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urious residents flocked to the site of a factory in Lebak Wangi village, East Sepatan district in Tangerang, on Tuesday, following the exposure of unethical practice at the establishment.

There was nothing much to see at the site, which had been vandalized by workers and local residents on Monday, but many gawkers just came to witness the conditions reported by the news.

Hendra, 40, got on his motorcycle with four friends from Jatinegara, East Jakarta, and traveled all the way to East Sepatan after he watched the news just to have a closer look at the living quarters of the slaved
workers.

'Seeing is believing,' he said.

Thirty-four workers, who had been freed by the police last Friday, lived in a 6-meter by 8-meter room with no windows and were forced to share a bathroom.

They were also not allowed to change their clothes and all their belongings were confiscated by their employer, Juki Irawan, and his foremen.

The workers, from areas out of town such as Lampung and West Java, were reportedly assaulted and locked in a tiny room if they failed to reach their daily production target.

They were promised a Rp 600,000 (US$61) monthly salary but had not been paid for two years, if at all.

The involuntary servitude was uncovered when two of the workers escaped.

The factory's infamy has since been of profit to locals.

Hasan, a meatball soup vendor, did not have to go around the village to find customers on Tuesday because he had almost run out after only a few hours standing outside the factory site.

'These people came from many parts of Tangerang and even from Jakarta. This is just like a tourist site crowded with visitors. I have already earned Rp 300,000 in three hours,' he said.

Police officers were deployed to guard the factory in case of more attacks from angry residents and activists, especially with the widespread bad feelings toward hit village chief Mursan for playing down the issue.

The police named the employer and his four foremen as suspects and charged them with deprivation of liberty and torture that carries a maximum punishment of eight years' imprisonment.

Tangerang regency police chief Sr. Comr. Bambang Priyo Andogo said on Tuesday that his men were still tracking down the whereabouts of two recruiters as well as probing the alleged involvement of a police officers and a military personnel.

Tangerang regency administration also acknowledged its ignorance of the situation and apologized to the workers and their families, admitting that it had poorly supervised home industries and factories.

'If the 34 workers want to find job in Tangerang, we will facilitate them,' the administration's secretary Iskandar Mirsyad said in a meeting between the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) and the police regarding the case.

DPD deputy speaker Laode Ida said the incident had shocked the nation.

'It tells us that we let slavery happen. This is a wake-up call for the central government,' he said.