Has Trump been dumped from Indonesia ‘dream projects’ as the brand trends down?
- The Trump Organisation inked a deal in 2015 with Indonesian conglomerate MNC Group to build “the first integrated Trump Resort and Residences in Asia”
- At a recent event, any mention of the Trump name was “scrubbed” from promotional materials for one of the projects
Donald Trump – the brand, the man, the myth – has been trending down recently. First, the then United States president lost his bid for re-election, next his Twitter account was permanently suspended to prevent “the risk of further incitement of violence” after his supporters stormed the US Capitol, and now the man’s name “has been scrubbed” from promotional materials for what was to become his organisation’s first Asian resort project, according to financial newspaper Nikkei Asia. Sad.
“Plans to build Trump-branded country clubs, luxury resorts and residences as part of a 35 trillion rupiah [HK$18.84 billion] entertainment complex in Indonesia appear to have stalled,” reports the Nikkei. The complex in question, Lido City, is being developed by Indonesian conglomerate MNC Group and is under construction about 60km south of Jakarta.
In 2015, MNC and the Trump Organization inked a deal to build “the first integrated Trump Resort and Residences in Asia”, which were to include a “six-star” resort, country clubs and golf courses bearing the Trump name in Lido and on the island of Bali. However, “at a presentation by MNC Land on [March 10] there was no mention of the Trump Organization’s involvement”, reports the Nikkei.
When MNC’s executive chairman, Hary Tanoesoedibjo – who, like Trump, built his fortune “in real estate and media and on a mountain of debt”, according to Forbes – was asked about the progress of the Trump-branded parts of the project, he said they “won’t likely pick up yet for the time being”.
“He did not elaborate,” adds the Nikkei.
When executive vice-president of the Trump Organization Donald Trump Jnr visited Indonesia in August 2019, he described the planned resorts as “dream projects”, according to Reuters. But dreams don’t always come true, and if MNC promotional materials for Lido City dated February 11 are a sign of things to come, those fantasies could be slipping away – the five-page, bilingual press release is a decidedly Trump-free document.
The Bali project is also “facing a new reality”, according to a Bloomberg article from June 2020, which reported that MNC “is now considering remodelling the design of the Trump-branded six-star hotel and residential venture in a bid to make the property more affordable”. Speaking to Bloomberg, Tanoesoedibjo said: “I see people have become more modest. It shouldn’t be too lavish.” We don’t imagine that “modest” aligns well with the Trump Organization’s brand identity given the infamous golden escalator at Trump Tower that was integral to the launch of Trump’s candidacy for president.
Why Trump hotel could be just what Bali’s impending water crisis needs
Not unlike that event, at which the world was introduced to Trump as villainous viral sensation, the Indonesia developments have not been without controversy. “The Bali site is overgrown and traversed by wild dogs,” reported The Washington Post in May 2020. “Construction on the resort in West Java remains in early stages, a year after company officials had projected it would be operating.”
Almost a year later, neither project is close to completion. The MNC Group and the Trump Organization continue to push the planned resorts on their respective websites, but the absence of any mention of Trump in the recent MNC press release might indeed speak volumes, particularly considering, as The Washington Post made a point of mentioning, the marketing materials MNC had produced for years had touted the Trump connection.
When Tanoesoedibjo said the Trump-branded parts of the Lido City project “won’t likely pick up yet for the time being”, he could just as easily have been talking about the Trump brand itself. On March 14, The Guardian reported that the Trump International Hotel in Washington had been reeling “from a huge loss of income and prestige” since the 45th US president departed the White House for Florida. Perhaps the Trump name just doesn’t carry the same cachet, at home or in Indonesia, as it once did.
Thailand tentatively eases entry restrictions for vaccinated travellers
On March 8, Thai Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul announced that international travellers who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus will have to quarantine for only seven days upon arrival, rather than 14.
“Vaccinations must be administered within three months of the travel period and visitors will still be required to show negative Covid-19 test results within three days of their departure,” reports Reuters. “Those not yet inoculated but with coronavirus-free certificates would be quarantined for 10 days.”
These measures mark a very tentative easing of entry restrictions for a country that has done a good job of slowing the spread of Covid-19 but at the expense of its tourism industry, on which the economy is heavily dependent.
If Thailand can vaccinate 70 per cent of its medical personnel and at-risk groups by October, it will consider scrapping the quarantine requirements completely.
Instagram-friendly South Korean destination sees uptick in domestic visitors
Somewhere that is doing just fine without visitors from overseas is Banwol Island, in South Korea, which painted its town purple to match local blooms of campanula and subsequently saw the sightseers stream in.
“Inspired by their native balloon flower, residents [•…•] have painted their houses, roads and bridges in shades of [purple], and planted purple flowers such as lavender and asters to transform their town into a tourist attraction,” reports Reuters.
According to CNN Travel, the strategy has been successful. “Since South Koreans need to go through a 14-day quarantine if they leave the country, the purple island, which is about six hours by bus or car from Seoul, has provided a relatively new destination to visit within its borders. From June to August of last year, more than 100,000 visited, which was 20 per cent more than the previous year.”
