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BALI UPDATE #389 - 23
February 2004
Change in Command
at Garuda?
Samudra Sukardi Rumored
to be Front Runner for Garuda's Number One Job.
An announcement is expected in late February that
will name a new President Director for Garuda
Indonesia, replacing Mr. Indra Setiawan
who has held the post since May 2003.
The airline's Chief Executive normally serves
for a period of 5 years, with Setiawan's tenure
widely seen as a temporary appointment to complete
the truncated terms of Mr. Robby Djohan and Mr.
Abdul Ghani, who served the first 4 years of a
5 year appointment.
9 Candidates in Contention
Local press reports state that at least 9 candidates
are undergoing fit and proper review testing
for the top role at Garuda. Said
to be among the front runners are:
• Mr. Samudra Sukardi – Current President
Director of Abacus Distribution
and brother to Mr. Sukardi Laksmana, the Minister
of State-Owned Enterprises, the Government body
charged with oversight responsibility for the
Airline.
• Mr. Arwin Rasyid - the Vice-President
Director of Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI).
• Mr. Erry Firmansyah - the Chief Executive
Officer of the Jakarta Stock Exchange.
Conflict of Interest
Last year, Minister Sukardi came under intense
criticism when his brother's name was put forward
for the top post at Garuda from
those who felt the appointment nepotistic and
that Mr. Sukardi's ministerial portfolio, which
includes the supervision of Garuda
as a state-owned enterprise, would represent an
inherent conflict of interest if that Company
were headed by his brother.
Unhealthy Competition
in Indonesia's Skies?
Veteran Aviation
Observer Looks at the Effects of Intense Competition
by Nation's Domestic Carriers.
Veteran aviation observer and editor of Angkasa
Magazine, Mr. Dudi Sudibyo has suggested that
the intensive competition now taking place between
the numerous domestic air carriers operating in
Indonesia may end up threatening the long-term
viability of the airlines involved.
Speaking in the English-language Jakarta
Post, Mr. Sudibyo said: "With the current
prices, people may only have to pay between Rp.
200,000 and Rp. 300,000 (about US$ 35.71) to go
from Jakarta to Surabaya, while the company must
pay about US$ 80,000 to US$ 300,000 to lease a
single Boeing 737 in one month."
He went on to suggest that revenues may be falling
short of actual operating costs as the result
of the current stiff price competition taking
place in the domestic air transportation market.
Established carriers, such as Garuda Indonesia,
have also suffered as a result of currently competitive
market situation. Garuda's pretax
profits for 2003 totaled Rp. 238.7 billion (approximately
US$ 28 million), down from Rp. 1 trillion (approximately
US$ 117.6 million) for 2002.
Australian Police
to Post Liaison Officer in Bali
Australian Police
to Assist Bali in Cracking Down on Pedophiles.
According to reports in the Indonesian-language
Bali Post, the Australian
Federal Police (AFP) will post a full-time
Liaison Officer in the Bali Police Command starting
in March 2004.
The appointment, announced by AFP Police
Commissioner Mick Keelty and confirmed by Deputy
Commissioner, John Lawler, will be used to help
crackdown on an organized network of pedophiles
believed to be operating on the Island.
An Australian child-advocacy group, Child Wise
has recently raised the alarm by compiling the
results of a survey carried out by the group said
to detail wide spread child-sec practices in Bali.
The AFP investigated and charged 71 people
in Australia in connection with pedophile practices.
In that same year, the AFP assisted 12
foreign countries in their investigation of Australians
suspected of participating in child-sex practices,
resulting in 22 formal charges being filed against
Australians living abroad.
A former Australian Diplomat, William Brown, aged
51, is being held by Bali Police awaiting trial
in connection with allegations that he sexually
interfered with 2 underaged boys in the Karangasem
area of East Bali.
Lombok Included in
Gateway for Visas
Central Government
Agrees to Add Lombok's Airport to Visa on Arrival
List.
Efforts by the Provincial Government of Lombok
to have Mataram's Selaparang Airport added to
the international gateways able to issue "Visa
on Arrival" to the nationals of 21 countries and
territories have borne fruit.
Lombok's Vice-Governor, Drs. H.B. Thamrin Rayes,
returned from Jakarta on February 14, 2004, to
advise that Indonesia's Minister of Justice and
Human Rights had formally approved the Island's
request to add Lombok to the list of Indonesian
gateways able to issue visas for 30 days upon
arrival after the payment of a US$ 25 fee.
Following intense lobbying by the Lombok Government,
a decision to add Lombok to the list was made
on February 9, 2004. Lombok was initially omitted
from the Indonesian gateways entitled to issue
visas causing numerous protests from the Island's
tourism community and numerous cancellations in
international bookings.
