Hot-under-the collar editor of the Bali Update newsletter, Jack Daniels, has launched a scathing attack on Western Australia’s Margaret River Tourism Bureau for branding Bali "dirty, overpriced and a terrorist threat”.
In a media release from Margaret River Tourism Bureau, chief executive, Simon Ambrose claimed Bali is disease-ridden and generally unsafe.
A clearly enraged Bali Update (www.balidiscovery.com) said Ambrose “broke the cardinal rule of tourism marketing: promote your own destination but never at the expense of a competing destination”.
Ambrose’s comments came after an outbreak of Legionnaires disease in Bali alerted West Australian health authorities to issue a travel warning.
“Major issues such as terrorism and health are not as relevant, if at all, when holidaying at home,” Ambrose told Perth Now.
Snapped back a clearly enraged Daniels, “Simon Ambrose’s comments show him to be a largely witless individual, an abysmally poor choice as a tourism ambassador for any destination and arguably the strongest reason not to visit Western Australia if he is in any way representative of folks from that corner of the world.
“There’s plenty of negative facts to go round that can easily be dug up and launched to make another destination look bad in some sort of desperate and misguided attempt to make your own destination look better.”
Daniels then digs up some negativity of his own.
“Searches will uncover specific health threats, past and present, for travellers to Australia such as Ross River virus, Murray River encephalitis and Japanese encephalitis.”
No mention, though, of deadly funnel web spiders, sharks, poisonous tiger snakes and man-eating crocodiles.
Daniels called for Ambrose to be sacked.
“If Ambrose’s comments reflect the quality of the man chosen to promote Margaret River, we anticipate his absence won’t be felt.”
