Tanamur and Cafe Batavia closed by authorities
Tanamur and Cafe Batavia closed by authorities
JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta administration temporarily closed down two famous nightclubs -- Tanamur and Cafe Batavia -- yesterday morning for allegedly failing to abide by the existing regulations governing amusement centers, an official said.
The Tanamur discotheque in the Gambir district, Central Jakarta, was shut down because it was believed to have been used for transactions involving various prohibited drugs, while Cafe Batavia was closed because it allegedly operated beyond its closing time of 2 a.m.
A.F. Lapian, head of the City Law and Order Office, said that the closure of the two establishments was carried out by a team of a number of institutions, including the City Tourism Office, the City Law and Order Office and the City Police.
Two people were caught red-handed, engaged in a drug transaction at Tanamur, when members of the team arrived at the discotheque, Lapian said.
It is not yet known when the two nightclubs will be allowed to operate again. "Everything depends on the police's investigation," he said.
City Police spokesman Lt. Col. Bambang Haryoko confirmed yesterday that a suspect had been arrested and detained at the city police headquarters for questioning.
The owner of Tanamur, Achmad Fachmi, strongly protested the city administration's decision to close his discotheque.
"What they have to do is to seize the drug dealers. Don't make us scapegoats," Fachmi said.
He criticized the police for blaming discotheques after they failed to deal with the alarming drug trade in the city.
He told The Jakarta Post that Tanamur would be open as usual and that he had not received any official order from the city administration or the police not to open the discotheque.
"If they issue the order I will sue them because we are innocent," Fachmi said.
Fachmi said he was not aware of drug trafficking in the discotheque, saying, "there are thousands of people, how could we spot such transactions?"
"Even if there is drug dealing here, that is not my problem. Such transactions could occur anywhere. If a drug transaction takes place at a bus terminal, should you close the terminal?"
He said that Tanamur had cooperated with police in the arrest of a number drug dealers who had operated in the discotheque in the past.
Tanamur even hired several police officers to direct security in the discotheque, according to Fachmi.
The 25-year-old Tanamur is one of the favorite night spots in town, popular with both locals and foreigners.
An employee of Batavia Cafe, who asked not to be named, said that he had never heard about the order to prevent the discotheque from operating. "We will open as usual 24 hours a day," he said.
Yesterday's closure brought the number of discotheques closed down by the city administration during the past few days to five. The other three were Terminal One in Glodok, West Jakarta, Unicorn in Mangga Besar, West Jakarta, and Metropolis at the Niaga Tower in South Jakarta.
Terminal One and Unicorn were closed down for reportedly operating outside legal trading hours, while the Metropolis discotheque was closed because it was allegedly found to have employed foreign artists illegally.
Lapian said that the city administration was currently intensifying control over the operations of 25 discotheques as part of its drive to uphold rules. (31/bsr/sim)