Angry protesters seal governor's residence
Yuliansyah, The Jakarta Post, Banjarmasin
Angered by the fact that South Kalimantan Governor H.M. Sjachriel had ignored their demands for him to leave his official residence, dozens of people, grouped in the People's Suffering Action Forum (Kapera), sealed off the governor's official residence on Tuesday.
They halted many of the daily activities at the house as protesters closed off the entrance gate using a giant 300-meter long banner.
Before surrounding the residence located at Jl. Sudirman No. 1, Banjarmasin, the demonstrators made speeches deploring the corrupt practices by the governor in front of the compound, and demanding the governor to immediately leave the official residence.
After Sjachriel ignored their demands, the protesters, wearing red-colored battle fatigues and head bands, pushed their way to the entrance of the house but were prevented by police and security guards who had formed a human shield.
The protesters also demanded that Sjachriel and his family meet them as part of their moral responsibility.
On Monday, protesters stormed the governor's office demanding that the governor, who was voted out of office on Aug. 21, abandon his office without waiting for the decision of the home affairs ministry.
Sjachriel has been under fire from various groups for widespread allegations of corruption. He was technically voted out of office by the South Kalimantan legislature on Aug. 21, 2002 after protesters occupied the council building and threatened to stay if the local councillors did nothing about the corruption allegations.
Governor Sjachriel, a member of PPP, however, vowed to hold on to his office until President Megawati Soekarnoputri gave her approval of the council's move.
Tuesday's blockade of the residence lasted for around two hours before the demonstrators got tired and dispersed peacefully to continue their protest by parading around the city.
Separately, Chief of the Antasari Military Regional Command Col. Suadrmaidy aired his concerns over the heated political tension in the province and feared violence could erupt between the anti-governor camp and the supporters of governor Sjachriel.
"I've received reports that the groups will stage simultaneous demonstrations. We will watch out for their movements to avoid clashes," Suadrmaidy said.
While the local political squabble continued, a man, identified later as Frans Moemoek, claiming to be an official from the home affairs ministry, but suspicions quickly arose when it was discovered that he was not registered with the ministry.
According to several sources, Frans claimed that he was assigned from the Ministry of Home Affairs to obtain facts about the dismissal of Sjachriel and his deputy Husin Kasah from their respective positions.
Suspicious of the man's claim, speaker of the South Kalimantan Council Mansyah appealed to his colleagues not to say anything to the man, saying he was not registered as an official at the ministry after a quick check.
The ministry itself has announced that a team, led by the regional autonomy director general Oentarto, to investigate the governor's dismissal was sent to Banjarmasin.
On Monday, the eight-man team arrived and started working, collecting information from related parties.
"We cannot say when we will complete our task, it will last until we have enough information, then we will submit it to the Minister of Home Affairs," Oentarto said.