Violence, death threats, ahead of polls<\/p>\n
Suherdjoko and Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post,
\nSemarang\/Medan<\/p>\n
Concerns about violence ahead of the upcoming legislative and
\npresidential elections have already become a reality in North
\nSumatra. A party figure in capital city Medan was hospitalized on
\nSaturday, after being stabbed by an unidentified motorist. While
\nmembers of the local chapter of the General Elections Commission
\n(KPUD) in Demak, Central Java, received death threats last week.
\n Richard Manik, 43, chairman of the Medan branch of the
\nPioneers' Party (PP) led by Rachmawati Soekarnoputri, is still in
\nintensive care in Medan's Advent Hospital.<\/p>\n
Medical workers at the hospital told The Jakarta Post on
\nSunday, said that the victim, whose condition was unstable, had
\nbeen stabbed in the lower-back.<\/p>\n
The local police said they were yet to determine the motive
\nbehind the attack.<\/p>\n
Richard's wife Sari Aviani said she could not identify the
\nattackers as the incident had happened very fast.<\/p>\n
\"My husband was washing the car in front of our house when the
\ntwo men attacked him. They escaped after stabbing him with a
\nmachete,\" she explained.<\/p>\n
Sari mentioned that the weekly tabloid Voice of Independent
\nWorkers, which her husband owned, had recently exposed corruption
\namongst local officials. This, she feared may have been the
\nattackers' motivation.<\/p>\n
She could not rule out that the attack had been triggered by
\nthe listing of local legislative candidates. She also said, two
\ndays before the incident, the terrace of her house had been set
\nablaze by unidentified parties.<\/p>\n
Chairman of PP's local chapter Pieter Manik said he was of the
\nsame opinion, that the articles run by the victim's tabloid had
\nprobably fueled the attack.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, three members of KPUD in Demak received death
\nthreats last Friday, after refusing a political party's list of
\nlegislative candidates, which failed to meet administrative
\nrequirements.<\/p>\n
Debby Rizani, one the three KPUD members, said that the death
\nthreats had been made by a legislative candidate and his
\nsupporters, who had submitted incomplete documents and been
\nrejected by the KPUD.<\/p>\n
\"While we remain alert, we have not been intimated by the
\nthreats. Also, we have reported the threats to the police.\" he
\nsaid.
\n Previously, chairman of the provincial chapter of the General
\nElection Supervisory Board (Panwaslu) Nur Hidayat Sardini, had
\nreported to the police that he had received similar threats made
\nby an unidentified caller to his cell phone.<\/p>\n
Sardini received the threats after identifying between 200 and
\n500 hoodlums and unemployed people to the local media. He
\nsuspected that these local people were ready to stir unrest ahead
\nof the general election scheduled for April 5.<\/p>\n
Responding to the situation in the province, Central Java
\nProvincial Police chief Insp. Gen. Didi Widayadi said on Sunday
\nthat the police had stepped up security for all members of KPUDs
\nand Panwaslu.<\/p>\n
\"The police are prepared to protect all election agents who
\nare threatened for doing their duty\", he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/violence-death-threats-ahead-of-polls-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}