Military threatens to get tougher<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Armed Forces (ABRI) warned yesterday that it
\nwould not hesitate to use force in quelling future disturbances
\nsimilar to those which rocked Jakarta over the weekend.<\/p>\n
ABRI Chief of Sociopolitical Affairs Lt. Gen. Syarwan Hamid
\nsaid troopers had a standing order not to open fire when dealing
\nwith the rioters last weekend. However, he hinted that the order
\ncould be withdrawn if the violence persists.<\/p>\n
\"Don't try us again,\" Syarwan said during a meeting at the
\nMinistry of Information that gathered editors from all the
\nnewspapers and broadcasting companies.<\/p>\n
Separately, Maj. Gen. Sutiyoso, the chief of the Jakarta
\nRegional Military Command, said he would order his soldiers to
\nshoot on sight at the first sign of things getting out of
\ncontrol.<\/p>\n
\"The order to shoot on the spot will be given if they
\n(troublemakers) renew their efforts to disrupt peace and order at
\nthe expense of the general interest of the public.<\/p>\n
\"We have our limit of tolerance,\" he was quoted by Antara as
\nsaying. Every security forces member in the field is now carrying
\nfirearms in anticipation of spreading violence, he added.<\/p>\n
Syarwan said the unrest was the work of the Democratic
\nPeople's Party (PRD), riding on the back of the leadership
\nconflict within the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI).<\/p>\n
\"This is no longer a question of the conflict between Soerjadi
\nand Megawati (Soekarnoputri),\" he said of the two bickering PDI
\nleaders.<\/p>\n
\"This is an uprising,\" he said, adding that some of the PRD
\nmembers were trained in the Philippines.<\/p>\n
The PRD, founded in 1994, has been blamed for many anti-
\ngovernment protests and labor strikes in the past year.<\/p>\n
Police yesterday raided the PRD headquarters in the Tebet
\ndistrict in South Jakarta only to find it empty.<\/p>\n
President Soeharto on Monday said that PRD is \"synonymous\"
\nwith PKI, the Indonesian Communist Party banned in 1966 after it
\nwas blamed for staging a coup a year earlier.<\/p>\n
Asked about the strength of the PRD, Syarwan said it was still
\ntoo small to stage an uprising. \"It is a thorn in the flesh and
\nwe have to get rid of it. If it is allowed to continue, it will
\nstage a coup d'etat.\"<\/p>\n
He said the 200 or so people held for questioning after the
\nriots were \"small worms\" and the authorities are going after the
\nmasterminds, or the \"intellectual\" figures, behind the flare-up.<\/p>\n
He cited Budiman Sudjatmiko, the PRD chairman, as one of the
\nfigures the authorities are looking for.<\/p>\n
Budiman in an interview with Gatra magazine last week stressed
\nthat the PRD's ideology is \"people's social democracy\". If the
\nauthorities see similarities with the PKI, he said, that is only
\nbecause the PRD follows a conventional party structure and not
\nbecause it is a copycat of the PKI.<\/p>\n
Syarwan said an order had been issued to all regional military
\ncommands to stop the activities of the PRD.<\/p>\n
In Surabaya, the military has closed down the PRD office and
\ndeclared its activities in the East Java province illegal.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Police Chief Maj. Gen. Hamami Nata said yesterday that
\nhe had asked for President Soeharto's permission to question
\nMegawati and Soerjadi in connection with the violence.<\/p>\n
Both Megawati and Soerjadi enjoy privileges in their
\ncapacities as members of the House of Representatives. Any
\nquestioning by the police must have the consent of the President.<\/p>\n
Pressure is mounting from some politicians and organizations
\nto pin the blame for the unrest on Megawati because she allowed
\nthe free-speech forum sessions to take place at the PDI
\nheadquarters when it was under her control.<\/p>\n
The forum had been used by Megawati's supporters and activists
\nto attack the government. The riot followed the forced takeover
\nof the headquarters by Soerjadi's supporters on Saturday morning.<\/p>\n
Hamami said police have formally issued arrest warrants for
\n120 people with charges ranging from rebellion and arson to
\ndestruction of property. Police were still questioning 120 others
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
Another body was found yesterday inside Bank Kesawan, one of
\nseveral office buildings razed in Saturday's rampage. Workers
\nfound an ID card with the name of Suganda Siahaan of Pematang
\nSiantar, North Sumatra, on the badly charred body.<\/p>\n
The military said two people were killed in Saturday's riots:
\none a security guard who jumped from the seventh floor of a bank
\nbuilding on fire, the other a protester who died of a heart
\nattack. Police declined to comment on the finding of a third
\nbody.<\/p>\n
The weekend flare-up was also the main topic at the monthly
\ncabinet meeting to review the security situation in the country.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for Political Affairs and Security
\nSoesilo Soedarman said after the meeting that the PRD and similar
\norganizations are clearly opposed to the New Order.<\/p>\n
\"We appeal to everyone for restraint and to not be influenced
\nby irresponsible rumors that try to discredit the New Order,\" he
\nsaid. (emb\/mds\/bsr)<\/p>\n
Comment -- Page 2<\/p>\n
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