Aceh death toll hits 38<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The number of confirmed deaths from Monday's
\nshooting of protesters by the military in North Aceh rose to 38
\non Wednesday, while medical supplies destined for local hospitals
\noverwhelmed by victims were not expected to arrive until early on
\nThursday.<\/p>\n
\"Nineteen people died in hospital or were dead when they
\narrived here, while 19 bodies were taken straight home from the
\nscene by relatives,\" T.S. Sani, coordinator of the local
\ngovernment fact-finding team, told The Jakarta Post by phone from
\nthe North Aceh capital of Lhokseumawe.<\/p>\n
Sani said that at least a further 115 people were injured
\nduring the incident.<\/p>\n
The local government has set up a fact-finding team which
\nincludes local members of the Red Cross, government officials,
\nstudents and members of non-governmental organizations to
\ninvestigate the incident.<\/p>\n
Earlier in the day, Lilawangsa Regional Military Commander
\nCol. Johnny Wahab, who oversees the regencies of North Aceh, East
\nAceh and Pidie, told the Post that 31 people were killed in the
\nincident. On Tuesday, the military insisted that only 18 people
\ndied, with a further 81 injured.<\/p>\n
The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence
\n(Kontras) said on Tuesday that up to 65 people could have been
\nkilled, although it had only been able to confirm 23 deaths.<\/p>\n
On Monday, troops opened fire on thousands of protesters
\nblocking a junction in the town of Krueng Geukueh, 15 kilometers
\nwest of Lhokseumawe.<\/p>\n
The incident was the latest in a succession of violent clashes
\nbetween the military and campaigners for a referendum on
\nindependence in the troubled province.<\/p>\n
Sani also said that at least two people, Sofian Nurdin, 17,
\nand Mahendra Husni, 35, were still missing after the incident,
\nwith thousands of Krueng Geukueh residents fleeing amid fears of
\nfurther violence.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Philippe Beauverd, a representative of the
\nInternational Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Lhokseumawe,
\ntold the Post that the Jakarta office of ICRC had dispatched six
\nboxes of medical supplies to Lhokseumawe General Hospital on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
\"I hope they will arrive later today or tomorrow morning,\" he
\nsaid adding that the situation in Lhokseumawe on Wednesday was
\n\"better\" than on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Mulya A. Hasjmy, head of Lhokseumawe General Hospital, said on
\nTuesday that the hospital was running short of anesthetics, high-
\ndose antibiotics and sutures due to the large number patients
\nrequiring surgery on Monday.<\/p>\n
Mulya said that as of Wednesday, at least 47 people were still
\nbeing treated at the hospital.<\/p>\n
\"Earlier today, two more people were transferred to Zainal
\nAbidin Hospital in Banda Aceh (275 kilometers west of
\nLhokseumawe) for surgery,\" Mulya told the Post, adding that the
\nhospital was still packed with hundreds of relatives of the
\nvictims.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Johnny Wahab insisted his troops opened fire \"in
\nself-defense\".<\/p>\n
\"The crowd were armed and they fired first, so we had no other
\nchoice...they were members of the separatist movement and if I
\nhave to, I will risk my own neck to defend the unity of this
\ncountry,\" Johnny said.<\/p>\n
Kontras coordinator, Munir, rejected the military's claim on
\nTuesday, saying that troops opened fire on the crowd after some
\nof the protesters began to pelt them with stones.<\/p>\n
The crowd had gathered to protest against the unnecessary
\nforce used by soldiers during a house-to-house search in the
\nnearby hamlet of Cot Murong on Saturday, Kontras said.<\/p>\n
The military said members of the guided missile detachment
\nwere in Cot Murong to search for fellow soldiers who were
\ncaptured by villagers during a Free Aceh movement rally on
\nFriday.<\/p>\n
A fact-finding mission from the National Commission on Human
\nRights is scheduled to leave for the troubled province next
\nMonday to investigate the latest violence.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Bambang Widjojanto of the Indonesian Legal Aid
\nFoundation (YLBHI) on Wednesday urged the rights body to set up a
\npermanent office in the troubled province to prevent further
\nhuman rights abuses.<\/p>\n
\"Monday's violence shows that repressive measures are still
\nbeing used in Aceh, despite promises of no more violence from the
\ngovernment,\" Bambang said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the military information center said in a statement
\nthat an off-duty member of Tanah Luas police sub-precinct in
\nNorth Aceh was shot dead by two unidentified men riding a
\nmotorcycle. The shooting took place on Wednesday morning in front
\nof a coffee house in the village of Blang Jruen, which lies 16
\nkilometers west of Lhokseumawe.<\/p>\n
\"Chief Sgt. Helmy Juhaeri, 38, was shot in the head, chest and
\nleft hand and died on the spot,\" the statement said.<\/p>\n
The unidentified attackers fled the scene, leaving behind at
\nleast eight spent cartridge cases for the Russian-made AK-47
\nautomatic rifle.<\/p>\n
The statement said that Helmy was buried in the North Aceh
\nvillage of Biereun later in the day. (byg)<\/p>",
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