Saturday, April 19, 2008
Multa Fidrus, The Jakarta Post, Tangerang
The Banten provincial administration is putting together a proposal to host the fourth Islamic Solidarity Games (ISG), a multi-sport event that will be held in Indonesia in 2013.
"I sent a letter to State Minister for Youth and Sports Adhyaksa Dault on Wednesday, asking what we could do to prepare for the event," Governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah said during a visit to Tangerang on Friday.
She said the letter was sent in response to an offer delivered by one of the state ministry's expert staff members, Johan Arifin Husein, during a meeting at a hotel in Merak last week.
She said Banten wanted to host the international event because the central government appointed Tangerang regency to host a national sports center.
"The Olympics for Islamic countries is a good opportunity for Banten to promote its religious culture and traditions, as well as its tourism sites, and this will certainly accelerate development in the province," the governor said.
The Islamic Solidarity Games were established by 54 Islamic countries in 2005. The event is to be held every four years.
The first event took place from April 8 to 20, 2005, in Saudi Arabia in 2005, and the second event is scheduled for Iran in 2009. Indonesia has been named to host the third event in 2013.
"The event only features 14 sports, therefore, we can manage all the preparations for the 2013 event," Atut said.
She said her administration was ready to allocate money for any land acquisition required to build sports centers if Banten was named by the central government to host the event.
She said the province also had the advantage of being close to Soekarno-Hatta airport, giving it a strategic advantage in holding an international event.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Put You Comments Here