Six girls escape forced prostitution

Six girls escape forced prostitution

Fadli, The Jakarta Post, Batam, Riau

Six girls narrowly escaped from being forced into working as
commercial sex workers in neighboring country Singapore after
paying a deposit to a broker in Batam. They ran away from the
Singaporean broker, Acun, at Batu Ampar port in Batam prior to
their departure.

They had earlier been promised jobs at hotels or restaurants
in Singapore by paying Rp 2 million (US$244) each to a Javanese
broker, Suryanto. The money would be used for administrative
costs he claimed.

"Suryanto said that we only needed to have good looks. Skills
and experience were not important to get a job in Singapore.
Since I wanted the money, I accepted his offer," said one of the
victims, Purwaningsih, 24.

The dream of earning lots of money was shattered when the six
girls -- Purwaningsih, Erni (18), Ratna (20), Fatijah (18),
Neneng (21) and Tilem (17) -- were informed by a taxi driver at
the port that they would be forced into working as commercial sex
workers. The information, according to the driver, was based on
his experience of taking girls to the port.

The girls then escaped from Acun, who is still at large, and
are currently being accommodated at a manpower recruitment agency
in Bengkong district.

"We also lost track of Suryanto who had received the money
from us and Acun," Purwaningsih said.

The girls declined to report the case to the police.

But Barelang Police chief Sr. Comr. Suhartono said that women-
trafficking in Batam would be difficult to stop if victims were
reluctant to report to the authorities.

"We will check their story and investigate if they would have
been forced into working as commercial sex workers in Singapore,"
he said.

Indonesia is the world's third worst country in its commitment
to law enforcement on the issue. An estimated 230,000 women and
child sex workers have been trafficked throughout the country.

The government is currently working on a bill on the issue.

Last week, several Indonesian girls reported to the Indonesian
Embassy in Kuala Lumpur that they were forcibly employed as
commercial sex workers.