70 more foreign sex workers arrested

Only two days after 68 foreign sex workers were arrested in several nightclubs, saunas and beauty salons, city police announced on Friday that they had arrested 70 more foreign sex workers.

Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Firman Gani said the police also arrested four alleged pimps who had brought the women to the country and provided them with accommodation.

"Together with previous arrests, we have detained around 180 foreign workers. We are still examining who committed immigration offenses. If they abused their visas by working as sex workers we will deport them as soon as possible.

"If their visas are valid, they will be allowed to stay," he said.

Firman added that the women, who come from China, Uzbekistan, Russia and other East European countries, were liable to be tried at court if it was discovered that they committed other crimes, such as drug trafficking.

He said the police were questioning the four pimps to find out whether they were members of a syndicate as well as to locate their associates.

The raids, conducted under the Kencana Pura operation, are the first against foreign sex workers in the capital.

"We will continue the operation until Jakarta is void of foreign sex workers. We suspect that many other foreigners are likewise abusing their visas, as we have arrested so many of them in so few days," Firman said.

Observers suspect that the police and the immigration office are collaborating with people to protect foreign sex workers, since little had previously been done by the two institutions to eliminate such workers from capital. -- JP