Two Chinese nationals suspected of performing illegal abortions were recently arrested by Jakarta immigration officers.
The two women, whose identities were kept confidential for security purposes, allegedly opened a beauty salon that served as a front for their underground abortion clinic. Police officers located said illegal clinic in one of the Mediterranean Apartment units in Taman Sari, West Jakarta.
Authorities reported that the operation to arrest the suspects was planned after an immigration officer’s week-long surveillance of their illegal activities.
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During the raid and arrest, police found evidence that corroborated their suspicions about the illegal abortion activities. Certain medical equipment, devices, and special drugs were discovered in the apartment. Police have yet to confirm the criminal charge the expat suspects will face.
With exception to rare occasions when the life of the pregnant mother is at risk, abortion is still considered illegal in Indonesia. Nonetheless, many women still resort to illegal abortion practices and turn to unauthorized practitioners without the proper medical background and expertise.
Every year, three out of 1,000 Indonesian women between the ages 15 and 44 are admitted to the hospital with complications from illegal abortions. A recent study conducted by the Guttmacher Institute shows that abortion is 20 percent more prevalent in Indonesia than it is in all other Southeast Asian countries combined.
