Cops in Bali have announced a crackdown on badly behaved tourists on the Brit holiday hot spot with a specialist hit squad launched specifically to deal with out-of-control foreigners.
The news comes just days after a British tourist was arrested for allegedly throwing stones at passing cars and an Australian tourist had to be tied-up in order to be restrained by cops.
Police claim that the move comes in a bid to stop the island’s reputation being tarnished.
Nyoman Badra, who heads Badung’s tourism agency, told local media: “This must be something we attend to, the quality of tourists. We have to take responsibility together to maintain Bali as an attractive tourist destination.”
He added: “Badung regency will form a team that is separate from immigration’s team that works to monitor foreigners. Our team will consist of officials from the judiciary, police and Satpol PP (public order police), and we have begun discussing this with them.”
The top cop said that the team will monitor the Badung area of the island where many foreigners live, in order to ensure a quick response to any out-of-control antics.
The latest news comes just days after a British tourist was arrested in an incident that happened outside the Shell Hotel in the village of Kuta on the island of Bali.
The woman, identified only by the initials E.J. was collared after the local public order cops received a report that she was throwing pebbles at passing vehicles outside the Shell Hotel.
“She was in front of Shell Hotel … causing a scene and throwing pebbles at cars and other vehicles that were passing by, so the [hotel] security reported her and she was brought to Satpol PP in Kuta,” Local police chief I Gusti Agung Kerta Suryanegara told local media.
Meanwhile local media reports suggest that she was ‘restless’ in custody and tried to strip naked following her arrest at the station.
“She only had her passport with her and several pieces of clothing, it looks like she’s been drifting from place to place because she smells as if she hasn’t showered for days,” Suryanegara added.
Following her arrest, she was passed to the local immigration authorities whop are currently in talks with the British Embassy in a bid to decide what to do next.
Her motives for allegedly throwing the stones or attempting to strip off in custody have not been revealed and it is unclear if she suffered from mental health issues.
Speaking after the incident, Suryanegara told local media that the number of incidents involving anti-social behaviour among tourists had jumped in recent months.
“In 2018, it increased to one to two people every month, [but] in 2019, there has been incidents on a weekly basis involving one or two people exhibiting disturbing behaviour, going berserk or disrupting public order,” he added.
The cause of the reported rise in such behaviour has not been attributed.
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Story By: Conor Sheils, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Central European News
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