In Reply to: Nyepi 2009 posted by stormy on Monday, 16. February 2009 at 10:47 Bali Time:
from Bali Discovery.
Don't Rain on My Parade
Denpasar Officials Outlaw Popular Ogoh-Ogoh Parades on Nyepi Eve.
(2/14/2009) Denpasar legislators have announced that they will ban traditional Ogoh Ogoh parades on the eve of Nyepi - Bali's Official Day of Silence. The decision to forbid the raucous merriment which often accompanies the parading of giant paper mache floats through the streets of Denpasar was made given the close proximity of local legislative elections with Nyepi celebrations.
The decision to cancel the parades which would otherwise take place on March 25, the eve before Nyepi must now be socialized to the hundreds of banjars found in Bali's capital. Denpasar officials are asking that the people of Denpasar refrain from making "both large and small" ogoh-ogoh for this year's celebrations of the Balinese New Year.
Legislative elections in Bali are set to take place on April 9, 2009.
Speaking to the press about the decision, Denpasar officials are calling on their Balinese colleagues to forgo the traditional ogoh-ogoh celebration in favor of the more precious task of ensuring the democratic elections process take place without incident.
In the past, Ogoh-Ogoh rivalries between competing villages has resulted in street fights and small scale vandalism.
The Chief of Public Relations and Protocol for the Denpasar Government, Erwin Suryadarma, told the press that the government is now circulating a letter to the traditional villages of Denpasar explaining the potentially unpopular decision.