Police Sends 111 Officers to Safeguard Overseas Polling Booths

Jakarta – The Indonesian Police (Polri) sent 111 joint personnel from Jakarta to strengthen the security of Overseas Polling Booths (TPSLN) in 12 regions in seven countries.

"It's not to 12 polling stations but to 12 regions in seven countries," Polri's Head of the International Relations Division, Inspector General Krishna Murti said on Tuesday, as reported from Antara site.

Murti explained that the number of overseas voters in 128 countries reaches 1,750,474 comprising 751,260 men and 999,214 women, with the total number of TPSLN and Post and Mobile Ballot Boxes (KSK) reaching 3,059.

The National Police, through the TPSLN Security Task Force, will secure the implementation of the 2024 elections overseas by involving the Police attachés.

However, the National Police Headquarters decided to send 111 personnel for security assistance to the 12 regions owing to several factors.

The seven countries are Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands, Hong Kong (China), Singapore, Taiwan, and Australia, while the 12 regions comprise six regions in Malaysia, while the rest are one region in each country.

The six regions in Malaysia are Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru, Kinabalu, Tawau, Penang, and Kuching.

Meanwhile, the others are Singapore City, Taipei, Hong Kong, Sydney, Jeddah, and The Hague.

Murti explained that the strengthening of personnel in these 12 regions is based on the Police's assessment result of the 2019 election.

In the previous elections in these regions, there were long queues of Indonesian citizens looking to vote, chaos in a polling booth in Hong Kong, punched ballots in Malaysia, lost ballots, and other problems.

"Our priority is (countries) where there are large numbers of Indonesian citizens and where obstacles were faced. The Polri wants to handle these obstacles, so that they do not occur this year," Murti concluded.