A bad first impression

A bad first impression

From Kompas

My brother and family as citizens of the People's Republic of
China visited Indonesia as tourists and as my personal guests.
When they were about to fly home on Jan. 31, my brother was
surprised when an airport immigration officer persistently asked
for money, which was hard to reject under the circumstances.

The problem in this case is the practice of immigration
personnel rather than the money itself. The Soekarno-Hatta
International Airport represents the face of Indonesia for
foreign tourists. The behavior of such officers embarrasses me.

I contacted the head of the airport's immigration unit, who
promised to take action against his men. I sincerely hope that
immigration authorities will replace their personnel,
particularly at Soekarno-Hatta, and rid the airport of such abuse
of office for personal gain.

BENNY GUNAWAN
Jakarta