New7Wonders

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Komodo Park May Be Suspended From New7Wonders Competition


The New7Wonders Foundation has begun the process of suspending the Indonesian candidate Komodo as one of the 28 Finalists in the Official New7Wonders of Nature campaign, according to a press release issued by the foundation late on Monday.

“We have been forced to take this action after weeks of unproductive private and official discussions aiming to resolve an important legal matter positively,” Bernard Weber, President of the New7Wonders Foundation, said in the statement.

The principal reasons Weber cited for this dramatic move were a legally binding contract for Jakarta to host the New7Wonders official announcement on Nov. 11, 2011, that is not being honored, and the slow response by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to back up its many public and documented statements of support for the campaign.

The foundation said Weber wrote a personal letter to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono appealing for a speedy resolution of the issue.

“I believe you have the vision, courage and capacity to resolve an issue that is close to the heart of many Indonesians,” he said.

“I can pledge to you now that as soon as things are brought back on track we will immediately halt the suspension process and re-instate Komodo as an authorised Finalist in the Official New7Wonders of Nature campaign,” the letter continued.

But Weber left no doubt about the outcome if an agreement is not reached: “However, should a solution not be forthcoming then we will have to proceed with the complete withdrawal of Komodo and its replacement by another nominee from the official Reserve List. We are seeking all avenues in respect of our contractual rights to avoid this ultimate and final step.”

To emphasize the impact of a possible suspension, Weber pointed to the benefits that the first campaign to elect the man-made Official New 7 Wonders of the World delivered. That campaign climaxed in a spectacular event in Lisbon, Portugal, on 7 July 2007, and a study concluded that more than US$5 billion in terms of economic, tourism and national brand value were generated as a result. He noted that the selection of the Official New7Wonders of Nature by an expected 1 billion votes is as significant an event as the football World Cup final, and comparable to the Olympic opening ceremony and the Academy Awards.

The Komodo National Park includes the three larger islands Komodo, Rinca and Padar, as well as numerous smaller ones, for a total area of 1,817 square kilometers (603 square kilometers of it land). The national park was founded in 1980 to protect the Komodo dragon. Later, it was also dedicated to protecting other species, including marine animals.

The park has been slipping in rankings, and last week sat at 26th place on the list of 28 finalists in the New7Wonders competition.

In response, Yudhoyono had said he would personally take part in promoting Komodo and that he would call for more votes during National Press Day celebrations in Kupang on Feb. 9.

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/komodo-park-may-be-suspended-from-new7wonders-competition/420199

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Komodo Candidacy Not Worth $45m: Minister

The row threatening to remove Komodo National Park from the running to be named one of the New Wonders of Nature has devolved into a spat over money and the government’s commitment to the cause.

Home to the rare komodo dragon, the park was named one of 28 finalists in the New7Wonders of Nature competition.

Culture and Tourism Minister Jero Wacik claimed on Wednesday that the New7Wonders Foundation had essentially told the government to pay $45 million to keep the park in the competition and to host the awards ceremony in November.

He said Indonesia was supposed to pay a $10 million commitment fee and $35 million for the announcement ceremony.

“I calculated whether it was worth it to spend roughly Rp 350 billion to host the announcement,” the minister told reporters at the State Palace.

“Hosting the event wouldn’t necessarily mean that [Komodo] would automatically win as there would be 28 finalists.”

The government decided to reject to offer because “it was too expensive,” he added.

Jero also claimed that after learning of Indonesia’s refusal to host the event, N7W had threatened to drop Komodo from the competition.

“They threatened Indonesia, saying they would get rid of Komodo [from the list],” he said.

However, Eamonn Fitzgerald, the N7W head of communications, denied asking the government to pay anything, saying it had offered it a chance to invest in becoming the N7W host.

He pointed out the foundation had contracted a private consortium from Indonesia, and if the government wanted to support the opportunity, its commitment would only amount to around $10 million in exchange for hundreds of millions of dollars in promotional value for the country.

The foundation estimates the benefit to Indonesia of hosting the announcement ceremony, in terms of promotional, image, marketing and brand value, at between $200 million and $1 billion, depending on calculation criteria.

It has also been suggested that the value for the winning entries is in excess of $5 billion in terms of economic and tourism benefits.

“We completely understand that certain government departments can decide to pull back from their previous pledges and not do their part to support this,” Fitzgerald said.

“It is a decision they can make, fully aware of the consequences.”

“The fact remains that there is a legally binding contract between New7Wonders and a private consortium in Indonesia and this contract is not being honored,” he continued.

