Foreign women face deportation

JAKARTA (JP): Eighteen female aliens from China and Vietnam, arrested on Tuesday for illegally working at karaoke bars here, will be deported soon, an official said on Friday.

"They will be deported soon after their airplane tickets are ready," director of immigrant control at the Directorate of Immigration Muhammad Indra said in a news release.

According to Muhammad, the young foreigners were arrested at three separate locations: the Ibis Hotel, Lautze Hotel and Mangga Dua Apartments, working without legal permits at karaoke bars at the three places.

The foreigners admitted their wrongdoing. They came into the country using only business or social and culture visiting visas, or even limited stay permits which did not allow them to work.

Indra said the foreigners had been moving around to avoid the immigration officers.

Head of the public relations unit of the directorate Mursanudin Ghani said that from January to May this year his office had deported 275 aliens from many countries.

Mursanudin said that most of them came from South Korea, China, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Thailand.

He also said that the deported foreigners had violated the immigration law, such as by using forged visas or passports and overstaying. (08)