New Entrance Fee Applies; Regulation will Follow

Komodo National Park was not created for mass tourism but for special-interest tourism targeted at a limited number of visitor. Thus, all parties need to change their mindset regarding special-interest-tourism activities

KOMPAS/PRADIPTA PANDU MUSTIKA

Landscape from the top of Padar Island in the Komodo National Park area, East Nusa Tenggara, Thursday (28/7/2022).

LABUAN BAJO, KOMPAS – Komodo National Park began imposing an entrance fee of Rp 3.75 million (around US$250) starting on Monday (1/8/2022), despite no underlying regulation to support it. The new East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) administration plans to include the new fee in a regional regulation.

Several legal practitioners and observers are advised to temporarily suspend the new tariff until its legal basis is established. This is to ensure legal certainty. If the new entrance fee is still enforced, it can be considered as a form of illegal levies with various legal consequences.

NTT tourism and creative economy agency head Zeth Sony Libing said over the phone on Tuesday (2/8) that the regional regulation containing the new tariff is currently being processed. “Before issuing the perda [regional regulation], we will first issue a pergub [gubernatorial regulation],” he said.

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> Risking Lives for Komodo

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Emanual Passar, a legal practitioner in Kupang, believes that without any legal basis, the new tariff cannot hold. Without any legal basis, the tariff can be categorized as an illegal levy. Thus far, entrance fees to national parks are contained in Government Regulation (PP) No. 12/2014.

If still enforced, the new policy will set a bad precedent and potentially lead to legal consequences. “Indonesia is a state of law; things cannot be done arbitrarily,” he said.

On the other hand, Mikael Feka, a legal observer from Widya Mandira Catholic University in Kupang, is of the opinion that there is no need to question the substantiality of imposing the new fee without any legal basis. This is because the new tariff is related to a larger interest, where there is a sense of urgency. While the new tariff is already imposed, said Mikael, the regulation to support it can follow.

Boycott

In Labuan Bajo, the National Police have raised the security-level status from Alert I to Alert II. The alert status was imposed after tourism associations and local communities protested against the tariff increase, which they deemed was decided unilaterally.

Viktor (43), a tourism activist, said the boycott was still ongoing. “We support conservation efforts but not like this. Conservation efforts can be done by capping the number of tourists that can enter, but it shouldn’t be done by raising prices to such an extreme. This tariff increase seems to be more about commercialization rather than conservation,” he said.

They are worried that the tariff increase will drastically reduce tourist visits. Tourists no longer visit Komodo Island and Padar Island. Komodo Island residents have been selling accessories, statues, lodging services and food.

“Nowadays, many tourists have canceled their trip to Labuan Bajo because it is expensive,” said Viktor.

KOMPAS/ANITA YOSSIHARA

President Joko Widodo walks along the pedestrian path on Rinca Island, one of the islands included in the Komodo National Park area in West Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara, Thursday (11/7/2019). Rinca Island is one of Komodo's habitats which is usually visited by tourists.

According to Komodo National Park conservation-program coordinating manager, Caroline Noge, the entrance fee of Rp 3.75 million per person, which will be valid for one year, serves as a contribution fee for conservation efforts in Komodo Island, Padar Island and its surrounding waters.

“It is not just the admission fee to enter Komodo National Park. People who visit will be required to register and make reservations online through a one-stop application,” she said.

The contribution fee will go to conservation efforts, including visitor management, coral-reef restoration, local-community empowerment and the optimization of supervision. Additionally, it will also support security in the area to prevent poaching, illegal fishing, the use of tiger trawls and overfishing, as well as other issues that threaten the Komodo dragon’s habitat and the ecosystems within it.

Also read:

> Taking Care of the Remaining ‘Dragons’

> Indonesia Must Protect World Heritage Sites

Irman Firmansyah, who leads the expert team that studies the carrying capacity of ecosystems in Komodo Island, Padar Island and its surroundings, said that Komodo National Park was not created for mass tourism but for special-interest tourism targeted at a limited number of visitors. Thus, all parties need to change their mindset regarding special-interest-tourism activities in this conservation area.

According to Irman, maximizing the economic aspects of special-interest tourism is not done by increasing the number of tourist visits. Instead, it is done by extending the duration of tourist visits.

Although the number of visitors is capped, tourist access to Komodo National Park, including those from abroad, must still be facilitated. In order to facilitate and monitor access to the national park, tourist visits need to be connected to digital systems.

“If we do not start limiting visits now, there will be 487,000 tourists visiting by 2045 and Komodo National Park would lose Rp 11 trillion in ecosystem services. However, if we limit it by integration, ecosystem services lost may only amount to Rp 10 billion. With an income of Rp 500 billion, environmental damage can still be controlled,” said Irman.

This article was translated by Kesya Adhalia.