Street robbery rate up during election campaign<\/p>\n
Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The level of robberies and burglaries in Greater Jakarta has
\nincreased by 40 percent in the period to March 26, since
\nlegislative campaigning kicked off on March 11, compared with the
\nsame period last month.<\/p>\n
Of 45 crimes reported, 31 were street robberies while the rest
\nwere burglaries.<\/p>\n
The figure was lower than in February when 25 street robberies
\nand seven burglaries occurred. The number was slightly lower than
\nJanuary's 25 street robberies and nine burglaries.<\/p>\n
The greatest number of street robberies targeted
\nmotorcyclists, who were usually cornered by criminals pointing a
\ngun at them before they stole their vehicle.<\/p>\n
A police report also shows that Tambora district, West
\nJakarta, and Cakung district, East Jakarta, are hotbeds for
\nstreet crime.<\/p>\n
Criminologist Adrianus Meliala of the University of Indonesia
\ntold The Jakarta Post over the weekend that it was possible that
\nthe increase in crime rates was related to campaigning.<\/p>\n
\"Changes in people's daily activities indeed affect crime
\npatterns. It is possible that campaigning has also contributed to
\nthe crime rate increase,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Citing an example, Adrianus said that robbery and burglary in
\nthe capital accounted for 80 percent of all crime during the Idul
\nFitri holiday every year. That figure was slightly higher
\ncompared with other times when robbery and burglary constituted
\n70 percent of crime.<\/p>\n
During the Idul Fitri holiday, Jakarta is deserted, as many
\ncity dwellers travel back to their hometowns to celebrate the
\nholiday with their families.<\/p>\n
\"A lot of factors affect crime patterns. I think campaigning
\nalone has not contributed significantly to the hike,\" Adrianus
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He dismissed the fact that the Jakarta Police are focused on
\nproviding security for the campaigns of 24 political parties.<\/p>\n
His statement was substantiated by city police spokesman Sr.
\nComr. Prasetyo, who said that officers were still patrolling in
\nneighborhoods, even though a majority of the force was deployed
\non campaign-related activities and the legislative election,
\nscheduled for April 5.<\/p>\n
\"It's true that police officers are concentrating on securing
\nthe campaign and the election. But that doesn't mean that we've
\nreduced the number of officers patrolling in neighborhoods,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
About 4,000 officers have been deployed to secure the capital
\nduring campaigning. This will rise to 16,000 on election day.<\/p>\n
Prasetyo reminded the public to be on the alert in their
\nneighborhoods.<\/p>\n
The police report also shows a jump in the number of robberies
\non public transportation to six from last month's two. It also
\nindicates that burglaries, in which criminals pretend to make a
\nsocial visit to a house before stealing items from it, have been
\nrife.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/street-robbery-rate-up-during-election-campaign-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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