SINGARAJA A German couple who operate a small resort, Chili Mas, have been blockaded out of their home at Tejakula by local people angry at their attitude. Tejakula headman I Ketut Suardana told reporters this week the couple were viewed by locals as very arrogant and that they frequently disobeyed instructions handed out by the [...]

DENPASAR Bali Police chief Hadiatmoko is embarrassed – because a Brimob member fainted and fell out of the ranks during a parade last weekend to celebrate the 65th anniversary of the Bali Police Mobile Brigade. He said it was important that all police were fit – especially members of the elite Brimob unit – and [...]

DENPASAR Bali’s capital city has come out top of the league – the least corrupt of 10 cities surveyed by Transparency International Indonesia (TII). Denpasar scored 6.71 points on TII’s Corruption Perception Index released following a survey of businesses in the 10 cities between April and October. Denpasar mayor IB Rai Dharmawijaya Mantra said this [...]

SEMARAPURA Klungkung Police say they have no reason to apologise for detaining a man who became aggressive when stopped and asked to produce identification, but was not subsequently prosecuted, because they were simply doing their job of protecting the community. Komang Sukarya of Tangkas in Klungkung was stopped by police conducting routine checks for illegal [...]

NEGARA Jembrana local security (satpol) picked up dozens of café girls working illegally in the district in a series of swoops on cafés and a boarding house this week. The girls, the youngest 17 but most in their 20s and 30s, were taken to satpol headquarters in Negara to explain why they did not have [...]

DENPASAR Healthcare facilities, schools, playgrounds, places of worship, public transport, workplaces and other public areas – including the mayor’s office – have been made smoke-free zones City health chief Dr Luh Sri Armini said when she announced the stub-it-out order that Denpasar already had Bali’s lowest smoking rate (16.8 percent of people aged 10 or [...]

SEMARAPURA The Ministry of Transportation has got behind the push to accelerate the Klungkung wharf project so that Nusa Penida – part of Klungkung regency – can gain economic benefit more quickly from better shipping services. A meeting in Jakarta on Friday last week between ministry officials and a Klungkung delegation settled technical questions that [...]

TABANAN Fishermen from Tabanan and Jembrana have clashed on the high seas over fishing rights in recent weeks, with police now being called on to mediate in the dispute. According to locals the conflict began when fishermen from Medewi in Jembrana started fishing outside their traditional territory further south along the west Bali coast in [...]

DENPASAR Out-of-town traders using the Badung Market precinct to sell their wares are an unstoppable problem until alternative arrangements can be made for them, according to Satpol and the market’s management. The traders spill out of the market area into crowded Jl Gadjah Mada and narrow, congested Jl Sulawesi – Silk Street – adding to [...]

JAKARTA CLOSER relations with China are having a positive impact on tourism prospects for Indonesia. The Cultural and Tourism Ministry has set a target of 500,000 Chinese tourists for 2010. The figure is 25 percent higher than last year’s. Revenue from this influx could reach US$500 million. Bali gets nearly 20 percent of China’s visitors. [...]

DENPASAR CITY traffic volumes have risen by 17.20 percent over the past five years, worsening congestion and putting additional strain on inadequate roads, the Denpasar city government says. Extra heavy vehicle traffic is chiefly to blame, according to city spokesman Made Erwin Suryadarma. He said last weekend the heaviest congestion was on three arterial roads [...]

NUSA DUA SOUTH Kuta Police are hunting a man who dresses in police gear and steals the belongings of foreigners when they swim at Nusa Dua beaches, including the popular Geger beach. Police believe the man, known as Ui, is the leader of a syndicate of thieves from East Praya on Lombok. He has short-cropped [...]