Aceh truck drivers strike over extortion

JAKARTA (JP): Truck drivers in Banda Aceh, who daily transport goods and staple foods to and from the North Sumatra capital of Medan, said on Tuesday they would remain on strike.

The strike has caused an increase in the price of vegetables and other goods in Aceh. After Takengon in Central Aceh, Medan is the main supplier of many of the daily needs for people in the province.

Antara reported that the price of vegetables had risen threefold to Rp 1,500 per kilogram, while tomatoes had risen from Rp 3,500 to Rp 8,000 per kilogram.

The price of red chilly jumped from Rp 1,500 to Rp 6,500 per kilogram.

Truck drivers have been on strike to protest what they say is rampant extortion by security officers along the highway connecting Banda Aceh and Medan.

"We have not received any new deliveries of vegetables for three days," a trader, Mawardi, told Antara.

This is the second such action by truck drivers, who also went on strike in January. They ended this first strike after receiving assurances from the police that they would put an end to the extortion.

The drivers said they were now being extorted for more money than they could afford to handover.

The strike has also affected the flow of goods like soybeans and peanuts to Medan, which is the main gateway for non-oil and gas exports from Aceh.

In a separate development, an alleged Aceh rebel was killed and four military personnel were injured in an attack by Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatists, a military officer said on Tuesday.

According to the officer, the rebels tossed a grenade at a group of soldiers passing through Alur Lebu village in Bireum Bayeun district in East Aceh at about 10 a.m. on Monday.

An unidentified man believed to be one of the attackers was shot dead during the ensuing exchange of gunfire, the officer said. (50)