Is It Safe For Australians to Travel to Bali?

If you have read the latest travel advice from the Australian Government available at Smart Traveller, then you would be having serious considerations about wanting to travel to Indonesia, and more specifically Bali.

According to the advice, rabies is a real threat to Australian travellers. Also, a violent feud between rival taxi companies has also escalated to a point where the Australian authorities consider there to be real risks to Australian holiday makers on the island of Bali. These two issues are additions to the standard fare about the ever-present threat of terrorism and natural disasters.

So, the question is: "Should Australians travel to Indonesia, and particularly Bali, in light of the travel advice?" Yes. If you want to go to Bali then you should not be deterred by the issuance of this travel advisory. Travel, like any other human activity, comes with risks and rewards. The simple equation you have is as a traveller is to balance those risks and rewards and make an informed decision on whether to go or not.

Travel to Indonesia is really about being aware of your own personal safety and surrounds. If you are a little bit more conscious of not placing yourself in dangerous situations then you are unlikely to be harmed. The chances of one being killed in a terrorist attack are small. If you are worried about dying, then have a look at statistics for what kills people while they travel and my guess is that you will find rabies and violent taxi feuds rank pretty low on the scale of misadventure. It is not being argued that it is impossible, but it is being argued that the risks are negligible if you use your brains.

That is the rant for today.

The Terror Master Plan for Indonesia -- Noordin M. Top

The idea of a terrorism master plan for Indonesia being in existence since at least 2002 and known to anti-terror authorities since 2005 is hardly surprising. The master plan was found on the computer of Azahari bin Husin who was shot dead by police in November of 2005. Azahari and Noordin M. Top worked closely together in the planning and carrying out of terrorist bombings in Indonesia. And, they are both Malaysian.

What is surprising is that it is only being made much more fully public in 2009. Even if one were to give the relevant authorities the benefit of the doubt that parts of this master plan had to be kept secret in the immediate aftermath of its discovery, does not justify it being kept secret through to 2009.

The master plan allegedly shows that the perpetrators of the most recent bombings, who are now being directly linked to Top, are part of this plan. The master plan also suggests that there is more public exposure on an international scale if places that are world-renowned are targeted or the victims are high-profile. High profile in this context notes explicitly that business executives will provide as much, if not more, media coverage for the cause than a couple of tourists.

The suggestion here is clearly that James Castle's business round table was the target of the suicide bomber. The intent being to kill and maim as many of the business people in attendance there as possible. By all accounts the terrorists fulfilled that mission.

Furthermore, the master plan also makes it clear that Bali remains a viable target. The viability of Bali is that it will provide large-scale media exposure. The Bali Bombings of 2002 shows this to be true. Probably scarier still is that the master plan suggests that prime tourist targets include fast food restaurants (such as KFC, McDonalds, among others), taxi queues at airports and other places where tourists congregate in order to travel, art markets (with the art market at Ubud being specifically singled out), open-air restaurants, movie theatres, shopping centers, and the Kuta beach.

This is scary because most people just figured that terrorists would be targeting hotels and nightclubs, or other places of late night entertainment. However, this is clearly not the case if the master plan is to be believed.

My folks go to Bali every year. If anyone asks them about terrorism and do they feel threatened, the answer is always a resounding, no! The rationale or justification for their confidence is that they do not visit bars and pretty much only sleep at the hotel in amongst trips to the beach and some shopping. Their most recent trips to Bali have seen them staying with friends and not in a hotel.

This might no longer be a sensible rationale for those that stay in hotels and go to Bali just to shop and laze around on the beach.

The bombing at the Ritz-Carlton clearly showed that the bombers were targeting the Airlannga restaurant. It is one of the restaurants where guests can have their complimentary included breakfast for staying at the hotel. If the plan is to target breakfast time at major hotels in Bali, then the potential for mass casualties is a real one.

