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115343
Tue, 04/06/2010 - 15:44
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https://oananews.org//node/115343
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Feature : INDONESIA'S STRUGGLE FOR SEVEN WONDER OF THE WORLD GAINS MOMENTUM
By Eliswan Azly
Jakarta, Apr 6 (ANTARA) - There is high hope in Indonesia that Komodo island, the habitat of the largest existing prehistoric giant lizard , will eventually win global recognition as one of the seven new wonders of the world.
Indonesia's efforts to promote the uniqueness of the ancient creature (also called Komodo) along with its habitat are now gaining momentum, Sapta Nirwanda, marketing director general of the Culture and Tourism Ministry said here on Monday.
The Komodo is the only ancient reptile alive in the world at present and its habitat consists only of Komodo island and a few smaller islands known as Rinca Island, Padar Island and a few others in Western Florest.
Now, Indonesia's bid to get Komodo Island as the habitat of the giant reptile listed as one of the world's seven wonders was gaining momentum, he said.
One year after the short messaging service (SMS) and telephone voting was opened, the island moved up the ladder to the 14th position out of 28 finalists. Voting is open until next year.
Komodo island is a sanctuary to about 2,500 Komodo dragons (Varanus Komodoensis) which are believed to be the last primeval animal on earth. The animal's life span is about 50 years.
Komodo is the name not only of the carnivorous reptile but also of the island where most of the dragons live and breed.
Komodo is also the name of a hamlet on Komodo Island whose residents believe that the giant carnivore is their `sister' and therefore they must live side by side with the animal without harming it.
"During my service years, I knew of four or five cases in which a komodo had killed a human but the locals never hunted or killed the dragons because they believed the animals were their 'sister'", Wawan Ridwan, a former chief of the Komodo Island National Park
People at Komodo hamlet also speak the Komodo language which is different from the tongues used by people on the neighboring islands of Rinca or Labuhan Bajo.
"So, the word Komodo not only refers to the carnivorous giant reptile but also to the island, the hamlet residents and the local language," he said.
Wawan further said, in his opinion, Komodo Island with its komodo dragon, the unique characteristics of its people, its scenic beauty and other things really deserved to be recognized as one of the new seven wonders of the earth.
In the meantime, Komodo National Park chief Tamen Sitorus said that his side was bidding only on Komodo but also the entire biodiversity of the island, both terrestrial and marine life.
The Park has one of the richest Indo-Australia flora and fauna, a Savannah jungle and a topography dominated by a range of volcanic hills. The temperature can rise up to 46 degrees Celcius.
The water around Komodo Island is ringed with about 450 types of beautiful coral reefs, about 1,000 species of fish and 53 diving locations.
After the Borobudur temple failed to retain its position as one of the seven man-made wonders of the world, Indonesia is moving to Komodo Island to be one of the seven wonders of the natural world.
To back its bid, Indonesia launched a promotional drive through the media, visits to schools and universities and wooing bloggers.
Situated in East Nusa Tenggara, the island received 36,534 tourists last year, an increased of 40 per cent from the previous year.
Although the giant reptile and the island had been existence for ages, they were discovered for the world by a Dutch Army officer, Lieutenant Steyn van Hensbroek, who was stationed on the neighboring island of Flores while serving in the colonial administration of the Dutch East Indies (the former name of Indonesia when it was a Dutch colonial possession).
He also was the first westerner to see and kill a Komodo dragon in 1910.
According to Wawan, the Dutchman actually landed on the island accidentally. In interaction with the natives, he heard tales about giant land 'crocodiles' in remote areas of Flores and the much smaller and more remote island of Komodo. He eventually decided to set out on a search for the creature.
He was successful in finding and killing a seven-and-a-half- foot Komodo dragon. Upon his return to his post in Flores, he sent the skin from the slain Komodo, along with a photograph of the creature, to Peter A. Ouwens, director of the Zoological Museum in Buitenzorg (now Bogor) in West Java.
According to Sapta Nirwanda, some investors had expressed interest in building international standard or star-rated hotels like the Sheraton and Mercure in the Komodo Island region.
If elected as one of the seven new world wonders, the Komodo National Park would no doubt be visited by many more tourists than now, he said.
Nationally, Komodo National Park would then also be a source of national pride and eventually help to improve the local people's welfare through tourism.
Niwanda also asked the Indonesian people to give maximum support to the "vote for Komodo Island" promotion campaign ahead of the prestigious international vote that will end on November 11, 2011.
Komodo Island is now ranked in the 17th position in the vote after the committee had shortlisted 28 sites in the world from a field of 77 contestants.
