T

he Jakarta hotel bombings will not cripple Bali's all-important tourism industry, say event organizers on the resort island.

Society of Indonesia Professional Convention Organizers chairman Putu Juarez R. Putra said Tuesday the industry's optimism was based on the fact the island will still host several major international events this year.

"Organizers of international conferences that will be attended by large numbers of delegates are still looking at Bali as the host venue," he said.

"We haven't had any cancellations of major gatherings."

One of the meetings will be the 9th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific (ICAAP), which will run from Aug. 9 to 13. The conference will be held in the island's upscale tourist enclave of Nusa Dua.

"In November, we'll host a meeting of Asian telecommunications ministers, and in 2010 the island will witness the gathering of ministers of justice from across Southeast Asia," Juarez said.

The busy periods will be particularly felt in 2011 and 2013.

"Many international events will be held in Bali in those years," Juarez said.

The island's world-famous tourism attractions and the high level of quality offered by the island's meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions (MICE) operators, he went on, had highlighted Bali as one of the world's favorite MICE destinations.

"Bali hasn't only attracted major conferences, but also small and medium gatherings of domestic and international companies," he said.

The island currently has more than 120 MICE operators.

Juarez admitted the bombings of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta had triggered a series of cancellations.

But he pointed out disclosed the cancellations were mostly of small MICE events.

"The number of cancellations is also quite small, so the impact of the bombings is far from significant," he said.

He urged the government to improve security measures to prevent similar attacks in future.

"We need a security guarantee from the government," Juarez said.

"Such a guarantee will enable us to drive the MICE sector forward and draw more visitors to the island."

Similar optimism was earlier voiced by Bali Tourism Agency head Ida Bagus Ngurah Wijaya.

He said tourism on the island had not been affected.

"Hotel occupancy rates are still between 70 and 80 percent," he told The Jakarta Post.

"There's been no negative reaction yet."