PIKIRAN RAKYAT - Police in Bali are working hard to stop a bizarre trend of custom license plates in its tracks. A large number of tourists add fake license plates to their mopeds and motorbikes in Bali.

The custom plates are not formally registered with the transportation departments and are considered a traffic violation. The Chief of the Bali Police Region, Irjen Pol Putu Jayan Danu Putra, has sent an official letter to tighten the rules of vehicle rental, especially for foreigners.

"We have sent official letters with the list of prerequisites for those who want to rent a vehicle in Bali. The prerequisites cover the renter’s driving ability, identity card, and traffic safety such as helmets and license plates," Irjen Pol Putu Jaya Danu said in a statement.

Furthermore, he also orders his subordinates to conduct traffic patrol and to ticket those who are adding custom license plates to their motorcycles. Police across Bali’s tourism hotspots are now on the lookout for more offenders.

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"The offender of a traffic violation for fake license plates will be detained, and the vehicle will be confiscated," he added.

Bali police will continue to step up patrols, especially in tourist areas such as Kuta, Seminyak, and Canggu to Tanah Lot, including Ubud, and other tourist areas in Gianyar and Denpasar. Officers also fined drivers caught violating traffic rules during patrols.

"If we do not take action, we are afraid it will become a normalized trend, so we have ordered our subordinates in all district offices, not only in Badung, Denpasar, and Gianyar, but also covering the whole region," he explained.

As reported earlier, the first batch of foreigners stopped by the traffic police visited Lembongan Island. The Klungkung Police Traffic Unit Office in Nusa Lembongan has arrested four foreigners for a string of serious offenses.

Of the four people, three had custom labels with phone numbers and text, and the fourth had a name on the label. All four were arrested because none were carrying helmets, motorcycle licenses, or foreign IDs. Police confirmed that the four people arrested in Lembongan were from Russia.

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Shortly after the incident, Kombes Pol Stefanus Satake Bayu Setianto, head of public affairs at the Bali Regional Police, said: "These offenders have committed serious violations., using fake license plates. The violators have been arrested and questioned by the Klungkung police."

Investigators from the traffic department are currently coordinating with Klungkung Police Chief Satresskrim to verify the status of the two-wheeler and conduct an in-depth investigation into the four foreigners who were caught driving the vehicle and the local community, Satake Bayu said.

"As far as the foreigners arrested in Lembongan are concerned, they are from France and Australia. As for the foreigners, Russia has not found them yet," he said. Satake Bayu also called on the Balinese to be pioneers in road safety to keep Bali safe.***