The King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz al-Saud, is holidaying in Indonesia with an entourage that is large enough for an invasion.

The place he has chosen for his extravagant luxury trip is Indonesia’s most famous tourist island, Bali.


Bali is also the only Hindu-majority region in the country and is known for the numerous statues of Hindu gods, goddesses and heroes.

In fact, statues such as those of Lord Krishna and Arjuna built in the Southeast Asian style are not only one of the prime attractions for tourists but are also a symbol of pride for the locals who are deeply attached to their Hindu ancestry.

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But statues of any kind are forbidden in Saudi Arabia, which follows the strictest form of Islam – Wahhabism.

This is why when the Saudi king landed in Bogor, a city in the Indonesia’s main island of Java, whatever statues were along the way of his entourage were covered by sheets or obstructed by trees.

Despite this the Governor of Bali, Made Mangku Pastika, ruled out covering of statues on his island.

“Bali is famous for being comfortable, safe, and tolerant, so we will leave it as is. (Sculptures) will not be covered,” he told the local Balinese daily ‘Tribun Bali’.



It is a truly praiseworthy move by a governor in the times of ‘political correctness’ where Churches are removing the crosses in parts of Europe so as not to “offend the immigrants”.