30 prostitutes arrested in raid

JAKARTA: A total of 30 prostitutes working in five mayoralties were arrested early on Saturday during a joint operation by the Jakarta Public Order Office, Jakarta Social Affairs Agency, the Jakarta Police and the city's military garrison.

The prostitutes, who were accused of violating Bylaw No. 11/1988 on public order, were sent to the Kedoya rehabilitation center in West Jakarta.

The arrests were made as part of a routine operation during which raids were usually conducted twice a month by the City Public Order Office, coordinator Saad Saleh said.

On June 1, a raid carried out as part of the same operation netted 45 prostitutes.

Saad said the operation was aimed at reducing the number of prostitutes working the streets here, beritajakarta.com reported.

The officers arrested the prostitutes as they waited for customers on the streets or at roadside bars. -- JP