Tourism workers in Indonesia's Komodo National Park launched a month-long strike Monday after the government skyrocketed the price of entry tickets.

The goal is to increase the cost of entry to the park's two most popular islands by 18 times to limit the number of visitors in order to protect the world's largest menagerie, known as Komodo dragons, from excessive human exposure and environmental damage.

The price of entry tickets to the islands of Komodo and Padar in the World Heritage-listed park in East Nusa Tenggara province was raised from 200,000 rupees ($13) to 3.75 million ($252). 

The decision went into effect on Monday, but it angered local residents who rely on tourism and tourism entrepreneurs in the park, which is still reeling under the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. 

In protest against this measure, they launched a strike on Monday, in which at least 700 workers are expected to participate until the end of August, according to one of the organizers of this campaign.

The people of the region fear that this sharp rise in prices will deter tourists with limited budgets from visiting the park, which was almost empty of visitors at the height of the pandemic.

"We are slowly recovering and if reservations are canceled the sector will collapse," said Mateus Syagian, who owns a hotel and restaurant on the site.

Only 3,458 Komodo dragons are found in the national park and on the neighboring island of Flores, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature.