Bali, safe haven for international pedophiles

Bali, safe haven for international pedophiles

Aditya Nusantara and Magdalena Damayanti, Contributors,
Singaraja, North Bali

Although Bali is known around the world for its unique culture
and beautiful scenery, it has been attracting more than just
tourists wanting to explore its charm. Pedophiles from several
foreign countries have been frequenting the resort island,
according to experts and scholars.

Disguising themselves as rich tourists, numerous overweight
middle-aged men and business-like visitors, as well as many other
foreigners, come to the island with one thing on their minds: to
prey on underaged boys and girls, reports said.

In many parts of the island, mainly in the remote and poor
villages, there is no shortage of boys and girls available to
provide sexual services to these pedophiles. Many poverty-
stricken parents cannot afford to send their children to school
and allow them to roam the streets and beaches -- public areas
that make them easy targets for adult sex offenders.

Luh Ketut Suryani, a professor of psychiatry at the Denpasar-
based University of Udayana, said Bali was a popular tourist
destination that could be a safe haven for pedophiles around the
world to stalk their prey.

"The illicit practice also occurs in several Asian tourist
hubs, such as Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia and
now Myanmar," the professor said.

Over the last few years, cases of pedophilia have been
documented extensively in the United States and some European
countries, and involve adults from various backgrounds, ranging
from celebrities and executives to even religious leaders.

In Jakarta, the 1997 case of Robot Gedek, who allegedly
sodomized and killed a number of street children, shocked those
living in the capital.

Bali also reported a case of pedophilia when an Italian
tourist, Mario Manarra, was accused of fondling and sodomizing
young boys in the Lovina beach area near Singaraja of North Bali
in August last year. This was the first case of pedophilia that
went to trial in Bali. He was sentenced to 10 months in jail.

"Reports of pedophilia in Bali and anywhere else in Indonesia
are only the tip of the iceberg. We only know what is on the
surface. In reality, it's so dangerous and life threatening to
our children, our future generation," the professor said.

Pedophilia, she said, was a type of psychosexual disorder in
which adults -- men or women -- were only sexually attracted to
children.

"Many pedophiles usually have a low self-esteem and see sexual
activity with a child as more arousing and less threatening than
with an adult," Suryani said. Their sexual activities vary from
genital display to sexual intercourse.

In western countries, pedophilia is considered a very serious
sexual offense. These countries have stern laws and regulations
against pedophiles and enforce very severe penalties against
adults who have sex with children.

Pedophilia often involves forced action and violence against
children. "They are abusing children who are still physically and
emotionally vulnerable," Suryani said. That is why, in western
countries, the younger the child and the greater the difference
in age between the pedophile and the victim, the more severe the
punishment was, she said.

The Philippines and Thailand, she said, had strict laws
against pedophiles and set up a cooperation with the
International Police (Interpol) and the pedophiles' countries of
origin to collaborate in apprehending them.

Strangely, Suryani said, the Balinese and its authorities do
not seem to mind or be aware of this dangerous social issue.

Indonesia has ratified the United Nations Convention on
Children's Rights, however, the nation is not so serious in
implementing it into law. Crimes and violence against children
are contained in articles 289 to 298 of the Criminal Code (KUHP).

Fortunately, there are a number of civil society groups
concerned about children's welfare. They include Lembaga
Perlindungan Anak (Children Protection Agency) and Komite
Pendidikan Anak-Anak Kreatif Indonesia (Education Committee of
Creative Indonesian Children) in Jakarta; Girli in Yogyakarta;
and Kelompok Sadar (Awareness Group) in Surabaya, East Java.

"In Bali, we have just set up the Committee Against Sexual
Abuse (CASA), which will help those suffering from traumatic
childhood experiences," Suryani said.

Across Asia, tens of thousands of children are pushed into the
sex trade each year. According to the International Labor
Organization (ILO), at least one million children work as formal
and informal prostitutes. In Asia, including Indonesia, practices
of child prostitution and child sexual abuse have been on the
rise.

In Bali, several villages, including Ban, Tianyar and Pedaha
in Karang Asem, East Bali -- one of the poorest regencies in Bali
-- have become popular among pedophiles for being safe places. In
the Buleleng regency of North Bali, numerous pedophiles look for
children in villages such as Lovina beach, Kalibukbuk, Kaliasem,
Kayu Putih, Selata and Anturan.

"Poverty is still blamed as the underlying reason for
pedophiles operating in the areas. The majority of parents (of
exploited children) work as cheap unskilled laborers or farmers,
who have to spend most of their time in the field," said Suryani.

Rohman, a staff member at Yayasan Anak Kita Foundation, said
pedophile cases in Bali were alarming. Between l992 and 2002, the
foundation had discovered that 13 suspected pedophiles were
actively operating in Bali, and there were at least 60 victims
aged five years old to 13 years old who reported their stories of
abuse. This number excludes other victims who have not yet come
forward, Rohman said.

From data and information available on the subject, centers
for pedophiles are located in the famous art village of Ubud
along with other areas, such as Seminyak, Kuta, Lovina and
Karangasem.

"Some pedophiles may know each other and hold regular meetings
in Kuta," said Rohman, who declined to name his sources. "If I
mentioned their names, they would be in danger."

A number of children and teenagers, he said, had disappeared
for unknown reasons, and the foundation's reports were not
properly processed.

The foundation, which has conducted a comprehensive
investigation into pedophilia since l998, said that l973 might
have been the first time pedophiles arrived in Bali. "They were
disguised as tourists from Germany," the study said.

In the l980s, Kuta was a major destination for European
pedophiles, especially those from Germany and France, the study
said. Karangasem was their next target. Acting as generous and
kind-hearted people, pedophiles won the hearts of locals by
claiming to be "foster fathers" who sought needy children around
Bali, and promised parents they would provide a better education
and future for their children, the study said.

"They were regarded as 'Santa Clauses' in those poor villages.
Nobody had the courage to report their sexual misconduct toward
children and students," Rohman said.

He said that to facilitate their illegal sexual activities,
pedophiles bribed parents with money, food, other basic needs and
household goods, while local village heads and police officials
obtained various "incentives" in the form of donations, village
improvement projects, health and education training and rental
cars for police officers.

Lenient punishment and people's lack of awareness on the
dangers of pedophiles' activities have encouraged irresponsible
people to exploit local children.

Unless Indonesia enacts the necessary laws and regulations to
protect its children, pedophiles from around the globe will be
able to operate in Bali and other places across the nation.