0 Hotels, Bali Police agree to revise security management

The Bali chapter of the Indonesian Hotels and Restaurant Association (PHRI Bali), the Bali Police and certification company PT Sucofindo, signed on Tuesday an agreement to improve the standard and quality of security management for hotels and restaurants in Bali. PHRI Bali chairman Tjokorda Oka Artha Ardana Sukawati said that the agreement was part of the association’s commitment to provide a secure environment for tourists, and to improve the tourist industry in general. Tjokorda said that the currently applied security standard was based on a 2004 standard operating procedure (SOP), thus needed to be revised to anticipate any disturbances and crimes.

“The security system is also to be expanded by improving the administration and serving of food to anticipate contamination and diseases,” Tjokorda said. Bali Police deputy chief Brig. Gen. Ketut Untung Yoga shared similar comments, stating that the 2004 procedure needed revision. In cooperation with Sucofindo, the police will provide assistance to improve competence and conduct audits to ensure that the new system is less intrusive for tourists. “We also need to improve security management because Bali will host the APEC conference next year. It’s not only for the APEC conference, but also for the longer term and after APEC.

We will continue to evaluate the system,” he said. Tjokorda said that hotels and restaurants in Bali would have to invest in security systems, although it would cost them a lot. “It will definitely cost a lot, but security is an important thing in tourism. It will have a significant impact on hotels and restaurants.” He said that in the initial phase, the new system would target star-rated hotels that had been certified for their improved security standards. Out of 158 star-rated hotels in Bali, 115 have participated in the security certification. “We will upgrade the 115 hotels, and will then continue with other accommodation, like budget hotels and villas.” Ganis Ramadhani, operational director at PT Sucofindo, said that since 2007 the company had been in partnership with the police to certify security standards for vital business entities. International security standards needed to be applied for accommodation facilities, he said.

source : bali daily