KUPANG, Indonesia: Tourism businesses in Indonesia’s Komodo National Park started a month-long strike on Monday (Aug 1) after the federal government imposed a huge price hike.
Jakarta’s 18-fold rise for entry towards the park’s most popular island destinations seeks to restrict the number of visitors to safeguard endangered Komodo dragons – the planet’s largest lizards – from overexposure to humans and environment damage.
The move, which arrived to force on Mon, raised admission costs to Komodo and Padar islands at the World Heritage-listed web site in East Nusa Tenggara province from 200, 000 rupiah (US$13) to 3 or more. 75 million rupiah (US$252).
However it sparked uproar among locals who rely on tourism, and industry-related businesses in the nationwide park – still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic – had been closed on Mon in protest.
“We have no additional option, we have communicated all our logical opinions and fights but the government did not listen, ” stated Servianus Setiawan, a tour operator in Labuan Bajo, the town that serves as the entrance to the park.
“We support Komodo conservation but make sure you come up with a sensible number so we can shield Komodo dragons and so people whose livelihood depends on tourism may live. ”
East Nusa Tenggara Governor Viktor Laiskodat said the new cost would be imposed inspite of the protest.
“We admit that we missed disseminating the information (about the price increase) properly. We will inform the folks better while overseeing and evaluating the situation, ” he told reporters on Mon.