DENPASAR ~ Gilimanuk and Padang Bai harbors are to get additional security measures in the form of X-Ray machines to screen vehicles entering the island, deputy police chief Gede Suweta said.

“If it’s effective, we won’t have to spend as much time as we currently do individually searching each vehicle. We’ll be able to spend more time on focusing on radical groups,” he told a news briefing on Wednesday.

The Bali Police, he said, had been working with local security firms to improve security at both busy harbors – Gilimanuk the gateway to Java, Padang Bai to Lombok.

Security measures currently in place include closed-circuit television cameras, metal detectors and sniffer dogs, said Suweta,

He said police were also paying attention to security inside Bali, especially within villages.

“We encourage cooperation with the communities so we can detect any threats as early as possible. Local security personnel such as pecalang should help in creating security, at least in their own neighborhood,” he said, referring to traditional Balinese security guards.