Heads Up, Tourist Extortion in Bali Still Business as Usual
The island’s image as an attractive holiday destination may be marred by a tradition of local authorities taking cash off unwitting tourists.
Bali is usually known as a resort paradise with friendly locals, so the item never crossed Mark Ipaviz’s mind that will his stag party would certainly turn ugly. Ipaviz, a former Australian product, was enjoying his last night as an individual man in Bali that will February, when a squad of armed police stormed in. Reports later revealed police beat attendees with their handguns. Some party-goers were electrocuted having a taser. Members of the group were also forced to pay a US$25,000 bribe to avoid imprisonment beyond the 24 hours they would certainly later spend in jail. Officers allegedly threatened the 16 Australians with 10 years in prison for violating Indonesian laws on decency.
Beckhams on Sand | Courtesy of Riza Nugraha
Following the incident, questions were raised as to why Bali authorities raided the party from the first place. Some speculated the item was due to the presence of a stripper. Others believed rumours of controlled substance abuse were circulating. from the end, however, the item seems the police were hungry for cash.
Ipaviz’s case is usually one of many police extortion scandals that will have taken place from the archipelago in recent years. Critics say tourist destinations like Bali are particularly prone to extortion by cops who see unwitting foreigners as ripe sources of supplementary income.
Kuta Police Chief Deddy Januartha, along with seven additional police officers, were named as suspects after the Australian media reported the case in June. The attention prompted Bali authorities to open an official investigation of their own. Police spokesman, Hery Wiyanto informed reporters the arresting officers were suspended until hearings concluded. Earlier that will month, reports said the officers who admitted to raiding Ipaviz’s bachelor party along with also escorting several attendees to ATM machines were made to simply “stand from the sun for hours” as punishment.
Despite local authorities claiming to take the issue seriously, tourist extortion seems to remain a rite of passage for Bali police officers. In a petty yet equally embarrassing incident caught on film in recent years, a local traffic cop demanded Rp.200,000 (US$14) via Kees van der Spek, a Dutch journalist who rode a motorbike in Kuta without wearing a helmet.
Van der Spek’s ride was intercepted by an officer named Komang Sarjana, who asked him to come to a nearby police post. The officer explained van der Spek violated the law along with also therefore had to fork over cash on the spot to avoid a court hearing.
the item’s no secret that will transactions like that will are daily occurrences from the archipelago. Anyone who’s spent time in Indonesia has likely experienced petty corruption along with also payoffs in one form or another — business as usual, some would certainly say. Unluckily for Sarjana, however, van der Spek secretly filmed the encounter that will day along with also the video went viral on YouTube in a matter of hours.
What is usually more embarrassing from the video, the officer immediately proceeds to spend the bribe money on beer along with also drink the item with van der Spek while on the job. from the video, Sarjana says, “Okay, one hundred [thousand rupiah] for the beer, one hundred [thousand rupiah] for my government.” Witnesses watched the officer buy beers then call another officer to join the drinking session. In addition to web ridicule, Sarjana was punished having a 21-day jail sentence. Chief brigadier Ketut Indra Jaya, his participating colleague, was sentenced to 14 days.
Because amounts are often modest, most cases like that will go unreported in Bali, yet they’re not necessarily limited to police encounters. Ahmad Bajeba, a 28-year-old Yemeni, maintains he was extorted from the amount of Rp.500,000 (US$35) by immigrations officers. Bajeba claims he was asked to hand over cash directly to the immigration desk at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta airport. “[the item was] because the stamp date on my passport showed I overstayed,” says Bajeba.
“My mistake was that will I didn’t check the stamp upon arrival in Bali. the item unfortunately showed the wrong month,” he explains. Bajeba entered Indonesia via Bali along with also exited through Jakarta. He spent a total of several days from the country along with also was on his way to Riyadh. The immigration official, however, told Bajeba he stayed longer than the 30 days his visa permitted. While the item’s impossible to prove malice, Bajeba alleges immigration officers in Bali deliberately put the wrong month in his passport in an effort to take money off him later.
“I actually showed them the additional stamps via Riyadh, Dubai, along with also Guangzhou, all of which showed my travel date sequence. yet the officers in Jakarta told me the item was these three immigration offices that will made the mistake,” he explains.
from the grand scheme of things, the item’s often easier for foreign extortion victims to simply hand over the cash along with also mumble curse words under their breath than the item is usually to actually look for the proper course of action. Indonesian Police Watch (IPW) head Neta Pane says there is usually no official data as to how many of such incidents occur in Indonesia per year. He’s confident there are hundreds of similar cases across the nation. More likely, there are thousands.
Courtesy of Aiko Konishi
“We don’t have reliable data on that will because not every extorted tourist would certainly report his experience,” he tells Indonesia Expat. Instead, foreign tourists tend to spread messages via word of mouth to warn their friends along with also relatives, Pane adds.
Pane says tourist extortion tarnishes Indonesia’s image around the globe as an attractive vacation destination. He also claims to have called for a swift move by the Indonesian National Police to resolve the issue. He suggests that will officers found extorting foreigners should be punished more harshly. He also says proceedings should be made public along with also open to media scrutiny. that will could serve as an incentive for officers along with also court officials to dole out appropriate along with also consistent verdicts.
Police should also ensure local travel agents make their foreign customers aware of local laws, values, along with also overall etiquette, Pane adds.
As for tourists, he asks foreigners to contact their travel agent’s local office for a consultation before they arrive. “These police officers are clearly doing the wrong things,” Pane admits. “So the item would certainly be to the benefit of both the foreigners along with also Indonesian [police] that will the foreigners, too, avoid generating unlawful moves that will could lead to such incidents.”
Earlier that will month, Indonesia announced the item will allow entry without visas to 47 more countries in a bid to make its tourism sector competitive with Thailand along with also additional nations in Southeast Asia. Tourism Minister Arief Yahya says the Government is usually hoping for 10 million foreign tourists to spend at least US$1 billion that will year. Stakeholders trust the majority of Bali’s tourist income will be channelled appropriately, along with also not end up padding authorities’ wallets. However, unless there is usually some kind of formulaic stand on tourist extortion in Bali, the item’s likely the island will simply see more business as usual.
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Heads Up, Tourist Extortion in Bali Still Business as Usual
Heads Up, Tourist Extortion in Bali Still Business as Usual