobudur, the ancient civilization of Syailendra was thoughtful enough to provide a temple that would serve as a historical library for future generations.
“Compared to the process of carving the temple, setting up this exhibition this past two months seems like nothing,” said Lenny, the event organizer.
Inside Mangga Dua, event organizers were busy setting up the exhibition.
Statues were placed in the center of the exhibition area, and experts from the National Archaeological Research Center busily put up posters showing 160 panels of the Maha Karmawibhangga relief.
Karmawibhangga, the now hidden relief at the base of Borobudur, consists of a series of panels depicting everyday life in what is now Central Java province the peak of this advanced civilization.
“Unlike other temples concentrating on the royal and divine, Borobudur includes documentation of the larger community, the common people,” archaeologist Sonny C. Wibisono said.
And from that documentation, meticulously carved by craftsmen of the day, event organizers aim at intriguing the modern public with questions like, “If we used to have this advanced culture, what happened?”
The exhibition, “Tracing Nusantara civilization from the 9th to 12th centuries, Maha Karmawibhangga: The hidden legacy at the foot of Borobudur”, will run until Sunday, June 10, at Mangga Dua Square, North Jakarta.
Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
June 22nd, 2007
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