Jakarta – The Jakarta Police plan to summon owners of nightclubs and amusement centers to discuss operating hours during Ramadhan.
City police Chief Insp. Gen. Adang Firman said Friday that the police would work with the city administration and the Jakarta Tourism Agency on the matter. "I've talked to my officers about this. I'll call the city administration and the tourism agency soon," the two-star general said.
Adang said his officers would visit nightclubs and bars in the weeks leading up to the fasting month to remind management about the operating hours that are stipulated under city law.
"There has been a regulation issued by the city administration on entertainment businesses that must be complied with by managers. We just want to make sure they play by the rules," Adang said.
The 2007 fasting month will begin in mid-September. During Ramadhan, Muslims must refrain from eating, drinking, smoking, sexual relations and other worldly activities from dawn to dusk.
Last year, Governor Sutiyoso asked nightclub owners in Jakarta to close down their businesses during Ramadhan, but told them to keep paying their employees.
In the gubernatorial regulation issued last year, nightclubs, spa centers, massage parlors and bars must close entirely while karaoke lounges and pool halls were subject to restricted operating from 8:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. and 10 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. respectively. The same regulation allows bars and clubs located in star-rated hotels to remain open.
However, last year, many bars and nightclubs remained open, closing entirely only on certain days and often serving alcohol concealed in coffee mugs and teapots. There are more than 1,000 registered entertainment businesses across the capital.
While complying with the regulation means owners will lose a large amount of their profits, the Association of Indonesian Entertainment Businesspeople usually complies as long as the city administration and police can guarantee that no religiously motivated organizations raid their establishments.
The association's secretary general, Adrian Maelite, said that last year the police were able to prevent such raids through the use of intelligence agents.