Military chief guarantees no fresh unrest<\/p>\n
BANDUNG (JP): Armed Forces (ABRI) Chief Gen. Feisal Tanjung
\nguaranteed yesterday that every region in Indonesia was safe and
\nfresh outbreaks of mob violence were unlikely.<\/p>\n
\"ABRI is ready to safeguard every region. People have no
\nreason to worry about possible unrest in their areas,\" Feisal
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The media has exposed recent unrest in several areas so
\ndramatically that it creates the impression chaos is looming
\nlarge everywhere, he said.<\/p>\n
Feisal was in Bandung to open a regular course on
\nsociopolitical issues for Armed Forces members.<\/p>\n
The latest major unrest has been in West Kalimantan. The
\nDayak-Madura ethnic conflict has claimed scores of lives and
\ncaused untold damaged to property.<\/p>\n
Between October and January, religious and anti-Chinese riots
\nbroke out in the Java towns of Situbondo, Tasikmalaya and
\nRengasdengklok. Rioters targeted mainly Christian and Chinese
\nproperty. At least ten people were killed; churches, Buddhist
\ntemples, shops, houses and police posts were torched or damaged.<\/p>\n
Feisal called on the media not to dramatize events so as not
\nto incite people into committing more violence.<\/p>\n
When opening the course, the general alleged that some groups
\nwho did not believe in the state ideology Pancasila were out to
\nundermine the government.<\/p>\n
Some government opponents twist historical facts about the
\n1965 abortive coup and others formed organizations such as the
\nDemocratic People's Party (PRD), the Indonesian People's Council
\n(MARI) and the Indonesian Democratic Union Party (PUDI) to play
\npolitics outside the government-recognized system, Feisal said.<\/p>\n
They exploit discrepancies in government development programs
\nand blow up the issue of socioeconomic disparity.<\/p>\n
\"They demand the five political laws be overhauled without
\nconsidering the real situation of the Indonesian people,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Key PRD activists, including its chairman Budiman Sudjatmiko,
\nare on trial for subversion; they have been accused of sowing
\nhatred against the government and ABRI.<\/p>\n
PUDI, led by controversial politician Sri Bintang Pamungkas,
\nis not recognized by the government. In its latest move, the
\n\"party\" has drafted a document to replace the 1945 Constitution.<\/p>\n
And MARI, which groups senior political activists, lawyers and
\nhuman rights campaigners is demanding lower prices and greater
\ndemocracy.<\/p>\n
Feisal said that on the economic front, government critics
\ncharge that the authorities have failed to implement Article 33
\nof the 1945 Constitution, which guarantees that natural resources
\nare controlled by the state for the maximum benefit of the
\npeople. (ahy\/pan)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/military-chief-guarantees-no-fresh-unrest-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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