Police get tough on demos<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto and Abu Hanifah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The police took stern action against anti-U.S. demonstrators
\non Wednesday, arresting at least five protesters and beating
\nothers when they refused to leave.<\/p>\n
\"They are free to express their views, but that doesn't mean
\nthey are free to commit a crime,\" Jakarta Police spokesman
\nSr.Comr. Anton Bachrul Alam said here on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
He told The Jakarta Post that the police would take firm
\naction against any form of protest which could lead to anarchy
\nand disrupt public order.<\/p>\n
Anton said police had detained six protesters for public order
\noffenses during Wednesday's rallies. Four were students grouped
\nin the Jakarta branch of the Association of Islamic Students-MPO
\n(HMI), who are accused of tearing up the U.S. flag in front of
\nthe U.S. Embassy.<\/p>\n
\"Tearing up a flag, which is the national symbol of a state,
\nis a crime. This crime is punishable by four years imprisonment
\naccording to Article 142a of the Criminal Code,\" he explained.<\/p>\n
Police also detained two other protesters for possession of a
\nmachete and pickpocketing during Wednesday's rally.<\/p>\n
A group of 30 students from Attahiriyah University, Jakarta
\nwere physically removed by police officers when they refused to
\nleave.<\/p>\n
Another group from the Indonesian Youth Movement were guarded
\nby the police to ensure they would not get closer to the embassy
\ncompound.<\/p>\n
Police based their firm action on the law enacted on October
\n26, 1998, during the administration of former president
\nBacharuddin Jusuf Habibie.<\/p>\n
Articles No. 9 to No. 18 in the law set out the procedures
\nrequired for holding a protest. The law states, among other
\nthings, that people wishing to launch a protest should submit a
\nletter first to the police three days before the planned protest.<\/p>\n
It also states that no protests are allowed in the
\npresidential palace, places of worship, military installations,
\nhospitals, airports, railway stations, bus stations and other
\nvital installations.<\/p>\n
Anyone who violates the law faces one year imprisonment.<\/p>\n
Minister of Defense Matori Abdul Djalil said that all
\ndemonstrations should be carried out in accordance with
\nprevailing laws.<\/p>\n
\"Security officers should not be hesitant to take firm action
\nagainst protesters breaking the law,\" he said after briefing
\ndistrict military commanders from all over the country here on
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs
\nSusilo Bambang Yudhoyono has stressed that security officers
\nwould take stern action against demonstrators breaking the law.<\/p>\n
The police intensified their efforts on Wednesday to enforce
\nthe law. They established eight camps near the U.S. Embassy.<\/p>\n
They also brought in two more water canons and placed them in
\nstrategic positions.<\/p>\n
Ranks of police in full riot gear stood on alert in front of
\nthe barbed wire.<\/p>\n
Anton also said that the police had increased its personnel to
\nguard the capital from any destructive acts.<\/p>\n
Beno Kilapong, the commander of the Jakarta Police Mobile
\nBrigade, said security personnel at the U.S. Embassy had been
\nincreased in anticipation of escalating protests.<\/p>\n
\"There have been signs that more protests will be staged in
\nthe coming days,\" Beno told The Post, adding that Tuesday's clash
\nbetween police and protesters could trigger another wave of
\nprotests.<\/p>\n
Beno said the police had added three more companies to the
\nexisting three standing by at the embassy.<\/p>\n
Police also increased its number of officers guarding the
\nBritish Embassy at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle.<\/p>\n
People in the vicinity of the British Embassy were shocked by
\na blast at about 3:30 p.m., which caused some panic with people
\nbelieving it was a bomb blast.<\/p>\n
Police, however, said the blast was in fact a controlled
\nexplosion by the bomb squad on a package that was suspected of
\ncontaining a bomb.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the Islamic Defenders' Front (FPI) insisted on
\nWednesday that it would continue to protest the U.S.-led attacks
\nin Afghanistan.<\/p>\n
\"We will continue our rallies until the government realizes
\nour demands to sever diplomatic ties with the U.S.,\" Habib
\nMuhammad Rizieq said following a two-and-half-hour meeting with
\nthe Jakarta Police chief of detectives Sr. Comr. Adang Rochjana.<\/p>\n
\"During our informal talk with Pak Adang, we came to no
\nagreement with the police on whether to call off a search for
\nforeigners or our plans to attack U.S.-owned assets,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Habib, who was accompanied by six FPI members, met Adang on
\nWednesday to ask for clarification on a clash between police and
\nFPI protesters on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
During the meeting, police allowed the FPI to proceed with its
\nprotests but they should be conducted in accordance with
\nprevailing law.<\/p>",
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