Fare protests fail to die down in Ujungpandang<\/p>\n
UJUNGPANDANG, South Sulawesi (JP): Student protests against a
\npublic transport fare increase which have swept the city for the
\npast four days and have led to three deaths and scores of
\ninjuries, continued yesterday.<\/p>\n
Armed Forces (ABRI) Commander Gen. Feisal Tanjung, who is
\ncurrently in Saudi Arabia on haj pilgrimage, told The Jakarta
\nPost by telephone on Wednesday that he regretted the incident.<\/p>\n
\"The students may hold demonstrations against the fare hike,
\nbut they shouldn't have disturbed public order,\" Feisal said.<\/p>\n
As of yesterday afternoon, order had yet to be fully
\nreestablished in the city. Roadblocks were still set up so that
\ntraffic stood still in many parts of the city.<\/p>\n
The students also continued with their rallies, including one
\noutside the office of the Fajar daily, during which they carried
\nthe body of Sultan Iskandar, a student of the Indonesian Moslem
\nUniversity who drowned in a river while trying to avoid police.<\/p>\n
The other fatalities were Syaiful and Adnan -- also students
\nof the Moslem university -- who later died of injuries after
\nnearly drowning in the nearby river when security officers raided
\nthe campus. Syaiful died on Wednesday, while Adnan died
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
The local military headquarters' spokesperson, Lt. Col.
\nMochtar Darise, said in a release yesterday that the security
\nentered the campus \"only as a precaution\".<\/p>\n
\"What really happened was that the anti-riot troops took a
\npreventive measure, escorting the students to their campus so
\nthat they wouldn't block traffic,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Eight students of the Indonesian Moslem University, who are
\ncurrently in Jakarta, yesterday lodged a protest over the
\nincident with the National Commission of Human Rights.<\/p>\n
The Secretary-General of the commission, Baharuddin Lopa, said
\nhis office would investigate the incident, and called on both
\nstudents and the security officers to exercise self-restraint and
\nnot resort to further violence.<\/p>\n
The riots began on Monday when thousands of university
\nstudents took to the streets to protest a local decree raising
\npublic transport fares by 62 percent, from Rp 300 (US$13 cents)
\nto Rp 500 (21 cents).<\/p>\n
The protests soon turned into clashes with security forces. On
\nWednesday, security forces used tear gas against the protesters
\nand made dozens of arrests. About 60 students were injured during
\nthe confrontation.<\/p>\n
Antara quoted Lt. Col. Mochtar as saying that the student
\nprotests were \"still normal and under control\".<\/p>\n
\"ABRI is willing to accommodate the students' aspirations,
\nbut ... will not tolerate suggestions which are destructive in
\nnature,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He called on the students not to be provoked into committing
\nbrutal actions which disturb public order. \"What worries us is
\nwhether the students are being encouraged by irresponsible
\npeople.\"<\/p>\n
Mochtar denied reports about a student who was shot to death
\nby police and about security officers \"taking over\" the campus.
\n(20\/16\/swe)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/fare-protests-fail-to-die-down-in-ujungpandang-1447893297",
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