Travel agents issue official letter to boycott Garuda

Following up on their recent statement, the Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agents (ASITA) officially boycotted through a circulating letter national flag carrier Garuda Indonesia over the decision to reduce commissions for travel agents.

The letter, signed by ASITA chairman Asnawi Bahar, noted that Garuda Indonesia had not responded to the association.

“During the period to resolve the problem with Garuda Indonesia, ASITA Indonesia has decided that all ASITA members are prohibited from participating in any activities involving Garuda Indonesia,” the letter stated.

Previously, Asnawi said that the airline’s commission from ticket sales would be cut from 7 percent to 5 percent for international flights and 5 percent to 3 percent for domestic flights.

Garuda Indonesia vice president of corporate communications Benny S. Butarbutar also previously confirmed that the airline would reduce commissions for travel agents.

“We are adjusting the business pattern with our partners, travel agents. The business situation is changing really fast, with online travel being much stronger, but we will also want to keep traditional travel agents,” he said.

Benny added that the decision might be temporary, as it would depend on the market situation. He declined to comment on the protest.

ASITA currently has around 6,300 members of tour and travel agencies across Indonesia, including Panorama Tours Indonesia–a core unit of Panorama Group, Indonesia’s largest integrated travel group.