Surf police keeps etiquette in the Gold Coast
Surfing policemen will be patrolling the surf spots of Duranbah and Snapper Rocks, in Australia, in an attempt to control and reduce surf rage incidents that have been spreading in the Gold Coast.
Dropping in is considered the main problem in Australia's most important and crowded surf breaks. Surf etiquette is one of the first things a surfer should follow through his entire surf life.
Respect in the line-up is the first step to a global stoke and mounted police will try to ensure every respect each other and gets respected in return. Respecting the local surfing community and the priorities in a wave peak are fundamental in popular spots, but there are still many riders who seem to forget it.
Beginners in surfing and bad mooded surfers should know that, one day, they will eventually suffer from lack of respect, out in the water. The Gold Coast surfing community is divided about the police patrol.
While disputes over priorities and waves may happen in ultra crowded and should be considered "normal", there are also surfers that keep a negative attitude in the water, overtime, and should be punished or kept away from the line-up.
Duranbah and Snapper Rocks are some of the most crowded surf spots in Australia. In a regular surfing day, there are surfers in the water way before sunrise and later in the afternoon, when it's already dark.
Surf rage is the opposite side of the spirit of surfing. Watch the worst scenes of beach fights because of waves.
Wavegarden UK is under fire in Bristol
The first public official artificial wave park in the world is being attacked by environmentalists, authorities and residents of the city of Bristol.
Wavegarden UK, which has been announced for the British coastal city for spring 2013, is being accused of promoting large commercial food or drink companies in the surf pool projected for the Avon Gorge area.
The "Friends of Avon Gorge" believe the site is not suitable for a commercial venture and that the artificial surfing installment will threaten the local wildlife.
The Wavegarden Bristol is an idea of Nick Hounsfield and Tobin Coles, supported by Chris Hines. The entrepreneurs defend the surf park and the absolute respect for Nature.
"For us, the surrounding gardens will be equally important as the wave and will be specifically designed to provide a healthy, educational and sensory experience", says Nick Hounsfield.
The entire plan features a botanical garden a sensory garden, as well as the typical facilities that are frequently seen in any sports centre: a changing room, a cafe and several public indoor spaces.
The Bristol Wavegarden artificial wave project is £5 million investment. If you support the construction of a surf park in the British city
Indonesia calls for multilateral efforts in combating human trafficking
Indonesia calls for multilateral efforts in combating human trafficking
Following the recent capsizal of a boat loaded with hundreds of asylum seekers off the East Java coast, Indonesia renewed calls for multilateral efforts to combat people smuggling that was set in a framework called the Bali Process.
"The incident underlines the importance of the continuation of partnerships among countries in the region through what is known as the Bali Process to handle the irregular movement of people," Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa said recently in response to the incident that made hundreds of asylum seekers missing in the Indian ocean between Indonesian and Australian territory.
The Bali Process framework was set up in February 2002 to address human trafficking and transnational crime problems, signed by over 50 countries and international agencies. It was co-founded and co-chaired by Indonesia and Australia.
The Bali Process is a regional, multilateral process designed to boost bilateral and regional cooperative efforts against people smuggling and trafficking in persons through technical workshops and increased cooperation among interested countries, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Overall direction and coordination of the Bali Process is provided through an officials' level Steering Group comprising Indonesia and Australia as the two co-chairs, New Zealand, Thailand, the UNHCR and IOM.
Efforts to rescue asylum seekers boarding on the ill-fated boat conducted by the Indonesian rescuer team are underway at the moment. Police said that the team has rescued 47 people from the boat that capsized on Saturday in waters 74 kilometers off the Prigi coast in the city of Trenggalek, East Java.
Reports said the ill-fated boat that was bound for Australia was loaded with asylum seekers from the Middle East and Afghanistan intending to seek jobs and better life in Australia.
Police said that the 25 meter-long boat with a capacity of 150 passengers was loaded with 250 people including women and children when the mishap happened.
"The ship sailed for two days and two nights before capsizing," National Police spokesman Boy Rafli Amar said on Tuesday.
He said that police are now investigating the origin of the boat that capsized on Saturday causing hundreds of asylum seekers to die or remain missing at sea.
From the preliminary results of police's questioning against the survivors, the ill-fated boat departed from Ujung Kulon in Banten province.
The place has been identified as among the embarking points of illegal boats, carrying illegal migrants sailing to Australia. Indonesia has been a stopover point for illegal migrants before they made risky sea trips to Australia. Most of those illegal migrants came from conflicting countries like Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Bangladesh.
The Indonesian apparatus had frequently intercepted illegal boats carrying illegal migrants bound for Australia when they sailed on Indonesian waters.
