A Bali court’s decision to impose a one-year jail sentence on a tourist late last week is further evidence of the popular resort island’s crackdown on Western travellers.

Swiss tourist Luzian Andrin Zgraggen, 26, was imprisoned for insulting a sacred religious event on the Indonesian island – one of Australia’s favourite destinations.

In a now-removed video, Zgraggen filmed himself walking to an empty beach during the Hindu holiday of Nyepi, describing the scene as “crazy” and captioning the Instagram post with expletives, local media reported.

He was arrested in March after the video sparked widespread anger among Balinese on social media.

Nyepi, also known as the ‘Day of Silence’, is an annual holiday during which the usually bustling tourist island goes quiet as people stay home and refrain from making loud noises.

The restrictions apply to everyone on the island regardless of religion, including tourists.

Zgraggen’s sentence is the latest in a string of moves aimed at foreigners deemed to be disregarding local culture and sensitivities.

In March, Bali authorities arrested two French nationals and an Italian for allegedly producing and distributing pornography, which is forbidden in Indonesia.

Bali’s immigration department last month deported two Dutch men and banned them from re-entering Indonesia after they were found to have been organising a run club event “fraught with discrimination against local residents”.

The controversy centred on the expat-run Entourage Bali running club, which locals claimed excluded Indonesians from joining, but welcomed foreigners.

Local Indonesians say they were excluded from the run club. Photo: Facebook

“The patience of the locals had been tested for too long,” said Bali regional parliamentarian Niluh Djelantik at the time.

The head of the Badung Tourism Office, AA Putri Mas Agung, later confirmed there would be increased surveillance of foreigners and their activities.

The crackdown comes as Bali grapples with record tourism as foreign arrivals reached 6.9 million in 2025, surpassing its pre-pandemic high.

Authorities have intensified immigration enforcement amid complaints over illegal work, tourist behaviour and visa violations.

The crackdown has targeted foreigners accused of abusing tourist visas, including working illegally as tour guides, fitness instructors and online entrepreneurs, alongside high-profile incidents involving assaults on police, reckless driving, and public indecency at sacred sites.

Some 342 foreigners were deported in the first six months of 2026.