Foreign inmates evacuated from Kerobokan prison

Officials evacuated female and foreign inmates from Kerobokan Prison in Denpasar, Bali, on Thursday, following a second day of unrest at Bali’s maximum security penitentiary.

The evacuation follows a riot on Tuesday, when inmates torched most of the prison’s facilities, and an outburst of violence on Wednesday night.

Around 400 officers from the Bali Police and the province’s Mobile Brigade special operations unit have been joined by a company of 100 soldiers from an elite Indonesian Army Raiders Battalion to secure the prison.

Law and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsuddin said that the women and foreign inmates had to be evacuated immediately. “We are doing this because the prison’s facilities have been severely damaged, which will make it difficult for the inmates to stay here.”

Separately, Udayana Military Command spokesperson Col. Wing Handoko had a different reason for the evacuation. “We evacuated the foreigners immediately in order to prevent the rioters using them as bargaining chips. They could use the foreigners as hostages to get what they demand,” he said.

The evacuation started at 5:35 p.m. on Thursday local time, after an hour-long negotiation session between police officers and inmates. As of 7 p.m., 31 inmates, including 13 foreigners, were taken to prisons in Karangasem, Tabanan and Klungkung.

Among the evacuated women inmates were Danish national Tina Rasmussen, currently serving a five-year sentence for hashish smuggling; French national Keita Ep Toureh, convicted of cocaine possession; and Thai national Junporn Ampar, sentenced to 13 years’ imprisonment for crystal methamphetamine smuggling.

A squad car was used to evacuate Scott Anthony Rush, a member of the famed Bali Nine drug smuggling ring. However, most of the foreign inmates reportedly refused to be evacuated.

Initially, an evacuation was planned for all 60 foreign inmates, including 14 women, and all 111 Indonesian women and 13 Indonesian child inmates.

“We understand that some foreign inmates refused to be evacuated because they already felt comfortable here. We will explain that the situation in others prisons in Bali is better,” senior ministry official Bambang Krisbanu said.

The nine-hour long riot that started Tuesday night was quelled when police stormed the prison early on Wednesday. Officers secured the prison’s arsenal, ending fears that the prisoners might break into room and arms themselves. On Wednesday night, rioters hurled stones and Molotov cocktails at officers, who responded by firing warning shots.

Inmates are demanding that the ministry replace Warden Bowo Nariwono, claiming he gave preferential treatment to several inmates.

“We have to evaluate all the systems, including the prison leadership. We can’t meet their demands without rational consideration,” ministry corrections chief Sihabuddin said.