China will close its airspace for the next 40 days. This policy will certainly have an impact on the tourism and transportation sectors, including in Indonesia. The government has also begun to anticipate the potential decline in foreign tourists by relying on domestic market movements.
Minister of Transportation Dudy Purwagandhi said that the policy taken by China is part of a global dynamic that Indonesia cannot intervene in. Every country, he said, has its own considerations in determining flight policies.
Furthermore, Dudy said that the closure of China's airspace would certainly have an impact on several things, including tourist visits to Indonesia.
"Yes, we leave it to policy. The conditions of each country are different. As was conveyed yesterday that our conditions are better than other countries. So of course there will be an impact, for example, tourism and all sorts of things will be reduced," Dudy told reporters, writing Friday, April 10.
According to Dudy, the flight restrictions carried out by a number of countries need to be understood, especially because they are triggered by the increase in global jet fuel prices. The government also cannot prohibit other countries from reducing their flight frequencies.
"We also cannot prohibit other countries from reducing flights. And in fact, because of their conditions, we must also understand them. The condition of this increase in jet fuel prices is global," he said.
Even though it has the potential to suppress the flow of foreign tourists, the government is trying to maintain the mobility of the domestic community so that it continues to run. One of them is by ensuring that the increase in domestic air ticket prices is not too high.
"We hope this can be completed. That it will have an effect. That's why we are trying to keep this domestic increase from being too high. So that our people can still travel," he explained.
According to Dudy, the domestic market is the key to maintaining the sustainability of the national tourism sector, especially when there is pressure from external factors.
For example, continued Dudy, the experience during the crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic shows that domestic tourists are able to become the main mainstay of the industry.
"Just like when there was a crisis or COVID, the domestic market is the cushion for our tourism. So we take care of it so that the Indonesian people still travel. Because we also anticipate if there is a reduction in tourist flows from anywhere," he said.
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