Puncak hotel owners request extra police

Puncak hotel owners request extra police

Hotel owners in the mountain resort area of Puncak met with Bogor
Police officials on Thursday to request extra protection for
their establishments following last weekend's rioting.

Earlier Wednesday, ulemas -- Muslim clerics -- in Puncak also
held talks with the police.

During the meeting at the Mawar Indah Hotel in the Ciawi area
of Bogor, the businessmen complained that the numbers of guests
declined markedly after locals raided and damaged some hotels,
which they alleged were being used for prostitution, on Saturday
evening including the Sulanajana Hotel which accommodated people
from Iraq and Afghanistan.

As a result, they called on the police to protect their
businesses in the area, which rely on tourists.

During the meeting, the Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant
Association (PHRI) Bogor chapter chairwoman, Siti Juwita, called
on all PHRI members to prohibit prostitution practices in the
resort area.

The Bogor Police chief, Sr. Comr. Nanan Soekarna, admitted
that the police had yet to provide more security due to a lack of
personnel.

"So far, we have deployed tourist police officers to Puncak,
especially on the weekends," he said, as quoted by Antara.

During Saturday's riot, the angry mob attacked several hotels
and vandalized brothels in Cipayung. The riot paralyzed traffic
between Jakarta and Bandung for over two hours.

At least 40 people were arrested but they were released after
the police named only two persons as suspects in the rioting. --
JP