Police Deployed Amid Protests Against Rising Ticket Price to Komodo Island

TheIndonesia.co - The East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Police has confirmed that more personnel will be deployed to Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai regency, amid protests against the rising ticket price to famous tourist destination Komodo Island.

Head of NTT Police Insp. Gen. Setyo Budiyanto said officers will be sent to tourism area in Labuan Bajo as protests held by players in the tourism industry continue after authorities decided to increase the price of entrance ticket to Komodo Island from Rp 150,000 (US$10.5) to Rp 3.75 million.

“The regional police sent additional personnel to create a sense of security for locals and visitors in a number of locations in Labuan Bajo,” Budiyanto said on Sunday, July 31, as reported by Antara.

However, he did not elaborate on the exact number of personnel deployed to Labuan Bajo but confirmed that it would remain “reasonable”.

“It’s still [within a] reasonable number because there are many tourism spots as well as visitors in Labuan Bajo,” Budiyanto affirmed.

He lastly stated that the situation in Labuan Bajo is still under control while personnel deployment was deemed necessary to ensure the conducive environment lasts.

Since last week, there have been a number of protests against the adjusted ticket price to Komodo Island held by individuals and organizations from the local tourism industry in Labuan Bajo.

The industry players are against the plan to increase ticket price from Rp 150,000 to Rp 3.75 million, that will take effect on August 1.

The government previously claimed the plan was part of the conservation effort to protect the area’s biodiversity by limiting the number of visitors.

West Manggarai regent Edistasius Endi said he supported the idea of increasing ticket price to Komodo Island because it aligns with the effort to protect the Komodo Island from overtourism.

“I agree with [raising ticket price to] Komodo Island. I see it as an effort to limit the number of tourists, and the objective is to protect komodo ecosystem in the island, so it becomes more sustainable,” Endi said on July 3.