TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The All Indonesia Badminton Association (PBSI) has given assurance of the safety of Indonesia Badminton Open. The event to be held later from July 3 to 8.

PBSI general chairman Wiranto who is also coordinating minister for political, security and legal affairs said here on Monday that the police and the army have been ordered to assure the safety of the event, especially with regard to recent terror attacks in Surabaya, East Java.

"The event will get special security measure because it is a world event and so terrorist must not be allowed to disrupt it," he said at a press conference about the event.

He said community members must be united and must never surrender to terrorism that may disrupt national life including sports activities.

"I hope people will be alert and ready to help security personnel to work optimally as terrorism is our common enemy and so we must fight it and not surrender to it," he said.

Organizing committee chairman Achmad Budiharto also expressed confidence that security would be assured during the event because PBSI has so far had a standard operating procedure with regard to it.

Security has become a wide concern following recent incidents of suicide bombing in East Java that left 18 people dead and more than forty people wounded.

The individual Indonesia Open event will be attended by 32nd best badminton players in the world who would play in men's singles, women's singles, men's doubles, women's doubles and mixed doubles events.

The tournament offers US$1.25 million in total prizes which is bigger that the prizes of two other Super 1,000 level tournaments - All England (US$1 million) and China OPen (US$1 million).

ANTARA