Government of Indonesia through the Ministry of Culture and Tourism withdrew the Komodo National Park in Indonesia as a finalist in the selection of the New Seven Wonders of Nature.
“This decision was taken because the organizer of the campaign of the New Seven Wonders of Nature Foundation has committed unprofessional, inconsistent, and not transparent, and do not have the credibility that can be held responsible,” said Indonesian Minister of Culture and Tourism, Jero Wacik.
The Indonesian Minister of Culture and Tourism (center) during the press conference regarding the Komodo National Park
According to the Minister, although he formally resigned Komodo National Park as finalist, it remains a UNESCO recognized World Heritage. In August 2008, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism was the supporting the Official Committee / Lead Agency to support the Komodo National Park as one of the New Seven Wonders of Nature in which the election is conducted through online voting.
The Ministry of Culture and Toursim has conducted a series of online and offline campaign activities both at home and abroad to promote and support the Komodo National Park. These efforts paid off on July 21, 2009 in which Komodo National Park was chosen as one of 28 finalists after setting aside 440 nominations from 220 countries.
The New Seven Wonders of Nature Foundation in early December 2010 had agreed that Indonesia as the official host of the declaration of the New Seven wonders of Nature. The committee then requires the Government of Indonesia to pay a license fee as the host of the declaration of 10 million US dollars and set up another 35 million US dollars as the cost of organizing the declaration event.
The request was later rejected by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism as it is judged unrealistic. But as the reaction of the rejection, in late December 2010 the New Seven Wonders of Nature Foundation threatened to eliminate the Komodo National Park in Komodo Island as a finalist. According to the Minister, those two things are really not related, because of the existence of the Komodo National Park as a finalist and the bidding of the New Seven Wonders of Nature Foundation to make Indonesia as the host, are two different things and should have no relation at all.
[...] INDONESIA WITHDRAWS KOMODO NATIONAL PARK NOMINATION [...]