Jakarta – The government of President Prabowo and Vice President Gibran is tightening border surveillance to prevent drug smuggling into Indonesia.
This has become a major concern after the disclosure of the method of smuggling crystal methamphetamine worth IDR 583 billion from Afghanistan that successfully entered Indonesia.
Director of Drugs of the Jakarta Metro Police, Senior Commissioner Donald, Parlaungan Simanjuntak, revealed that the crystal methamphetamine was strongly suspected of being brought by sea.
“We believe that this narcotics was brought directly from Afghanistan, based on several writings and stamps in the box. From the sea, then via land, starting from Aceh to Jakarta.” He said
The success of this drug shipment has further triggered the need for tighter surveillance at Indonesia’s borders.
Head of Jakarta Customs Office, Rusman Hadi, added that the shipment of narcotics entered through what has long been known as an illegal smuggling route.
“The Aceh route is indeed common, and the sea route is not an official port. Throughout Aceh, it is all back roads,” he said.
Rusman revealed that although Customs and related parties always conduct operations to catch smugglers, there are still many routes that have not been fully guarded properly.
“We and Customs are always on standby there to catch them,” he added.
In addition, Rusman also emphasized the importance of maintaining security at unofficial ports along the east coast of Indonesia.
“If via the official sea route, the risk of illegal goods entering is very small because there are inspection tools such as X-rays. But if via an unofficial port, the operation is more difficult,” he explained.
For this reason, the Criminal Investigation Unit of the Indonesian National Police, together with related ministries, has formed a special task force to handle the drug problem in Indonesia.
Deputy Director of Drug Crimes at the Criminal Investigation Department, Senior Commissioner Arie Ardian Rishadi, emphasized that strengthening supervision at Indonesia’s entry points, both official and illegal, would be a priority.
Arie stated, “We were immediately instructed to strengthen the entry points, both official and illegal, because the coastline along the east coast of Sumatra Island is the entry point for drugs.”
Arie also explained that his party had directed all police ranks, especially in areas prone to smuggling routes, such as Aceh, Riau, Palembang, Lampung, West Kalimantan, and North Kalimantan, to increase supervision.
“We have emphasized to the Regional Police on the outermost lines, including in Pelabuhan Ratu and Anyer, which are also our attention,” he said.
These steps are part of the government’s efforts to strengthen Indonesia’s resilience against the threat of drugs, by optimizing supervision in all areas prone to becoming entry points for narcotics.