“Unless the contract is honored, or another group takes over the contractual obligations, or the government and private sector decide to work together to resolve this, then New7Wonders cannot operate in Indonesia and is forced to withdraw all its activities.

“If the government and all other parties seek to find a solution to this, without trying to justify any previous indecision with false numbers, then the way forward is there, and New7Wonders continues to remain committed to a rapid and positive solution.”

The current private consortium was contracted by N7W in December, days after the first group was forced to break its contract after complaining about a lack of commitment from the Culture and Tourism Ministry.

A detailed chronology of the issue, available on savekomodo.blogspot.com/p/kronologi.html, indicates the government began losing interest in hosting the event around October, but the blog provides no explanation for this.

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/komodo-candidacy-not-worth-45m-minister/420676

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Indonesia Strikes Back at New7Wonders’ ‘Threats’
The Indonesian government has struck back at “threats” that the Komodo Island National Park would be suspended from the Official New7Wonders of Nature competition.

Minister of Culture and Tourism Jero Wacik, speaking at the State Palace on Wednesday night, said the New7Wonders Foundation essentially told the government to pay $45 million if it wanted the park to be recognized as one of the new seven wonders of nature.

The park in eastern Indonesia has been nominated as one of 28 finalists.

Jero said Indonesia was asked to pay a $10 million (Rp 90 billion) commitment fee and an additional $35 million to implement the announcement ceremony.

“Being a host doesn’t necessarily mean that we will automatically win it, as there will be vote for the 28 finalists,” he said.

Jero said that upon learning of Indonesia’s decision, the competition organizers had threatened to remove Indonesia as one of the finalists.

“They threatened Indonesia, saying that they will get rid of komodo,” he said.

The minister questioned why the foundation was insistent on having Indonesia as the host, and not offering the role to other finalists.

He said the government would stick with its decision, despite the fact it could cost Komodo the chance of being named among the winners.

Jero said if Komodo was not declared a winner, it would belittle the status of the park.

“There has been an about 400 percent increase [in tourists] since early 2007, when the park was nominated,” he said. “Even if we don’t win the competition, the government will continue to promote the park.”

http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesia-strikes-back-at-new7wonders-threats/420538

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Komodo Remains in 7Wonders Competition



The foundation that launched the New7Wonders of Nature competition announced on Monday that Komodo National Park in the Sunda Islands would remain in the running despite earlier threats to drop it.

However, the foundation said the Ministry of Culture and Tourism would no longer be allowed to act as the supporting committee for the park’s campaign.

The ministry had failed to meet several obligations as the park’s backer, prompting tensions with the New7Wonders team. The ministry also failed to meet requirements in its bid to host the declaration ceremony for the competition’s winning entries later this year.

New7Wonders president Bernard Weber said in a statement on the foundation’s Web site that the ministry had to be dropped in order to keep the national park in contention.

“In the case of Komodo, the evidence clearly points to the unsuitability of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism as our authorized New7Wonders Official Supporting Committee,” he said.

“Therefore, this status is revoked with immediate effect. This removal allows us to keep Komodo in the campaign.”

Weber said his organization refrained from a complete withdrawal after receiving “numerous and encouraging requests” to keep Komodo in the contest.

Nia Niscaya, the ministry’s director of conventions, declined to comment on the statement. “We’ll discuss with our lawyers how to respond,” Nia said on Monday.

 

Fundy 7 Wonders bid gets Games boost

New Brunswick Premier David Alward headed to Halifax Friday where he and Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter will promote the Bay of Fundy as one of the world's seven natural wonders.

The bay is one of 28 finalists in the New 7 Wonders of Nature campaign and the only one from Canada.

The premiers were scheduled to hand out magnets at the opening of the Canada Games in Halifax, encouraging people to vote for the Bay of Fundy in the contest.

Alward says anyone who has walked on the ocean floor at low tide, witnessed the world's highest tides, or has visited the Fundy Trail or Fundy National Park knows how spectacular the Bay of Fundy has always been.

"The Bay of Fundy has always been a natural wonder," he said Friday.

New Brunswick and Nova Scotia both border on the Bay of Fundy and are jointly promoting the bay in the contest.

