Over 1,826 deployed in operation

JAKARTA (JP): The Bogor police precinct is deploying 1,826 officers over the Christmas and New Year holiday season, the Vice Chief of the Bogor Police precinct, Lt. Col. Bambang Hendarso, said.

The deployment of the officers started on Monday and will last until Jan. 3, Bambang said, adding that their operation covers the Bogor area and its two neighboring cities: Sukabumi and Cianjur.

However, the success of the operation, code named Lilin Lodaya '94 (Candlelight '94), depends on the public's participation, he said.

"We urge the public not to carry too many valuables or wear eye-catching jewelry that can be tempting to burglars," Bambang said, the Antara news agency reported on Monday.

He explained that the Puncak mountain resort area, located in the Bogor-Cianjur-Sukabumi triangle, constituted as a major weekend destination for Jakarta residents. The area is usually flooded by fresh-air seekers from the capital during the Christmas-New Year vacation.

Without going into details he said there would be a 20 percent increase in the number of vacationers this year as compared to last year's.

Hendarso said Puncak remains an accident prone area because of the traffic jams that usually take place along the zigzagging, mountainous roads.

The police officer said that drivers of vehicles weighing more than 10 tons will be asked to take an alternative road through Sukabumi to help reduce the burden along the Puncak road. (23)