The visa issuance facility for Lombok is expected
to be in place by March 01, 2004.
Bapak Nurjaya to
Address Bali & NT PATA Chapter
First Official Face-to-Face
Meeting Between Chief of BTA and Tourism Community
Set for February 27, 2004.
Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA)
Chapter for Bali and Nusa Tenggara will be hosting
an open dialogue and luncheon with the newly installed
Chief of the Bali Tourism Authority,
Drs. Gede Nurjaya on Friday, February 27, 2004.
Drs. Nurjaya was appointed by Bali's Governor
in January 2004 to head the coordinating government
agency for Bali's large tourism industry.
The event, to be held at the Nusa Dua
Beach Hotel, will adopt a traditional
Nasi Bungkus format and cost only Rp. 25,000
per person (approximately US$ 2.94) for PATA
Members and Rp. 35,000 for guests (approximately
US$ 4.12). The dialogue with Bapak Nurjaya will
start at 11:00 a.m. and conclude with the end
of the lunch at 2:00 p.m.
Reservations can be made at the PATA Secretariat
at Jalan Raya Puputan #41 in Denpasar.
Bali Update Honored by PATA
Bali Update Receives Honorable Mention in Gold Award Competition.
Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA)
has given balidiscovery.com's
Bali Update a Honorable Mention in its annual
Gold Awards.
The Honor in the prize category of E-Newsletters will be formally bestowed at the 53rd PATA Annual Conference to be held in Jeju Island in South Korea in April.
Bali Update is a weekly newsletter on Bali tourism sent to more than 15,000 subscribers every week. Now in its 6th year of publication, the Bali Update has received numerous awards including a marketing excellence award from the PATA Indonesia Chapter and was dubbed "Bali's Truth Ministry" by Time Magazine.
Subscriptions to the weekly update are without charge and can be done on-line from Bali Discovery Tours's website at www.balidiscovery.com.
This year's winner of the PATA Gold Award for an E-Newsletters was the Singapore Can-Lah! newsletter produced by Pacific World, Singapore and Suntec Singapore.
Ten Artists Exhibit at Gaya Fusion of Senses
Leading Contemporary Artists Exhibit Their Works and Concepts in March 2004.
Gaya Gallery Fusion of Senses will explore the artistic concepts and works of 10 leading contemporary artists in a month-long exhibition designed to educate the public to the concepts that drive artists to create their works.
The accumulated works of 10 artists will be displayed with the written concept behind each work displayed next to it. The goal of the exhibit is to leave the public with a deeper appreciation and understanding of art and its role in our lives.
The artists participating in the exhibit:
• Filippo Sciascia - an Italian painter born in Palma Di Montechiaro, Italy in 1972. Having exhibited in both Bali and his native Italy, he has been living in Ubud for several years using high tech tools as a way to present his art.
• Peter Dittmar - born in 1945 in Munich Germany. A student at the Academy of Fine Arts, Munich and later a teacher at the same academy, he moved to Bali in 1982. He has conducted exhibitions throughout Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Holland, Brazil, Hong-Kong, Australia, Singapore and Indonesia. With Zen like simplicity, his compositions rely on harmony and context to convey an aesthetic, while textures provide the surprise.
• Made Wianta born in Tabanan in 1949 into a Hindu family. Wianta's artistic focus is on the geometrical compositions characterized by dominants triangles, representations of the cosmological order in Hindu religion. Decorative icons and sub icons derived from temple or ceremonial patterns are juxtaposed with the triangles resulting in very full composition.
• Murni - a self-taught artist born in Tabanan in 1966, her works are inspired by the story of her life. The problems of marriage form a central theme of her works. The body becomes the representation of her biography.
• Wayan Karja - born in Ubud, Bali in 1965, he has been painting since the age of 10 years. A former student of art history at Udayana University, he was influenced by Western art techniques with his works incorporating elements of Impressionism and Post Impressionism. In 1997 Karja spent 2 years in the U.S.A. where he refined his artistic style. His work is a collaboration between Balinese and Western cultures.
• Pablo Gentile - born in New York City in 1951, he studied art history, theatrical design and painting at the University of New York before traveling in Europe, Middle East, India, Tibet, China, Nepal, Taiwan, Korea, Japan, Thailand, Indonesia, South America, Africa and Australia. Moving to Bali in 1980, Pablo found the space where he could digest his many years on the road developing a distinctive style as an artist.
• Alfi - born in West Sumatra in 1973, he studied at Fine Art School (SMSR) Yogyakarta graduating in 1993. He continued his studies at the Faculty of fine Art and Design of Indonesia Art Institute in Yogyakarta (1999). His paintings are compelling and reflect the artist's creativity. In 1998, he won the best painting award from the Indonesian Art Institute, Yogyakarta.
