Jakarta – The two international drug cartels, Golden Triangle and Golden Crescent, continue to operate in Indonesia. National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo has vowed to dismantle these two syndicates.
General Sigit made this statement following direct orders from President Prabowo Subianto regarding the fight against drugs. President Prabowo finally requested the establishment of a narcotics eradication desk.
The desk is led by General Sigit, with the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs, Budi Gunawan, as its advisor. The desk consists of five working groups: prevention, law enforcement, human trafficking, rehabilitation, and publicity.
“We are currently fighting and eradicating international syndicates, especially those that have been operating in Indonesia. There are two major groups: the Golden Crescent and the Golden Triangle syndicates,” said Sigit at the National Police Headquarters in Jakarta, Thursday (December 5, 2024).
The Narcotics Eradication Desk will report its findings after one month of operation, which will be on December 3, 2024.
“President Indonesia is very serious about ensuring that the circulation of narcotics, which impacts the younger generation, must be eradicated as much as possible from upstream to downstream. Therefore, he formed the narcotics eradication desk, with the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs as the advisor, and we are assigned as the desk’s chair,” said Sigit.
3,608 Cases in One Month
Within a month, the Indonesian National Police (Polri) has arrested thousands of narcotics offenders. Narcotics cases have been processed, securing evidence worth IDR 2.88 trillion.
“We report on the law enforcement working group. During this month, we have processed 3,608 cases, securing approximately 3,965 suspects, and seized evidence worth IDR 2.88 trillion,” said National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo in a press conference at the National Police Headquarters in South Jakarta, Thursday (December 5).
General Sigit explained that the seized evidence amounted to IDR 2.88 trillion, which consisted of various types of narcotics, from methamphetamine to cocaine.
The Narcotics Money Cycle: IDR 99 Trillion
Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Budi Gunawan revealed that the number of drug users in Indonesia is quite large, reaching 3.3 million people. According to Budi, the money laundering activities from the narcotics trade between 2022-2024 are significant, reaching IDR 99 trillion.
This was conveyed by Budi Gunawan during a press conference at the National Police Headquarters in Jakarta on Thursday (December 5). Budi Gunawan initially explained that drug trafficking in Indonesia is now reaching remote areas.
“The number of drug users in Indonesia is quite large, and its distribution is widening, not only in big cities but also reaching remote areas,” said Budi.
Budi Gunawan elaborated that in 2024, the number of drug abusers in Indonesia reached 3.3 million. This figure is dominated by the younger generation aged 15-24 years.
“In 2024, the prevalence of drug abuse in Indonesia reached 3.3 million, mostly among young people, particularly teenagers aged 15 to 24,” said Budi Gunawan.
Budi also revealed that the total amount of funds laundered from drug-related money laundering activities reached IDR 99 trillion, based on financial intelligence reports for the 2022-2024 period.
Turning ‘Drug Villages’ into ‘Drug-Free Villages’
National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo outlined prevention activities to combat drugs in Indonesia. One of the activities includes a commitment to transform areas previously known as ‘drug villages’ into ‘drug-free villages.’
“Regarding the activities carried out by the prevention working group, our goal is that several areas currently identified as ‘drug villages’ will be transformed into ‘drug-free villages.’ We are working together with ministries/agencies and local governments to make this happen,” said General Sigit during a press conference with Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Budi Gunawan at the National Police Headquarters in Jakarta on Thursday (December 5).
The eradication of narcotics is known to be one of the programs in President Prabowo Subianto’s Asta Cita. This program and directive from Prabowo have been followed up by Minister Budi Gunawan by establishing the narcotics eradication desk, which is directly led by National Police Chief General Listyo Sigit Prabowo.
General Sigit revealed that 290 areas have been identified as “drug villages.” He mentioned that out of these 290 areas, 90 villages have been specially handled by the National Police to turn them into “drug-free villages.”
“There are around 290 drug villages that we have identified, and we have started working on about 90 villages, transforming them from ‘drug villages’ to ‘drug-free villages,'” he said.
