Bali’s immigration Department would deport two Russian nationals following their arrest earlier this week for dressing inappropriately in one of the resort island’s most sacred temples.
This was according to an official report on Thursday.
Three Russians, two women aged 35 and 29, and a man aged 37 were arrested by immigration officials on Monday in the cultural hub of Ubud.
The arrest was made after locals reported them for dancing and posing for a photo in inappropriate clothing the previous day during a visit to Pengubengan Temple.
The temple is a site in Bali’s holiest Besakih Grand Temple complex at the foot of Mount Agung.
“Out of the three, we will release one of the two women and we will deport the two others for local norms violations,’’ Anggiat Napitupulu said.
Napitupulu, the head of Bali’s regional office of the Justice and Human Rights Ministry said in a statement.
He added that according to the temple’s caretakers, the women were still dressed appropriately using the cloth provided to cover their bare shoulders when they entered the temple complex.
But one of the women took off the cloth and only wore a tank top when she danced and posed for a photo.
The deportation and arrests followed a series of visa violations by foreign tourists, with some working and doing business illegally on the resort island.
In March, a Russian woman was deported after she posed nude for photos in front of a sacred tree in Bali’s Tabanan district.
A Russian hiker was deported the following month after a photo showing him bearing his bottom at the summit of Bali’s Mount Agung went viral and angered locals who consider the volcano sacred. (dpa/NAN)