Jakarta: What could possibly go wrong?
When the beaches of Kupang, in the Indonesian province of East Nusa Tenggara, became infested with crocodiles, the local tourism authority saw a way of turning a problem into an opportunity.
It's the sort of idea that would have editors at the croc-obsessed NT News salivating: a community competition to catch the giant reptiles.
The public would be invited to form teams to capture the crocs, with a five million rupiah ($500) cash prize for each one caught alive.
The only caveat is that at least one member of each team would be expected to have professional animal handling skills.
The head of the East Nusa Tenggara tourism department, Jelamu Ardu Marius, said the beaches of Kupang had become dangerous since 2011, when crocodiles suddenly started showing up in the water.
"Between 2011 and 2015, 19 people died from crocodile attacks, including local villagers and tourists," he said.
"The safety of visitors are endangered by the presence of these crocodiles, therefore I would like to mobilise the community to be involved with the security of beaches all over East Nusa Tenggara, starting with Kupang. That's why I plan the competition to catch the crocodiles. It might not be a popular plan, but as the person in charge of tourism I have to ensure the safety of our tourists at the beaches."
Mr Marius said the tourism department was still coordinating with the Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BBKSDA) and an insurance company.
It hoped to officially announce the competition after Independence Day on August 17, or by the end of the month at the latest.
But the BBKSDA was gobsmacked by the plan, which they first heard about in the media.
"Crocodiles are wild, vicious animals," said Maman Surahman, the head of the technical department at BBKSDA.
"How could you ensure the safety of the public participating (in the competition)? Have they thought about it? Injuries are one thing, but what if someone died? Have they anticipated that?"
Mr Maman said nine local villagers had died from crocodile attacks this year alone.
"Crocodiles, especially lately, are a subject that is haunting the community. But now the tourism department comes up with the capture crocodiles competition. We can't understand the intention behind it."
On July 27, a crocodile was spotted sunbathing in front of Teddy's Bar, a colourful tourist hangout right on the beach in Kupang.
The BBKSDA responded but the crocodile had disappeared back into the water.
Mr Maman said the agency's wildlife rescue team had been trained by Australian experts and had the ability to handle the crocodiles, which are protected under Indonesian law.
But he conceded they had limited resources to patrol the water and had only arrived after the last nine "conflicts" with humans.
The agency had recently captured nine crocodiles, including on tourist beaches Manikin and Lasiana, and was researching why there had been an increased number of attacks.
NT News take note: there could be a local angle.
"Darwin and Kupang are very close, is it possible that these crocodiles come from Darwin?" says Mr Marius, the head of the tourism department. "This is my own hypothesis."
(For the record, the BBKSDA thought the crocs were more likely to be local.)
