YLBHI demands full information on Bogor fire<\/p>\n
BOGOR, West Java (JP): The authorities must be open with the
\npublic over the fire which razed the Kebon Kembang market on
\nThursday, according to the Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid
\nInstitute (YLBHI).<\/p>\n
\"The statement of the Bogor mayor Eddy Gunardi, which insisted
\nthere were only 10 victims, reflects an official's arrogance in
\nexplaining a public problem,\" Hendardi, the foundation's
\ncommunications director, said yesterday.<\/p>\n
\"It would be wiser for an official to state that
\ninvestigations will be completed ... rather than hanging onto
\ndata without reliable arguments,\" Hendardi said.<\/p>\n
This could lead to the impression that the authorities are
\ntrying to cover up the subject, he said. He also lashed out at
\nthe authorities for denying the press access to information.<\/p>\n
Based on the number of plastic bags carried by rescue workers
\nfrom the third floor of the Ramayana Department Store, media
\nreports said there were at least 76 fatalities.<\/p>\n
Survivors<\/p>\n
The Kompas daily yesterday cited survivors who said dozens of
\nfellow employees scattered to save themselves when the fire broke
\nout at around 5:30 a.m. on Thursday before they started to check
\nmerchandise.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, market traders said they saw more than 10 Ramayana
\nemployees in the shop when the fire broke out.<\/p>\n
\"They were lining up at the windows looking for an exit and
\nscreaming for help,\" said Ema, a trader.<\/p>\n
\"Why does it take so long for the police and doctors to
\ndifferentiate between ashes of humans and mannequins?\" another
\ntrader, Sarni, said.<\/p>\n
On Saturday the mayor said only 10 bags contained human bodies
\nand the other 66 plastic bags contained the department store's
\nburned mannequins or dead cats.<\/p>\n
Many people raised eyebrows on hearing the statements as they
\nbelieved the experienced rescue team members were capable of
\ndistinguishing burned human bodies from other burned materials.<\/p>\n
\"How could the team members have been sloppy by putting burned
\nmannequins and cats into plastic bags and carried and treated the
\nbags in such a way as if they contained human bodies?\" a resident
\nwho had been following the rescue team's activities at the fire
\nsite said.<\/p>\n
Red Cross Hospital officials and rescue team members were
\ntight-lipped to the media since the mayor made the statements on
\nSaturday. The hospital morgue has been closed to public.<\/p>\n
Ramayana employees said they had been instructed not to talk
\nto reporters. The fire site and the Red Cross hospital were still
\ntightly guarded.<\/p>\n
These strange actions could lead to increased suspicions of
\nefforts to manipulate facts, Hendardi said.<\/p>\n
The questionable statements of the mayor triggered a protest
\nby 50 students yesterday. They expressed anger at the closed
\nproceedings.<\/p>\n
The Institute for the Defense of Human Rights, chaired by
\nH.J.C. Princen, also questioned whether the management
\nprioritized the safety of merchandise over that of its employees,
\nas most doors could not be opened at the time of the fire. The
\nInstitute also reminded the public to uphold the principle of
\npresumption of innocence.<\/p>\n
Smoke was still rising from the site four days after the fire.<\/p>\n
Budi Sampurna, a pathologist at the hospital, told The Jakarta
\nPost yesterday that the ashes in the remaining 66 plastic bags
\nare still under examination by the forensics team.<\/p>\n
\"There is a small possibility that they are human ashes but
\nlet us see within a week,\" he said. He had earlier said it would
\ntake a week to examine the contents of the 66 plastic bags sent
\nto the hospital.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile Suwarto, Director General for Industrial Relations
\nand Labor Standards under the Ministry of Manpower, alleged the
\nRamayana management has ignored labor safety standards.<\/p>\n
The latest examinations by Ministry officials last March and
\nJune revealed there were two extinguishers and one exit which
\nwere accessible, he said. But they could not be used at the time
\nof the fire, he added.<\/p>\n
Suwarto said rules on safety standards do not mention the
\nrequired number of exits. However an architect, Boy Birawa, said
\nearlier that exits are mandatory for every 30-meter segment of a
\nbuilding.<\/p>\n
Suwarto said that, according to a 1970 labor safety law, the
\nmanagement faces a three-month jail sentence or a fine of Rp
\n100,000 (US$42.44) if it is found guilty of ignoring safety
\nstandards.<\/p>\n
Suwarto said he is also checking the number of fatalities with
\nthe Bogor branch of the state-owned company running social
\nsecurity insurance, PT Jamsostek.<\/p>\n
If the management is proved to have not registered employees
\nit faces a six-month prison sentence or a fine of Rp 50 million,
\nhe said. (03\/rms\/anr)<\/p>\n
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