Pasuruan gradually returns to normal after violence<\/p>\n
SURABAYA (JP): As many as 150 people were reported missing in
\nthe town of Pasuruan on Thursday as life gradually returned to
\nnormal following an interfaith meeting between senior local
\nulemas and Christian clergymen on Wednesday evening.<\/p>\n
Respected ulemas from Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), including KH Mas
\nSubadar, KH Mujib Imron, KH Abdul Halim and KH Zainuri, and
\nclergymen agreed to join hands to stop all violence and mass
\nrallies.<\/p>\n
\"No more mass rallies,\" the chief of the Pasuruan chapter of
\nBanser (the NU's civilian militia), Masyhudi Nawawan, said.<\/p>\n
He said that Banser had conducted a survey after the three
\ndays of unrest and found that 150 persons who had taken part in
\nthe street protests had yet to return home as of Thursday.<\/p>\n
\"That number does not include 47 people detained by the police
\nfor incitement. Many people have made reports to the Truth
\nDefenders' post (managed by Banser) that their relatives haven't
\nshown up since Monday,\" Masyhudi said. \"We are working together
\nwith the police to find them.\"<\/p>\n
Thousands of East Java people have joined pro-Abdurrahman
\ndemonstrations in Jakarta, and some of the 150 people who
\n\"disappeared\" from Pasuruan are presumed to be among those
\nprotesters.<\/p>\n
Many shops had opened again for business on Thursday, but some
\ngovernment offices were still closed. Pasuruan Regent Dede Angga
\nsaid, however, that public services in his office were back to
\nnormal.<\/p>\n
\"Many civil servants are still afraid of fresh violence. I'm
\nsure next week everything will return to normal,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Other towns in East Java, including Banyuwangi, Gresik,
\nBondowoso, Situbondo, Sidoardjo, Surabaya and Malang were also
\nreported to be less tense on Thursday.<\/p>\n
Most East Java towns are strongholds of Nahdlatul Ulama, the
\ncountry's largest Muslim organization which Abdurrahman Wahid
\nchaired for 15 years before being elected President.<\/p>\n
Violence erupted in several towns in East Java, but Pasuruan
\nwas the worst hit with one church being torched and two others
\nvandalized on Monday and Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Popular anger in the town came to a head after the issuance by
\nPresident Abdurrahman of his controversial executive order, or
\nMaklumat, on Monday.<\/p>\n
The peak of the clashes between the protesters and the
\nsecurity forces in Pasuruan came when a local was shot dead by
\npolice on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Ali Maschan Moesa, chairman of the East Java chapter of the
\nNU, said that his organization had instructed all its members and
\nsupporters to maintain security and order by abstaining from all
\nforms of violence.<\/p>\n
\"I earlier warned the politicians in Jakarta not to engage in
\npolitical shenanigans or the people at the grassroots level will
\nget angry.\"<\/p>\n
Demonstrations<\/p>\n
While East Java was reported calmer, demonstrations continued
\nto take place in other parts of the country.<\/p>\n
In the West Java capital of Bandung, a group of students
\ngrouped in Anti-New Order National Coalition staged a protest at
\nthe provincial legislative building, demanding the dissolution of
\nthe Golkar Party.<\/p>\n
\"Golkar must be disbanded now or the future of the country
\nwill become even more uncertain,\" one demonstrator said in his
\nspeech.<\/p>\n
They dispersed peacefully after legislators refused to meet
\nthem.<\/p>\n
In Makassar, South Sulawesi, a group of around 100 students
\nstaged a mass prayer in front of the Muhammadiyah University
\ncampus on Jl. Sultan Alaudin giving thanks for the \"successful\"
\nHouse of Representatives (DPR) plenary session.<\/p>\n
The House plenary session on Wednesday recommended that the
\nPeople's Consultative Assembly convene a special session to hold
\nthe President to account.<\/p>\n
The students thanked God that all the members of the House had
\nbeen saved from danger during the plenary session.<\/p>\n
In their speeches the students urged the public to trust their
\nrepresentatives in the House and \"stop using violence in
\npolitics.\"<\/p>\n
Another group of 500 students in Padang, West Sumatra,
\nwelcomed the House's call for an MPR special session.<\/p>\n
The students, grouped in the West Sumatra Students' Alliance,
\nstormed the gubernatorial office demanding that President
\nAbdurrahman step down soon.<\/p>\n
Doni Sofyan, the students' spokesman, said that the House's
\ndecision was the best course for the country. (25\/27\/28\/ylt\/sur)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pasuruan-gradually-returns-to-normal-after-violence-1447893297",
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