An Australian woman on her honeymoon in Bali was detained after she was told she was "blacklisted" by Indonesian authorities.
Belinda Lopez (Belinda Lopez), 33, was detained at Denbasa airport on Friday after officials accused her of being a journalist, according to Associated Press.
The Sydney graduate said immigration officials wanted to know if she was a journalist and asked if she "did something bad to Indonesia."
The newly married bride shared her experience of being detained for no reason on Facebook.
"this is no joke: I was blacklisted by Indonesia's government," she wrote.
Lopez said she was forced to sit on the couch and detained for nearly 24 hours.
"it was supposed to be my college holiday, it was official because I was on my honeymoon," she said. But the immigration team kept asking me if I was a journalist or if I had done bad things to Indonesia. "
Lopez said she was "shocked" by the news of her deportation.
"it was the first place I visited as an adult," she said on Facebook. "I've been there many times since then, to learn languages, to visit people who have become my best friends in the world."
The former journalist's holiday should not have been like this.
Just days before she took a flight from Australia to Indonesia, Lopez discovered that her new husband, Sebastian Levik (Sebastien Leveque), couldn't go with her.
Levik's passport will expire within five months. However, it takes at least six months to enter Indonesia.
"it was the worst honeymoon ever. I'm going to Indonesia on my honeymoon, "Lopez said on Facebook."
About a decade ago, Lopez was editor of a Jakarta newspaper and produced a series of podcasts for the Australian broadcaster (ABC).
A freelance news website says her coverage won awards in 2012 and 2013, including a report on the incarceration of teenagers in the United States.
She is currently a doctoral student at Macquarie University in Sydney and studies the cultural experiences of Indonesian immigrants from Java.
Indonesian police and military are often accused of violating human rights in Papua. A recent Amnesty International report documented the illegal killing of 95 security forces on Papua Island since 2008.
Andreas Harsono (Andreas Harsono), a researcher at Human Rights Watch (Human Rights Watch), said it was not the first time journalists had been banned from Papua.
Harsono told the news.com that Indonesian authorities still restrict access to Papua by foreign journalists or anyone suspected of working in journalism.
Lopez said she was denied a visa renewal in Papua two years ago because officials suspected she was a journalist.
Immigration spokesman Amran Aris (Amran Aris) said Indonesia's military blacklisted Lopez as a "secret journalist" for government.
"We're just doing our job," Aris told the Associated Press,. "government's blacklist lists her name, so we have to deny her entry."
Lopez was deported on Saturday night.