Why were we stopped?

Why were we stopped?

As a visitor to Indonesia, I am very impressed with the
friendliness of the people and the many wonderful sights in the
cities and the countryside. Having already traveled around
Jakarta and Yogyakarta with my family, earlier this week we set
our minds toward the sights and sounds of Bali.

On a day trip to Mt. Batur, we were very surprised when our
Indonesian driver was pulled over twice by police. He told us
that the police had asked him for money or cigarettes. He said he
felt confident enough to refuse them on both occasions because we
(being Westerners) were in the car with him. We were waved on
both times. Had he been alone, we were told, the penalty for
refusal would probably have been a shakedown, which would have
had inevitable consequences.

With so many wonderful memories to take back home, we do not
want an incident like this to cloud our impression of your great
country.

Come on Indonesia, you are better than this!

R. WEIGHTMAN

Tea Gardens, NSW

Australia