City reels from weekend outburst of violence<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The two days of rioting on Saturday and
\nyesterday which injured hundreds of people and saw the burning of
\nbuildings and vehicles disrupted life in the city quite
\ndramatically.<\/p>\n
Last night, thousands of people were stranded at Senen bus
\nterminal and along the streets of Salemba district in Central
\nJakarta due to a shortage of buses.<\/p>\n
Salemba was the area hit hardest in the rioting, described as
\nthe worst rioting in over two decades.<\/p>\n
Taxis were hard to come by in the area since Saturday morning.<\/p>\n
The scarcity of public transport forced people to walk home
\nfrom the terminal, or towards streets less affected.<\/p>\n
\"I've been waiting at least two hours only to end up walking
\nlike this, sweating, to another street to find other bus,\" said
\nIvana, a bank employee.<\/p>\n
The incident also caused problems for patients of state-owned
\nCipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital, located in the Salemba area.<\/p>\n
A large number of people could not take their ailing relatives
\nto the hospital or visit patients at the hospital, because the
\narea had been blockaded by the authorities.<\/p>\n
A pregnant woman, for instance, had to be carried in the arms
\nof her husband yesterday after getting out of a taxi whose driver
\nrefused to get into the hospital.<\/p>\n
Many taxi drivers refused to drive their passengers into the
\narea after Saturday's riots.<\/p>\n
\"Even though I made less than half of my target today I don't
\nwant to risk the chaotic streets of Salemba until everything goes
\nback to normal,\" said taxi driver Ridwan.<\/p>\n
At least two wedding parties held in Salemba were canceled on
\nSaturday evening at short notice.<\/p>\n
\"It seems that the patrons found out about the situation
\nbecause people came to deliver gifts to the couple and then
\nquickly left,\" Norman, a local inhabitant said.<\/p>\n
The riots also paralyzed business in Salemba area and its
\nsurrounding areas. Hundreds of shops closed, in fear of further
\nserious incidents.<\/p>\n
Even food vendors were hard to find. On Saturday evening,
\nnearby Senen was deserted by street traders who abandoned their
\nproperties as the crowd drew closer.<\/p>\n
\"We have no bus, no food and we're frightened, it's as if
\nwe're having a war,\" another man said.<\/p>\n
The angry mob on Saturday also struck fear in the hearts of
\npolice and military personnel.<\/p>\n
\"It's better for me to quit tomorrow rather than obey my
\ncommander's order to go into the crowd and calm them down,\" a
\nsergeant told The Jakarta Post at the scene late Saturday
\nevening.<\/p>\n
Big buildings close to Salemba were being guarded closely by
\nmilitary and police personnel.<\/p>\n
A large number of people were still milling about Jl. Salemba
\nRaya and Jl. Kramat Raya yesterday. The streets were open to
\ntraffic in the morning but were closed in the evening as the
\ncrowd grew bigger.<\/p>\n
The situation was complicated further by the fact that unknown
\nparties were using and occasionally jamming the frequencies
\nreserved for the police.<\/p>\n
\"We couldn't get in touch with headquarters to inform them of
\nthe situation here,\" said an officer. This problem was first
\ndetected a month ago.<\/p>\n
The tense atmosphere in Salemba had little impact on other
\nparts of the city.<\/p>\n
The rest of the city remained calm as people discussed the
\nriots, and dozens of tourists were seen along the main streets of
\ncentral Jakarta. (bsr)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/city-reels-from-weekend-outburst-of-violence-1447893297",
"image": ""
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