Acehnese rally for referendum<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): About 1,000 Acehnese rallied in front of the
\npresidential palace on Jl. Medan Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta
\non Tuesday, urging the government to hold a referendum in the
\nprovince.<\/p>\n
Wearing white bandannas and holding Free Aceh Movement (GAM)
\nflags, some demonstrators occupied parts of the street and
\nprohibited public buses from passing through.<\/p>\n
Others almost ran amok when a bus driver tried to ignore the
\ndemonstrators' order. Their colleagues rushed to calm them down.<\/p>\n
The coordinator of the rally, Faisal Saifuddin from the Center
\nof Information for the Aceh Referendum (Sira), said he and the
\nother Acehnese wanted to meet President Abdurrahman Wahid to
\nlodge their demand.<\/p>\n
\"We want to tell the President that a referendum must be
\nconducted immediately in Aceh, and Aceh's independence from
\nIndonesia should be included in the options,\" Faisal told The
\nJakarta Post.<\/p>\n
The demonstrators, however, failed to meet the President.<\/p>\n
Faisal claimed that the rally was participated in by some
\n5,000 Acehnese living in Greater Jakarta, Aceh, Medan in North
\nSumatra, Bandung in West Java, Surabaya in East Java and
\nKalimantan.<\/p>\n
About 100 mobile brigade personnel from the Jakarta Police
\nstood guard at the palace.<\/p>\n
After failing to meet the President, the demonstrators marched
\nto the United Nations (UN) building on Jl. Thamrin in Central
\nJakarta, causing traffic congestion on nearby streets, such as
\nJl. Merdeka Barat and Jl. Thamrin.<\/p>\n
Upon their arrival in front of the UN building, two trucks
\nfull of police personnel from the Jakarta Police arrived to help
\nsecure the UN property.<\/p>\n
The crowd dispersed peacefully at about 5 p.m. (08)<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/acehnese-rally-for-referendum-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }