Indonesia eyes more Pakistani visitors

Second Indonesian Solo Exhibition to be held from December 3 to 4 at the Beach Luxury Hotel.

KARACHI: Indonesia is all geared up to conduct the second Indonesian Solo Exhibition (ISE) from December 3 to 4 at the Beach Luxury Hotel.

Speaking at a media briefing, Indonesian Consulate General Rossalis R Adenan said this year’s  ISE was focused on attracting Pakistani tourists to Indonesia and vice versa.

“If Pakistani tourists can visit Malaysia and Thailand, then why can’t they visit Indonesia? It is a great tourism destination. We have 300 ethnicities across 17,000 islands and a very diverse and rich culture,” he said.

Adenan said that Indonesia has seen a steady growth of its tourism sector at eight to 10 per cent. They were targeting 7 million tourists for the year 2010-11, he added. Currently, less than 10,000 tourists from Pakistan visit Indonesia and the consulate general was hoping to stretch the number to 20,000.

“Indonesia and Pakistan have an excellent political relationship and we now need to extend this to an economic, social and cultural partnership. This exhibition will not only help promote Indonesia in Pakistan, but will do the same for Pakistan in our country,” he promised.

Recalling a conversation with an official, he said that while most people think Bali is a great tourist destination, they do not seem to know that it is part of Indonesia. There were more destinations as well, such as Lombok, Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Medan, which focus on cultural tourism and serve as natural retreats.

Adenan also mentioned the Komodo Island which is the habitat of the Komodo dragon and is a great spot for more adventurous travelers.

Answering a question on the difficulties Pakistanis face during immigration in Indonesia, he said that the embassy had brought the matter up with the foreign ministry and instructions have been given to the director general of immigration to treat Pakistani tourists with the same respect and courtesy that they treat other tourists with.

The ISE will be opened by the Ambassador of Indonesia, Isaac Latuconsinaat, at 4 pm. The guest of honour is the former Sindh tourism minister Shazia Marri. It will be attended by officials from both countries’ ministries of foreign affairs, tourism and culture. The main focus of the two-day event will be the promotion of tourist destinations in Indonesia, along with the exhibition of Indonesian products such as spices, textiles and paper products. Cultural events as well as seminars will also be organised.

Additional input from wires

Published in The Express Tribune, December 1^st, 2010.