Deputy Mayor of Denpasar, Kadek Agus Arya Wibawa, suggested that locals pay attention not only to the unruly tourists but also to those who show respect towards the island, its nature, and its people.
This appeal comes in response to the large number of viral videos depicting inappropriate or offensive behavior by foreigners. These are the very videos that prompted the Bali Regional Legislative Council to raise the issue of increasing the tourist tax.
Deputy Mayor Kadek Agus Arya Wibawa decided to focus less on those who break the rules and more on those who spread and create viral content about such incidents. He believes that one bad deed does not affect the island's image as much as numerous mentions of it. Kadek Agus Arya Wibawa is concerned that among the millions of users who come across this content, there might be potential visitors to the island who will change their minds about coming to Bali and choose alternative destinations like Thailand or Vietnam.
"If you see such behavior by tourists in Bali (many foreigners act inappropriately), wouldn't you switch to other tourist areas like Thailand or Vietnam? That's quite likely to happen. Therefore, the news should be balanced. Positive reviews about foreign tourists should also be considered," he said.
Kadek Agus Arya Wibawa urges locals to share photos and videos that highlight the good deeds of foreigners. He believes there are actually more positive actions than negative ones. "Foreign tourists who visit Bali not only have a negative impact but many of them also create a positive aura when visiting the island," Arya Wibawa said.
He also reminded that many travelers are concerned about waste management in Bali. Some tourists engage in recycling waste, creating furniture and other useful items from it: "Why don't we talk about this? Why do we promote the negative aspects of tourists? For example, there's a community from Russia that often helps us clean Sanur beach," he said.
The official explained that spreading such stories about tourists in Bali could draw broader public attention to environmental issues. Whether the local population will heed this advice remains a big question. In Indonesia, and Bali in particular, citizen journalism is very prevalent. When someone breaks the rules, a video of the incident quickly spreads across social media, going viral on Instagram and TikTok. Of course, the footage captures bad behavior from both locals and foreigners. However, clips featuring tourists gain the most popularity. Users believe this is the only way to draw the authorities' attention to such issues.
You can add one right now!