0 Sukawati traditional art market needs revitalization

Traders at Sukawati Market in Gianyar are worried about the future of this iconic traditional art market, since they have been experiencing decreasing profits. “Slowly but surely, this market will go bankrupt if there is no effort to revitalize it,” said I Nyoman Sukrawan, one of the traders, when Bali Daily talked to him at his kiosk on Wednesday. Since he opened that morning, he had yet to earn any money. Some buyers preferred to shop at kiosks located on the outer parts of the market, since they were more accessible. 

Meanwhile, Sukrawan and the other traders located inside have to struggle to attract the market visitors to have a look at the items they sell in their narrow kiosks located along the dim alleyways inside the market. Piles of cloth and souvenirs stacked inside the 4-square-meter kiosks make the place seem even narrower. “This situation is worse than the impact of the Bali bombing. The condition has been getting worse over the last five years. I have not even been able to pay the fees since 2009,” Sukrawan said. 

According to Sukrawan, the reason for this worsening situation was the establishment of souvenir shops in Denpasar, Badung and Gianyar, that diverted tourists from coming to Sukawati. He also blamed the market management for not improving facilities in the market. Last week, more than 100 vendors staged a protest at the Gianyar regent’s office over the local police’s ban on parking vehicles on the side of the street. They said people had no other choice than to park there due to the limited number of parking spaces provided by the market management. 

On Wednesday, no big tourist buses were seen at the market. A large group of domestic tourists preferred instead to go to the Guwang art market, which has a larger parking lot. The head of Sukawati Market management, I Nengah Nama Arthawa, said the management had proposed renovation of the market to the regency administration, but the plan was still being discussed. “This market has never been renovated. The administration is still discussing the plan,” Arthawa said. 

He said the traders’ decreasing revenue had been occurring since 2007, when the administration started to issue permits to establish large-scale souvenir shops. “The administration should stop issuing these licenses because it disadvantages traditional traders,” he said. Some souvenir supermarkets have been established along the road to Sukawati, including on Jl. Bypass Ngurah Rai in Sanur, in Batubulan and Mas village. “It is urgent for the market to be revitalized to make it more convenient,” he said, responding to the traders’ demands. There are 1,074 traders at the market.

source : bali daily