Business as usual at 'bomb target' cafe

Syofiardi Bachyul Jb ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Bukittinggi, West Sumatra   |  Thu, 07/10/2008 10:14 AM  |  The Archipelago

Four foreign tourists were occupied eating and drinking at Bedudal Cafe on Wednesday afternoon.

HOT SPOT: Two tourists walk in front of Bedudal Cafe in Bukittinggi, West Sumatra, on Wednesday. The cafe was an alleged bomb target of a group of terror suspects captured by the police’s anti-terrorism squad in Palembang last week. (JP/Syofiardi Bachyul Jb)

They seemed unbothered by the news that the cafe was an alleged bomb target of a group of terror suspects. The suspects were captured by the police's anti-terror squad last week.

"I don't think they know about the information. We also pretend not to acknowledge it either," the cafe's manager Denny Nofrianto told The Jakarta Post.

Bedudal has come into the spotlight following a statement from the police saying that the detained suspects had planned to bomb the cafe in 2007, but that they changed their mind after learning that it had more local patrons than foreigners.

Opened in December 1997 by an Indonesian-Scottish couple, according to Denny, the cafe was popular among European, Australian and American tourists visiting Bukittinggi.

But, Denny said, the condition completely changed in 1999 when only some 20 foreign tourists would visit the cafe every night.

The remainder were visitors from Padang, Pekanbaru, Medan and Bukittinggi itself, all in Sumatra.

"It doesn't make sense to make the cafe a bomb target. We only sell food and drinks here. This is not a place for immoral acts," Denny said.

Convicted terrorists have said they targeted venues in Bali because they were considered to be centers of decadent behavior.

Denny said the cafe is managed by five employees. All are male and none stay after the cafe is closed at 1 a.m. The owners currently live in Scotland, he said.

"The terrorists probably want to make Bukittinggi a target to paralyze tourism in the country, especially because West Sumatra has been known as the safest place in Indonesia outside Bali," Denny added.

He expressed hopes that the bomb news would not affect his business as it was the only place where the five employees and two other tour guides made a living.

He has been cooperating with police to step up surveillance in the area, and has cut all large trees in front of the cafe.

Association of Indonesian Hotels and Restaurants (PHRI) chairman Syafroni Falian said security measures had been tightened in several tourist spots in the region following the news.

A number of star-rated hotels have reactivated their CCTV devices. Guest checks have also been tightened, he said.

"We call on the government down to the lowest level to be extremely cautious of any suspicious newcomers in their jurisdiction as a precaution," Syafroni said.

So far, he said, no cancellation of visits had been made by foreign tourists because of the news.

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