• Andrew Wellman born in Melbourne, Australia in 1966. He commenced traveling around the world in 1986 before finally settling in Ubud in 1998. Andrew works in a variety of mediums such as pop acrylics, dirty charcoals, rich oils and also print.
• Wolfgang born in Germany in 1954, he studied the Renaissance painting technique with Prof. Ernst Fuchs (Vienna) and Salvador Dali (Cadaques) for 5 years. He has conducted exhibitions in Europe, Asia and also Australia.
The Exhibition Operates 5 – 31 March 2004. It is open daily at the Gaya Fusion of Senses located in Ubud at Sayan Terrace.
Ubud is a Mood
Book and Website Launched to Celebrate the Village of Ubud.
On Saturday, February 21, 2004, the Association for the Defense of the People of Ubud (LKMD) and the Tjokorda Gede Putra Sukawati celebrated the launch of a new book "Ubud is a Mood" at a gala party in Ubud's Wantilan Hall.
The book, with an initial print run of 7,500, is a compilation of photographs and writings about life and living in Ubud. Among the writers contributing to the book are Rucina Ballinger, Jamie James, James Murdoch, Stefan Reisner, Andy Toth, Cody and Lynn Schwaiko, and Gunawan Muhammad. Photographs were contributed by Rio Helmi, Djuna Ivereigh, Leonard Lueras, Jason Childs, and Rama Surya.
While many articles and books have been written about Ubud in the past, the LKMD is hoping the new book will help celebrate Bali's community of artists from a local perspective.
The launching of "Ubud is a Mood" also marks the inauguration of a website dedicated to the village of Bali.
More information: Ubud Website
Special Industry Offer from Conrad Bali
US$ 39 ++ Rate for Travel Industry Colleagues Through June 30, 2004.
Following last week's Bali Update announcement of a [ Special Introductory Rate of US$ 94] – equivalent to a 76% discount from the published tariff – the Conrad Bali Resort and Spa has now announced a special price offer exclusive to friends and colleagues working in the travel industry. Only US$ 39++ Per NightAvailable exclusively to full-time employees in the airline and travel industry through June 30, 2004, this rate is subject to 21% tax and services. Guests will be required to document their travel industry employment during the check-in process. For more information, follow the e-mail link below:
Bali Hai Cruise Strike Ended
Strike Caused 8 Day Closure of Company's Beach Club.
Bali Hai Cruises has issued a statement announcing that the industrial dispute which caused an 8 day closure of their popular beach club has now ended.
The wildcat strike started on February 10 following the suspension of several staff caught stealing from the Company.
The strike, declared illegal by the Company's management and officials from the local labor department, formally ended on February 18. Terms of the final settlement were not disclosed.
The strike temporarily interrupted operation of Bali Hai Cruises' beach club and island accommodation operations. However, the Company's Reef Cruises, Ocean Rafting, sailing excursions, and evening dinner cruises continued to operate throughout the strike period without interruption.
Bali Marathon April 18
Run the Bali Marathon With Kathy Loper and Kurt Bodmer.
U.S. organizer of international running events - Kathy Loper Events is bringing her group of runners to participate in the Bali Marathon set to take place on Sunday, April 18, 2004.
The third time Kathy has brought a group of runners to Bali, Kathy's groups will be co-led by veteran Bali travel promoter and marathon runner, Kurt Bodmer who will also be participating in his third Bali Marathon.
Special Offer to U.S. Runners
The special package organized by Kathy Loper Events includes:
• Air fare to Bali and back on Cathay Pacific from LAX, SFO or JFK, coach class.
• 9 nights accommodations at First Class/Deluxe hotels/resorts, basis sharing double/twin room.
• Full Buffet Breakfast daily at hotels/resorts.
• Airport transfers.
• Registration Fee to Marathon, Half Marathon or 10K run.
• "Welcome to Ubud" Wine Party.
• Exciting sightseeing activities including gentle river rafting trip including lunch.
• Kecak Fire Dance Show and Dinner.
• End of run Balinese massage treatment in special "Recovery Tent."
• Pasta Loading Dinner Party.
• Post-event Gala Dinner.
• All run finishers get a T-shirt, medallion, and certificate.
Cost
US$ 1,980.00 per person.
Mozaic Closed for Renovations
Popular Cordon Bleau Dining Spot in Ubud Closed for 10 Day Renovation.
Mozaic Restaurant Culinaire - the Cordon Bleau dining spot run by award winning Chef Chris Salens in Ubud will close for 10 days starting from Saturday, February 28, 2004.
The Restaurant is scheduled to reopen again on Monday March 8, 2004.
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