The 40-year-old Chinese national, only identified by his initials as XB, was deported through the Soekarno Hatta International Airport on Monday, May 6, Tasikmalaya Immigration Office Head Surjono remarked.
XB was declared free by the legal authority following the completion of his prison term on April 9 and was handed over to the Tasikmalaya immigration authority while awaiting his deportation, he noted.
The Chinese national was then held at the immigration detention house until the day he was deported, Surjono noted in a press statement published on Wednesday.
In addition to his deportation, XB has been put on Indonesia's travel ban list, he remarked, adding that XB was sentenced to imprisonment after the local court found him guilty in connection with a drug offense case on August 7, 2018.
The implementation of firm law enforcement against violators of Indonesia's law and legal norms, as observed in the XB case, would hopefully serve as a deterrent for other foreign nationals, Surjono emphasized.
The Tasikmalaya Immigration Office continues to work with other related government agencies to ensure no troubled foreign nationals are currently residing in its administrative areas, he affirmed.
Domestic and transnational drug dealers consider Indonesia to be a potential market due to its vast population and widespread drug use.
The value of the drug trade in the country is estimated to have reached nearly Rp66 trillion (around US$4.2 billion), with the number of drug trafficking cases continuing to rise.
A joint survey conducted by BNN and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) in 2019 pegged the number of drug users in Indonesia at over 3.4 million.
The survey conducted in 34 provinces indicated that about 180 out of every 10,000 Indonesians in the age group of 15 to 64 years were drug users.
Those using crystal methamphetamine, narcotics, marijuana, and other addictive drugs can belong to any community and socioeconomic and cultural background.
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Translator: Feri P, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Anton Santoso
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