Govt looking for actors behind street rallies<\/p>\n
Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The government has moved to look for possible masterminds
\nbehind the rowdy street rallies against the utility and fuel
\nprice hikes, which appear to be turning into a movement to topple
\nthe government.<\/p>\n
Shortly after receiving a delegation from the National
\nAwakening Party under Alwi Shihab at her residence on Jl. Teuku
\nUmar, Central Jakarta, President Megawati Soekarnoputri held an
\nunscheduled meeting with Coordinating Minister for Political and
\nSecurity Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Indonesian Military
\n(TNI) chief Gen. Endriartono Sutarto and National Police chief
\nGen. Da'i Bachtiar to discuss the issue.<\/p>\n
A source close to the President told The Jakarta Post that
\nMegawati had asked her top security advisers about the possible
\ninvolvement in the rallies of former TNI chief Gen. (ret)
\nWiranto, National Mandate Party (PAN) lawmaker and former finance
\nminister Fuad Bawazier, former cooperatives minister and current
\nchairman of the Association of Indonesian Muslim Intellectuals
\n(ICMI) Adi Sasono and the chairman of the Bung Karno Nationalist
\nParty, Eros Djarot.<\/p>\n
The three senior officials left Megawati's residence
\nspeechless.<\/p>\n
Fuad, who chairs the Islamic Student Alumni Community (KAHMI),
\nhas been singled out by the deputy chairman of Megawati's
\nIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), Roy
\nB.B. Janis, as a possible actor behind the demonstrations.<\/p>\n
Wiranto, and Eros, who left the PDI Perjuangan over his
\ndisappointment with Megawati, have each talked about a presidium
\nto take over from the current government.<\/p>\n
It was also reported that the National Intelligence Agency
\n(BIN) chief A.M. Hendropriyono disclosed the names of the four
\nfigures during Monday's Cabinet meeting and planned to clarify
\nthe report with them some time this week.<\/p>\n
Both Adi and Eros denied on Tuesday allegations that they were
\nbehind the nationwide rallies.<\/p>\n
Adi condemned the government for failing to learn from the New
\nOrder's mistakes by seeking to scapegoat third parties instead of
\nrectifying its own mistakes.<\/p>\n
\"This afternoon, I tried to clarify with officials from BIN
\nabout whether or not their superiors wanted to question me, but
\nthey said they had no such plans.<\/p>\n
\"They also refused to discuss the issue further,\" Adi told a
\npress conference.<\/p>\n
Separately, Eros said the allegations were ridiculous and
\nasked how it would be possible for him to work together with
\nother people \"who have a different political platform from me\".
\nHe was referring to Wiranto, Fuad and Adi.<\/p>\n
Responding to the heightening political tension between the
\ngovernment and its critics, People's Consultative Assembly
\nSpeaker Amien Rais suggested on Tuesday that Wiranto, Adi, Fuad
\nand Eros meet with BIN officials for talks to examine the
\naccuracy of the allegations.<\/p>\n
Amien, who is also the PAN chairman, asserted that the public
\nhad a right to know the basis for the allegations in order to
\nprevent unfounded suspicions from arising.<\/p>\n
Susilo has twice warned of \"certain parties\" being behind the
\nantigovernment rallies, whose final goal was to replace the
\ncurrent administration. He also announced that there was a
\nscenario to create martyrs among the protesters, including
\nstudents.<\/p>\n
The minister described the \"certain parties\" as being radical
\nreligious and leftist groups, and those suffering from what he
\ndescribed as \"post-power syndrome\".<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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