Known as a paradise island and the most popular vacation spot in Indonesia, Bali pulls in many foreign tourists and locals alike with its exotic beaches and upscale resorts. Along with a recent visa-free policy announcement by President Joko Widodo – which allows 169 nationalities to enter the archipelago without a visa – the total number of tourists in Bali increased by 18.5 percent in 2016. However, this didn’t mean that Bali’s immigration official have just been letting all the tourists enter without due process.
In January and February of 2017, Indonesian immigration officers denied 229 tourist entries. Soekarno-Hatta International Airport topped the chart of denials with a total 152 tourists blocked from entry. I Gusti Ngurah-Rai International Airport followed with 33 tourists barred from entering the country.
On April 5, 2017, Bali denied entry to an Australian (known only by the initials of SRL) at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport. Local officers reportedly believed SRL to be a pedophile and therefore did not let him enter Indonesia. SRL will be deported back to Sydney, Australia on Garuda Airlines (GA-714).
Similarly, on March 21, 2017, Bali immigration officers deported two other suspected Australian pedophiles back to Brisbane and Sydney.
Head of Public Relations of the General Directorate of Immigration Agung Sampurno mentioned that in January he deported more than six foreigners suspected of being pedophiles.
“Reasons of denied entry vary and include suspected pedophilia, work plans that violate procedures, unclear purpose of visitation, not having enough money to live for the stated period of time in the country, blacklisted tourists, involvement in prostitution rings, suspicion of people smuggling and many others,” said Sampurno.
Source:indonesiaexpat.biz
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