VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

The Head of the Public Communication Bureau of the Tourism Ministry, Guntur Sakti, confirmed that there were countries that had issued travel advice for their citizens who were in Indonesia. Travel advice was released ahead of the General Election Commission or KPU to announce the results of the election contest on May 22.

"Yes according to our monitoring, there are several countries that warn their citizens to be vigilant on May 22," Guntur said in a short message to Tempo, Saturday, May 18, 2019.

According to Guntur, the country confirmed by travel advice is the United States. The US Embassy for Indonesia proclaims the appeal through its official website.

Travel advice, he said, is a reasonable appeal and is not a threat to the sustainability of the tourist climate in Indonesia. Guntur said that travel advice is generally issued by state authorities as part of the state's obligations and responsibilities to protect its citizens.

"Even so, the security forces have also given appeals and security. We certainly hope the situation will remain conducive, "he said. The Ministry of Tourism, said Guntur, is optimistic that the tourism ecosystem in Indonesia does not shake. The performance of the tourism sector has also been recognized as being in line with the Ministry's targets and expectations since the General Election took place.

The Central Statistics Agency previously noted that foreign tourists visiting Indonesia as of March 2019 increased by 5.9 percent compared to the previous month. In that month, the number of foreign tourists reached 1.34 million.

However, when compared to the previous year or year on year, foreign tourists visited 1.82 percent for the same period. This year, the Ministry of Tourism has a target of bringing in 20 million foreign tourists until 2019. (tempo)