Bali is now considering changing their rules regarding tourists visiting its sacred Hindu sites after a foreigner's disrespectful photo went viral. The government will be taking the proper action to address the growing concern over the rise of the travelers' impolite behavior.
Bali deputy governor Tjokorda Oka Artha Sukawati, or also known as Cok Ace, said the government is starting to get worried about the tourists' behavior toward the island's sacred Hindu sites. A Danish traveler caused the alarm by taking a picture while sitting on the Linggih Padmasana shrine at the Puhur Lutur Batukaru temple, per the South China Morning Post.
Linggih Padmasana shrine is solely for the supreme god, the most important deity in Balinese Hinduism, so sitting on it is a big disrespect to the faith of the Bali people. Indonesian Hindu Religious Council revealed it told the police to investigate the case and find the tourist in the picture.
Cok Ace said the government is going to reevaluate Bali's system that lets tourists visit the island's temples without supervision. "This is the government's attempt to maintain the Pura [temples]," he said. He also added there is a dire need to preserve their country's temples as it holds the spirits of "Bali's cultures and customs."
Cok Ace continued to say the recent influx of tourists in Bali has a negative impact on the island. He admitted they have been too warm and welcoming to the travelers that it takes its toll on the country. As different nationalities come to visit, he noticed the quality of visitors is quite different than before.
It is not the first time a tourist disrespects Bali's sacred temples by taking pictures. HuffPost reported a Spanish vlogger got criticized after he filmed himself while climbing a temple structure earlier this year. He later issued a public apology after a bunch of Balinese netizens managed to find him.
Another tourist's photo got condemned after a young woman, wearing a pair of bikini, posed across a temple's door while doing a "downward facing dog" yoga position in 2016. Balinese Hindus felt so upset by this incident.
There were also some tourists who took advantage of the volcano eruption in northeast Bali in 2017. In spite of the fears and worries this event caused to the Balinese, the travelers found it as a chance to take dramatic snaps of the explosion. The public also widely criticized these pictures on Instagram.
Bali has been a popular tourist spot because of its dazzling "black sand beaches, diverse marine life, and hundreds of prehistoric temples." It received around five million visitors in 2017, and some of them were drawn to visit the island because of its centuries-old shrines.
