The provincial administration says it sent letters to four ministers regarding plans to close Ngurah Rai International Airport and all seaports on the island during the celebration of Nyepi (the Hindu Day of Silence). “[Bali] Governor [Made Mangku] Pastika sent the letter in advance so that related parties, both in the country and overseas, can be well informed,” Bali administration spokesman I Ketut Teneng told a press conference in Denpasar on Tuesday.
Teneng was accompanied by Bali Transportation Agency air transportation division head Ida Bagus Puja Astawa. Teneng said the letter was backed by the Transportation Ministry’s director general for air transportation on Sept. 1, 1999 regarding the terms of operations of Ngurah Rai. According to Teneng, Pastika’s letter, dated Dec. 30, had been sent to Transportation Minister EE Mangindaan, Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi and Communications and Information Minister Tifatul Sembiring.
The Transportation Ministry’s director generals for land, water and air transportation; the Bali Legislative Council speaker; all mayors and regents in the province; and the airport authority have also received knowledge of the plan, he said. Teneng hoped the ministries could help disseminate the information to all airlines, both domestic and international, so they would not schedule any flights to Ngurah Rai on that day. He said the airport management has also informed partner airlines of the plan.
Teneng explained that all administration officials were obliged to follow the order, as well as private companies, NGOs, cultural organizations and all citizens. Nyepi, which marks the arrival of a new lunar year in the Saka calendar, will fall on March 31 this year. On the day, Balinese Hindus will observe the four abstinences known as catur brata penyepian, which comprise amati geni (abstaining from lighting any fire or light), amati karya (abstaining from work), amati lelungan (abstaining from traveling outside of one’s family compound) and amati lelanguan (abstaining from enjoying any entertainment and pleasurable activity).
The four abstinences are designed to help Balinese Hindus enter a state of meditation, through which they can reflect upon their deeds throughout the previous year and cleanse their minds to face the challenges brought by the new year. During Nyepi, which will run from 6 a.m. on March 31 until 6 a.m. on April 1, power companies will turn off all street lights while television and radio stations will cease to broadcast. Only pecalang (traditional guardsmen) are allowed to patrol the streets.
Emergency services will run as usual and hospitals, households with infants and the sick are exempted from having to turn off lights. Ferry ports will be closed and only transit flights are allowed to land at Ngurah Rai. The planned airport closure will be for the 16th time since it was first regulated in 1999.
source : bali daily
source : bali daily
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