Archive for July 12th, 2006
Land is at a premium in the tourist areas and the further hotels and other facilities for tourists are built then the cost of land will rise. Bali is slowly but surely being ‘eaten up’ by developers.
But it is not only the island of Bali. The outer islands are under threat of a land grab also. The Central Government has called on Klungkung’s Regent to stop the land grab on Bali’s neighboring Islands at Nusa Penida according to an article in the Bali Discovery.
An official from the Directorate General of Fisheries and Oceans has called on Klungkung Regent Wayan Candra to retain local control over the three islands that compose the Nusa Penida group - Nusa Penida Besar, Lembongan and Ceningan.
Dr. I Alex S.W. Retrauban, the Director for Utilization of Small Island from the Directorate General has warned Bali that local people will be physically and economically displaced if the Regional Government fails to protect property rights on the three islands. Retrauban said that the potential of the three islands demands that government take control of the land providing access to investors on a lease-only basis.
Responding to the suggestions made by Retrauban, Klungkung’s Regent insisted that anticipative steps are in place with his government exercising selective discretion in deciding which investors are granted development permits on the three islands.
The three islands of Nusa Penida located close to the eastern shore of Bali comprise two-thirds of the total land area in the Klungkung Regency.
sources : www.baliblog.com
July 12th, 2006
It is about time that Indonesia boosted its security at the various destination points around the country and particulary in Bali. This is badly needed to ensure the bad elements of society cannot enter the country.
It appears that security will be beefed up at major Indonesian airports and seaports under a joint project with Australia’s immigration department. Australian firm CPS Systems has won a $7.5 million contract to roll out passport readers, databases and name-matching software to identify suspicious people seeking to enter Indonesia.
The system will be used at airports in Jakarta, Denpasar, Surabaya and Medan, Batam sea port and associated immigration offices.
However I do think this sort of system should be used at domestic airports as well as internal ports such as the one at Gilamanuk, an easy entry point for terrortist to enter Bali. Whether or not the government will proceed with this measure is still to ber debated.
The CEKAL system is Indonesia’s version of Australia’s Movement Alert List which keeps tabs on people such as terrorists and criminals who pose a serious threat to the community. Immigration officials will be able to cross-check the identities of people on arrival against alert lists and lists of people granted visas or entry permits.
source : www.baliblog.com
July 12th, 2006
I don’t know whether it is just my thinking or is the traffic increasing along Jalan Legian of recent years. Understandably more vehicle sales mean more traffic on the roads and subsequently more air pollution.
The one period of the year I dislike and that is during the Islamic fasting month of Ramadhan and the subsequent Idul Fitri holiday that follows. It is a time when domestic tourists from all over Java, Sumatra and other islands come to Bali with their cars. Naturally this causes traffic jams galore along the main tourist drag. I have never understood why with such a great domestic air service in Indonesia there domestic tourists have to bring their cars. The air pollution is horrific.
But now it seems that there maybe plans under foot to control the air pollution situation, not only when domestic tourists come in their droves, but during the rest of the year according to Bali Discovery.
Speaking at a seminar on land transportation held in Sanur on Wednesday, June 28, the Director General of Land Transportation Iskandar Abubakar warned that Bali’s higher than average level of private vehicle ownership portends for traffic jams and added air pollution in the near future.
Citing the rapid increase in private vehicle ownership in Bali the transportation expert said that there are presently 4 vehicles for every 5 people living Bali, a ratio far above the average in the Nation’s capital of Jakarta where there is only one vehicle for every 5 residents.
Not only does Bali have a higher average ratio of vehicles in operation as compared to total residents but significantly 80% of the vehicles in operation in Bali are registered to private owners. By comparison private ownership in Jakarta constitutes only 40% of all vehicles on the road. According to Abubakar the variation in private ownership of vehicles in Bali is due to the very low use of public transport in Bali where only 5% of the population is estimated to travel on public transport.
Emission Testing of Vehicles to be Widened
Abubakar predicted that the recently introduced program of emission testing on public transport will be widened by 2007 to also include mandatory emission testing on all vehicles.
Sources : www.baliblog.com
July 12th, 2006