The finalists were chosen by popular vote from 440 entries in 220 countries. The seven winners will be announced Nov. 11.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2011/02/11/ns-premier-boosts-fundy-at-games.html

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N.B. and N.S. premiers host event to promote Bay of Fundy as a wonder of nature

FREDERICTON - New Brunswick Premier David Alward is off to Halifax today where he and Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter will promote the Bay of Fundy as one of the world's seven natural wonders.
The bay is one of 28 finalists in the New 7 Wonders of Nature Campaign and the only one in Canada.
The finalists were chosen by popular vote from 440 entries in 220 countries.
New Brunswick and Nova Scotia both border on the Bay of Fundy and are jointly promoting the bay in the contest.
Alward says anyone who has walked on the ocean floor at low tide, witnessed the world's highest tides, or has visited the Fundy Trail or Fundy National Park knows how spectacular the Bay of Fundy has always been.
The seven finalists will be announced Nov. 11.

http://www.thewesternstar.com/News/...-promote-Bay-of-Fundy-as-a-wonder-of-nature/1

 

New7Wonders keeps Komodo, but removes Ministry of Culture and Tourism from official role



New7Wonders today announces the following important decisions concerning the participation of Komodo in the Official New7Wonders of Nature campaign:

1. Voting for Komodo continues as an authorized Finalist in the Official New7Wonders of Nature campaign.

2. New7Wonders removes the Ministry of Culture and Tourism from its status as Official Supporting Committee for Komodo in the New7Wonders of Nature campaign.

Outlining these decisions, Bernard Weber, President and Founder of New7Wonders, says: "Every action by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism last week strengthened the case for us to withdraw from Indonesia completely. If we depended on the Ministry, then today we would be forced to announce a complete pull-out." "Fortunately, in the past days we have received many encouraging and supporting requests from the public and leading individuals to allow Komodo to continue as a Finalist in the Official New7Wonders of Nature," says Weber, adding: "As New7Wonders is the world's first and largest global voting platform, these voices are important to us."

He emphasizes: "The main news today is this: with the removal of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism from its official role in the campaign, voting for Komodo can continue."

Bernard Weber points out: "Normally, we would have expected the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, as our then-designated New7Wonders Official Supporting Committee, to act responsibly, to honour its many pledges regarding Jakarta becoming the Official Host for the Declaration of the New7Wonders of Nature on 11.11.11. The Ministry's role should have been to support us, and to lead the search for a solution to honour the legally binding contract for New7Wonders Official Host, signed in December 2010 with a leading Indonesian Private Consortium — a consortium endorsed by the Ministry in the first place. Instead, they have reacted with malicious misinformation, invented financial commitments and prejudicial action to cover up for an apparent lack of moral responsibility and duty. In my view, with this behaviour, the Ministry has also reduced the chances for Indonesia to host other major global events that create goodwill in the world, such as the Olympics or the World Cup."

Regarding the removal of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism from its official status in the New7Wonders of Nature campaign, Bernard Weber states: "Under the legal terms of the Participation Agreement, we have the ultimate right to withdraw or modify the status of any participant, and in the case of Komodo the evidence clearly points to the unsuitability of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism as our authorised New7Wonders Official Supporting Committee, and therefore this status is revoked with immediate effect. This removal allows us to keep Komodo in the campaign."

Bernard Weber declares: "Once we again see it is possible to do business legally safely in Indonesia, we will consider appropriate associations or foundations or other official bodies to take over the role of New7Wonders Official Supporting Committee for Komodo. As of today, all official promotional activities for Komodo as a Finalist in the New7Wonders of Nature campaign must be directly authorized by New7Wonders until further notice."

He concludes: "In the matter of the pending issues for the legally binding contract for the Official Host, New7Wonders will continue to act to ensure the full recognition of its legal rights, and it expects the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to be fully accountable to the Indonesian people it represents for its moral obligations in this regard."

http://www.new7wonders.com/en/the_w...ry_of_culture_and_tourism_from_official_role/

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Park Ji-sung scores one for Jeju


How can a famous footballer deal with the trauma that marks the end of his international career? If he's Korean, he could, for example, become an honorary ambassador for his country's candidate in the New7Wonders of Nature final, Jeju Island .
And that's exactly what Park Ji-sung has done. Asia's most famous footballer says that his decision to retire from international football was the "toughest" of his career, but the South Korean midfielder is not ready yet to hang up his boots. He'll continue to play for Manchester United in the English Premier League, and he has been appointed as an honorary ambassador for the National Commission for Jeju New7Wonders of Nature.
Park's rise to international fame began in 2003 when he moved from Kyoto Purple Sanga to the Dutch team PSV Eindhoven in 2003. After two years in the Netherlands under the watchful eye of manager Guus Hiddink, Park joined one of world's most famous clubs, Manchester United. He became the first Asian to play in the UEFA Champions League final in 2009, and he has helped Manchester United to win three League titles.
"I think I can keep playing at the big clubs at least four more years," he told The Korea Herald.

http://www.new7wonders.com/en/the_w...s/dynid/110/park_ji_sung_scores_one_for_jeju/