100 women hired for street patrol

100 women hired for street patrol

JAKARTA (JP): The city's peace and order office (Kamtib DKI) plans to add a woman's touch in its future operations against prostitutes and vagrants -- by recruiting women.

"I feel it is inappropriate that such an operation is conducted by an all male force, especially when we're dealing with women, and often children," Kusaeni, who heads the office, said.

"In the future, we will be including women officers into the force," Kusaeni told the Antara news agency.

His office has already recruited about 100 women for the municipal policing group, Polisi Pamongpradja. The women and 600 male recruits recently completed their education and training in Cibubur, East Jakarta.

Besides being deployed for street operations, the female officers will also be employed to publicize and popularize various city ordinances, such as those on pedestrian crossings and street vendors, Kusaeni said. "They will be patrolling the city, giving out information and also taking the necessary actions, within their powers, if they see violations."

The municipal administration is cooperating with the Jakarta Police Force to step up the campaign against prostitution in the past month. The hundreds of prostitutes rounded up in the raids have been sent to a special rehabilitation center.

Kusaeni said his office also plans to open a 24-hour hot line which will be open to anyone wishing to complain about disturbance of the peace or any disruption in public order. He said he hopes the hot line will encourage the public to participate in the maintenance of peace and order.

These moves are being made to rectify the current image that the municipal police force is simply there to serve the interests of the administration. "The force is there to serve the public," he said. (emb)