Local authorities have apprehended dozens of teenagers identified as itinerant street kids from different provinces for displaying antisocial behavior on Jalan Pramuka in East Jakarta.
According to the East Jakarta Social Agency, 13 teenagers aged 13-16 came from Surabaya in East Java and Ternate in North Maluku. Action had to be taken against the group after they aggressively asked for donations from residents.
When they were caught, the teenagers did not have ID cards and said that they came to Jakarta to meet their friends. “They had been searching for their friends in Jakarta for two days. After they could not find them, they busked in several spots,” said East Jakarta Social Agency Head Benny Martha, as quoted by The Jakarta Post.
The teenagers have subsequently been taken to the Cipayung Social House in East Jakarta where they will temporarily be housed, before being sent back to their respective hometowns.
To read more about busking in Jakarta, click here.