To support Komodo Island as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, people can directly vote online at www.new7wonders.com and follow the simple instruction, voters are also allowed to give multiple votes.
Jakarta, Apr 6 (ANTARA) - There is high hope in Indonesia that Komodo island, the habitat of the largest existing prehistoric giant lizard , will eventually win global recognition as one of the seven new wonders of the world.
Indonesia's efforts to promote the uniqueness of the ancient creature (also called Komodo) along with its habitat are now gaining momentum, Sapta Nirwanda, marketing director general of the Culture and Tourism Ministry said here on Monday.
The Komodo is the only ancient reptile alive in the world at present and its habitat consists only of Komodo island and a few smaller islands known as Rinca Island, Padar Island and a few others in Western Florest.
Now, Indonesia's bid to get Komodo Island as the habitat of the giant reptile listed as one of the world's seven wonders was gaining momentum, he said.
One year after the short messaging service (SMS) and telephone voting was opened, the island moved up the ladder to the 14th position out of 28 finalists. Voting is open until next year.
Komodo island is a sanctuary to about 2,500 Komodo dragons (Varanus Komodoensis) which are believed to be the last primeval animal on earth. The animal's life span is about 50 years.
Komodo is the name not only of the carnivorous reptile but also of the island where most of the dragons live and breed.
Komodo is also the name of a hamlet on Komodo Island whose residents believe that the giant carnivore is their `sister' and therefore they must live side by side with the animal without harming it.
"During my service years, I knew of four or five cases in which a komodo had killed a human but the locals never hunted or killed the dragons because they believed the animals were their 'sister'", Wawan Ridwan, a former chief of the Komodo Island National Park
People at Komodo hamlet also speak the Komodo language which is different from the tongues used by people on the neighboring islands of Rinca or Labuhan Bajo.
"So, the word Komodo not only refers to the carnivorous giant reptile but also to the island, the hamlet residents and the local language," he said.
Wawan further said, in his opinion, Komodo Island with its komodo dragon, the unique characteristics of its people, its scenic beauty and other things really deserved to be recognized as one of the new seven wonders of the earth.
In the meantime, Komodo National Park chief Tamen Sitorus said that his side was bidding only on Komodo but also the entire biodiversity of the island, both terrestrial and marine life.
The Park has one of the richest Indo-Australia flora and fauna, a Savannah jungle and a topography dominated by a range of volcanic hills. The temperature can rise up to 46 degrees Celcius.
The water around Komodo Island is ringed with about 450 types of beautiful coral reefs, about 1,000 species of fish and 53 diving locations.
After the Borobudur temple failed to retain its position as one of the seven man-made wonders of the world, Indonesia is moving to Komodo Island to be one of the seven wonders of the natural world.
To back its bid, Indonesia launched a promotional drive through the media, visits to schools and universities and wooing bloggers.
Situated in East Nusa Tenggara, the island received 36,534 tourists last year, an increased of 40 per cent from the previous year.
Although the giant reptile and the island had been existence for ages, they were discovered for the world by a Dutch Army officer, Lieutenant Steyn van Hensbroek, who was stationed on the neighboring island of Flores while serving in the colonial administration of the Dutch East Indies (the former name of Indonesia when it was a Dutch colonial possession).
He also was the first westerner to see and kill a Komodo dragon in 1910.
According to Wawan, the Dutchman actually landed on the island accidentally. In interaction with the natives, he heard tales about giant land 'crocodiles' in remote areas of Flores and the much smaller and more remote island of Komodo. He eventually decided to set out on a search for the creature.
He was successful in finding and killing a seven-and-a-half- foot Komodo dragon. Upon his return to his post in Flores, he sent the skin from the slain Komodo, along with a photograph of the creature, to Peter A. Ouwens, director of the Zoological Museum in Buitenzorg (now Bogor) in West Java.
According to Sapta Nirwanda, some investors had expressed interest in building international standard or star-rated hotels like the Sheraton and Mercure in the Komodo Island region.
If elected as one of the seven new world wonders, the Komodo National Park would no doubt be visited by many more tourists than now, he said.
Nationally, Komodo National Park would then also be a source of national pride and eventually help to improve the local people's welfare through tourism.
Niwanda also asked the Indonesian people to give maximum support to the "vote for Komodo Island" promotion campaign ahead of the prestigious international vote that will end on November 11, 2011.
Komodo Island is now ranked in the 17th position in the vote after the committee had shortlisted 28 sites in the world from a field of 77 contestants.
To support Komodo Island as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, people can directly vote online at www.new7wonders.com and follow the simple instruction, voters are also allowed to give multiple votes.
