Bali police deployed 2,076 officers on the streets at the same time. That number of officers is comparable to the population of an entire village.
Police officers are preparing the ground ahead of the year’s main operation, “Ketupat Agung” (Operasi Ketupat Agung). This year, Bali is seeing a rare coincidence: the Day of Silence Nyepi (Nyepi) falls on 19 March, and the main Muslim holiday, Eid al-Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan, will be celebrated on 20–21 March. Police fear that this overlap could cause chaos on the roads and huge queues at the ports.
Police are looking for places selling illegal alcohol, drugs, underground brothels, and gambling organisers. They are paying particular attention to large shopping centres and checking firecracker sellers.
Police have also set up extra checkpoints on the roads leading to the Gilimanuk and Padangbai ports. They are looking for illegal transport operators and checking the documents of those travelling to neighbouring islands in advance. Officers are quite literally urging some people to leave the island now so that the ports do not grind to a halt on 20 March. The more people leave before the Day of Silence, the smaller the backlog will be on the one day when the ports reopen. The authorities want to reduce risks as much as possible before Bali closes the airport for 24 hours and stops traffic on the roads.
To manage traffic and ensure safety, patrols are on duty on the island’s busiest roads. Police promise that this work will allow tourists and locals to relax and pray in peace.
The backbone of the deployment is made up of 1,588 officers from district police units (Polres). Another 488 specialists were sent by the regional police headquarters (Polda Bali). They are maintaining order in every busy corner of the island. The head of the police press office, Colonel Ariasandy (Ariasandy), calls this a “pre-emptive strike” against crime.
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