Nationwide crackdown on street thugs continues<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): National Police Chief Gen. Banurusman
\nAstrosemitro ordered regional police yesterday to continue the
\nnationwide operation against street hoodlums.<\/p>\n
Banurusman was quoted as saying by National Police spokesman
\nBrig. Gen. I.K. Ratta that the operation requires strong support
\nfrom the public and related institutions.<\/p>\n
\"Never spare a single street criminal,\" Ratta quoted
\nBanurusman as saying. \"The preman problem cannot be solved by the
\npolice alone,\" he said referring to the local term for hoodlums.<\/p>\n
\"We really need active participation from the people and
\nvarious related bodies to settle the problem,\" he added.<\/p>\n
According to official figures, police nationwide have netted a
\ntotal of 11,787 thugs since the operation began on March 6.<\/p>\n
Of those, 893 have been arraigned in court. The rest have been
\neither freed and put under close surveillance or undergone
\nvocational training provided by the military.<\/p>\n
Of the country's 27 provinces, Jakarta, East Java and Central
\nJava have rounded up the largest number of hoodlums in the
\nongoing operation, Ratta said.<\/p>\n
Police in the capital city of Jakarta, for instance, have
\nnetted a total of 6,755 suspected thugs. They were arrested while
\nharassing and terrorizing people.<\/p>\n
Of that number, 569 have been sent to take two-week vocational
\ntraining courses at the city military regiment training center in
\nCondet, East Jakarta, and the State Police School in Lido,
\nSukabumi, West Java which will end tomorrow.<\/p>\n
\"Consider preman as thugs whose activities involve drugs,
\nalcohol, sharp weapons or even guns,\" Ratta said.<\/p>\n
The hoodlums, he said, usually mix with long-time criminals,
\nacting like \"cowboys\", controlling a specific territory of public
\nplaces and extorting people.<\/p>\n
Ratta said the public is encouraged to report the presence of
\nhoodlums in their neighborhood to the authorities.<\/p>\n
\"Just take a piece of paper, write down the details and sent
\nit to Post Box 777 or 7777 in any province,\" he said. \"We'll do
\nour best to immediately solve the problems,\" he promised.<\/p>\n
The massive operation against hoodlums began following an
\nattack on two middle-rank police officers by 10 thugs at the
\ncrowded Blok M shopping center in South Jakarta on the evening of
\nMarch 6. One of the officers died.<\/p>\n
But the police insist the war against hoodlums had been
\ndeclared long before the Blok M incident.<\/p>\n
\"It's a routine operation, not revenge,\" Banurusman told a
\nhearing with members of the House of Representatives last month.<\/p>\n
A couple of days after the incident, the police fatally shot
\none of the 10 hoodlums who attacked the police officers. They
\nsaid the man was the one who masterminded the attack.<\/p>\n
Police claimed that the suspect was shot when trying to run
\naway from being captured by police.<\/p>\n
Despite harsh criticism of the police action and the treatment
\nof suspected preman, many people support the continuation of the
\noperation.<\/p>\n
As the crackdown continues, public places, such as shopping
\ncenters, bus terminals and red-light districts in many cities are
\nfree of hoodlums. (bsr)<\/p>",
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