Cooperating with countries joining the Bali Process framework and related international agencies, Indonesia detained those illegal migrants, underwent examinations against them to seek their reasons to leave their countries, and placed them in third countries that were willing to accept them.
Bali to establish tourist hospital
Indonesia is going to build a hospital for tourists at its tourism industry center of Bali, in an effort to boost services to foreign and local tourists, governor of Bali Made Mangku Pastika said on Wednesday.
The governor said that the planned "tourist hospital" would be built to accommodate an increasing number of tourists.
The hospital would be built on a stretch of 3-hectare land in a strategic location, he was quoted by the Jakarta Post as saying.
"The hospital will provide an international standard of healthcare for the people, especially those who have references from community health centers or regency hospitals," Pastika said.
As many as 244,400 foreign holidaymakers visited Bali island in October 2011, a 6.43 percent increase over the same period last year, the Statistic Bureau announced on Dec. 1.
Indonesia aims to attract 7.7 million foreign tourists coming into the country this year and 8 million next year, Minister for Tourism and Creative Economy Mari Elka Pangestu said in November.
Over 7 million foreign tourists came into the country last year, according to the tourism ministry.
The government expects a 8.4-billion-U.S. dollar revenue from tourists' spending this year, up from 7.6 billion U.S. dollar last year.
Bali tourism association urges to address traffic congestion
Bali tourism association urges to address traffic congestion
Tourism officials in Bali has urged the authorities to address the chronic traffic congestion in the tourist island to prevent the weaking of the tourism industry in the beautiful island, local press reported Tuesday.
The request was made as congestion had drawn complaints from foreign tourists. "It will indirectly slow Bali's economic growth. Eventually Bali will lose many tourists and investment. Bali's special advantages will disappear,"Bali Tourism Alliance Chairman Gusti Kade Sutawa was quoted by the Jakarta globe as saying.
Foreigners living in Bali, the center of Indonesia's tourism industry, said they could not stand the island's chronic traffic congestion, and that it was beginning to impact its tourism industry.
"The traffic really dampens the spirit of tourists visiting Bali, and there needs to be a solution," said U.S. citizen Radu Frentiu.
As many as 244,400 foreign holidaymakers visited Bali island in October 2011, a 6.43 percent increase over the same period last year, the Statistic Bureau announced on Dec. 1.
Radu, who has lived in Bali for four years and is the general manager of a hotel in the tourist district of Kuta, said complaints about the traffic were common.
"People often complain that they arrive at the hotel late, that wherever they want to go takes ages," he said.
There are several areas, he added, that are prone to severe jams, including the airport area, the bypass road and Kuta. Besides the congestion, visitors also complain about the choking exhaust fumes from vehicles.
Malaysian tourist Huzni Muit said that over the years, the traffic had worsened, especially in Kuta.
Construction on a new underpass expected to help ease the congestion in Kuta will start at the end of the year, said Susalit Alius, head of the project committee for National Road VII. "While the roadwork is under way, road users will be inconvenient a little. We hope the public will understand the underpass is being built to improve their lives," he said.
Indonesia aims to attract 7.7 million foreign tourists coming into the country this year and 8 million next year, Minister for Tourism and Creative Economy Mari Elka Pangestu said in November. Over 7 million foreign tourists came into the country last year, according to the tourism ministry.
The government expects a 8.4-billion-U.S. dollar revenue from tourists' spending this year, up from 7.6 billion U.S. dollar last year.
Sri Lanka, Qatar to strengthen ties with agreements
Sri Lanka will sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on the establishment of a High Joint Committee with Qatar next week, an official said Friday.
The MoU is expected to strengthen the two countries' relations in the economic, commercial, cultural, scientific, technical, educational and information sectors, said Sarath Dissanayake, director general of public communications of the External Affairs Ministry.
The agreements will be signed on Dec. 12 during Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jabr Al-Thani's visit to Sri Lanka, said Dissanayake.
Sheikh Hamad will meet Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Economic Development Minister Basil Rajapaksa during his two- day visit.
The agreements on economic, commercial, technical and cultural cooperation are believed to promote and facilitate export and import of industrial and agricultural raw material and value added products.
On the sidelines of ongoing Bali Democracy Forum on Thursday, President Mahinda Rajapaksa met Sheikh Hamad and said his country welcomes Qatari investors who are interested in opening super luxury hotels in Colombo and other tourist hotspots outside the capital.
Sheikh Hamad said the investors are keen to participate in Sri Lanka's development activities and are willing to make massive investments in tourism-based industries in the country.
