Published on : Tuesday, June 11, 2019
Al Thani and his entourage arrived on two private jets in Maumere, the island’s largest city, on Friday. The visitors spent most of their time on a yacht, and explored the coral reefs of Maumere Bay amid tight security.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed us about the arrival of the group from Qatar. They requested that their visit not be covered by the media, nor they be hosted by the Sikka district government. The group arranged its own security,” said Event Edomeko, a spokesman for Sikka’s regional development agency.
Al-Thani became interested in Flores after coming to know about the natural beauty of the island from Qatari athletes who took part in the Tour de Flores, an international cycling race that the island hosted in 2016 and 2017.
The emir left Maumere on Saturday but the local government hopes that the impact of his trip will be long-lasting. The emir has promised to return to Maumere because the bay and the coral reefs are unique compared with other regions that he had visited.
In a meeting with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo during his first state visit to Indonesia in 2017, Al-Thani expressed his interest to invest in infrastructure and tourism in the archipelago.
Flores is known for several world-renowned attractions, including the three volcanic crater lakes of Mount Kelimutu, which each has a different color, and Liang Bua Cave, a prehistoric site of Homo floresiensis, an extinct species of tiny human.
Tags: Emir of Qatar visits