Indonesia detains three Pakistanis over suspected visa abuse

Their retail trading activities were suspected of being inconsistent with the purposes of their Indonesian stay permits,

Serang, Banten (ANTARA) - Serang immigration officers have detained three Pakistani nationals suspected of violating their stay permits by selling skullcaps and calligraphy door to door in Lebak District, Banten Province.

Maximilianus Kolbe Kristanto Lake, head of the Intelligence and Enforcement Section at the Serang Immigration Office, said the three men, identified by the initials MI, MAJ, and MJ, were detained on November 3 in Kadu Agung Timur Village, Lebak.

“Officers detained them after investigating reports about foreign nationals whose activities had raised concerns among residents,” he said in Serang on Monday.

Preliminary questioning revealed that MI had previously been reported selling skullcaps at the Puri Sava housing complex in Serang City. All three admitted to conducting door-to-door sales of skullcaps.

Their immigration documents showed that MI and MJ held limited-stay permits (ITAS) for remote workers, while MAJ held a pre-investment stay permit.

“Their retail trading activities were suspected of being inconsistent with the purposes of their Indonesian stay permits,” Maximilianus said.

The case began with information provided by Chandra Afriyadi Suleman, an official at Serang City's National Unity and Politics Agency, regarding a foreign national selling skullcaps door to door at the Puri Sava housing complex.

The information was subsequently discussed at a meeting of Serang City's Foreigners Supervision Team (TIMPORA) on October 26. On October 31, intelligence officials from the Lebak Police reported that three Pakistani nationals were conducting similar sales in Cibadak Subdistrict, Lebak.

Immigration officers subsequently launched an inspection operation, detaining one of the Pakistani nationals while he was selling skullcaps and seizing several items as evidence.

The other two were detained when they arrived at their rented accommodation. The operation was conducted in coordination with local community leaders and the police, he said.

Serang Immigration Office Head I Gusti Agung Komang Artawan said the agency would not tolerate foreign nationals misusing their stay permits to engage in activities that violate Indonesian law.

Door-to-door skullcap sales constitute retail trading and fall within the scope of local economic activity.

Indonesia's investment policy reserves certain business sectors for cooperatives and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), while restricting foreign investment in others. Foreign nationals engaging in activities in restricted sectors could therefore face legal consequences.

Foreign nationals working or conducting business in Indonesia must comply with immigration regulations and hold permits appropriate to their activities.

“A stay permit does not authorize unrestricted business activities. Every foreign national must comply with the purpose for which their permit was issued. We will not tolerate any misuse,” Artawan said.

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Translator: Achmad I, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: M Razi Rahman
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