REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, MAGELANG -- The visa-free policy implemented by the Indonesian government is in accordance with the efforts to attract more foreign tourists to visit Borobudur temple, President Director of the Borobudur, Prambanan, and Ratu Boko Temple National Park Lailly Prihatiningtyas said.
Most of foreign tourists visiting the ancient Buddhist temple are from Japan, Malaysia and Western European countries, she added.
The tourism industry has hailed the visa-free policy, she noted.
"The industry of course hails the economic improvement policy. To give optimal impacts, infrastructure and regulations must also be improved," she remarked.
The management has targeted to attract 250 thousand foreign visitors to Borobudur in 2015. Some 240 thousand foreign tourists visited Borobudur last year.
The temple was built during the reign of a king belonging to the Saliendra dynasty between AD 750 and 842 and is located about 42 kilometers from the city of Yogyakarta, at the center of the Java Island.
UNESCO and the Indonesian government had undertaken a complete renovation of the monument as part of a massive project from 1975 to 1983.
Borobudur is surrounded by beautiful rice fields, and four active volcanoes: Merapi, Sindoro, Merbabu and Sumbing, from which the building stones of the temple were produced.
Tourism Minister Arief Yahya had proposed a visa-free policy for four tourism markets: China, Japan, South Korea, and Russia.
Later, the number was increased to 30 countries, so that the total number reached 45 as previously, there were 15 old recipients.
He remarked that almost all American and European countries are included in the list of 30 countries to be granted visa-free facility.
Indonesia has previously provided free visa for Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines, Hong Kong Special Administration Region (Hong Kong SAR), Macau Special Administration Region (Macau SAR), Chile, Morocco, Peru, Vietnam, Ecuador, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar.
The minister stated that the visa-free policy will be applicable to 45 countries, of which 15 are old visa-free recipients, and 30 others are being proposed to get the facility.
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