The fact that this master plan exists, and assuming that Australian authorities were aware of it, then the travel advisories issued by the Australian government and other governments were accurate when they stated things such as "intelligence exists that Bali remains a target for terrorists" (or words to that effect).

What this all means? To each their own. I would not hesitate to return to Indonesia, anywhere in Indonesia, Bali included. My philosophy on life has always been, "if your numbers up, then your numbers up!" Nevertheless, that said, it is always important to be aware of your own personal safety and make sure that you do everything you can to ensure that you do not put yourself in harms way.

Yet, when it is all said and done, if we let the terrorists dictate our lives through the use of fear, then we may still have our lives but we do not have our freedom.

Thoughts about Pistachios and Taxis

It is 23.30 and I am sitting in the office for no other reason than I cannot get a frackin' taxi! That is the way it goes in Jakarta when it rains (or in this case it is pissing down like cats & dogs)! So, what is a fella to do than read the blogs and munch away on the pistachios?

So, I have been catching up with my fellow bloggers by reading and commenting on their blogs...These are just a few of the blogs you should visit:

Treespotter
Green Stump
GJJakarta
Jakartass
Rima Fauzi
Carl Parkes
Dilligaf
Ecky
Finally Woken
Indonesia Matters

Interesting one and all!

While I have been taking care of blog business. I have been munching away on the pistachios and wondering why they are so damn expensive. I could probably do the research myself but for the fact I am to frackin' lazy! By the way frackin' is my new word (too much Battlestar Galactica)...

On an aside...my blog ranking seems to be moving north and I am not sure why? It is strange because the hit counter statistics thing that I am using suggests that my visitor numbers a plummeting and I should by all reckoning be becoming less popular (if there is such a thing when you are already unpopular)...Argh, the crazy world of cyber space math!

Taxi Safety in Jakarta

Perhaps a more apt title here would be 'No Taxi Safety in Jakarta'. A spate of robberies over the last week or so by taxi drivers has again brought the issue of safety to the fore. The Department of Transport has made the obligatory statements that it usually does about ratcheting up the frequency of raids in conjunction with the National Police Force. Yet, the reality is this is an ongoing problem and therefore it is in need of a much more integrated and agressive approach from the relevant authorities if it is to ever be overcome.

Indonesia has a lot of poorly adminstered taxi companies and Jakarta has its share as Indonesia's largest city. The close proximity of the satellite cities of Bekasi, Tangerang, and Depok means that the taxi trade can be a lucrative business considering in the greater Jakarta area there is potentially access to some 12 - 15 million people.

It goes without saying that this will also be an attractive proposition for the bad guys who are looking at making a quick buck and getting a mobile phone or two and some jewellery for the girlfriend into the bargain. One of those too good an opportunities to pass up!

It seems that there are more taxis than potential passengers, except when it rains and then there is never a taxi in sight or those that are in sight have a conveniently broken fare meter, so in that sense a passengers choice seems good overall. The reality though is that there are only a small number of reputable companies, but even the reputable companies are encountering problems. This is particularly so in the clamour for drivers to ensure that they can get their taxis on the road and earning money, the reputable companies let their guard down a little in order to get drivers in cars. If your taxi is in the parking lot it is an under-utilized resource, you need 'bums on seats' to be making money!

The best safety tip is this. Order a taxi from a reputable company by phone and have them come and pick you up. I am sure an internet search or a simple question to a work colleague will enlighten you to the names of these companies. If you are a tourist and staying in a hotel there is normally a taxi rank with quality taxis available, but the concierge would certainly be able to make a recommendation to you. So order a taxi or take one from a reputable taxi rank.

This might ensure that you do not have to endure the hassle of being robbed. But even the reputable companies have a number of cornflakes license holders. You know the ones, these are the blokes who pulled their ready made license out of the cereal box at breakfast time! So, even without falling victim to a robbery, you might still be in for the ride of your life, literally!

Happy Travelling to you all...