Anti-luxury car rally turns sour

Anti-luxury car rally turns sour

JAKARTA (JP): About 20 people protesting against imported
luxury cars clashed with 30 customs officers outside the
Directorate General of Customs and Excise in East Jakarta on
Wednesday.

The clash was the climax of the protest by the Anti-Luxury
Cars Movement (GAMM) which had demanded that the government
destroy smuggled 172 luxury cars which have been seized by the
customs agency.

The group's leader, M. Syaiful Jihad (above picture), was
beaten by the customs officers when trapped behind the gate of
the office, which had separated the two sides, after it was
brought down. The other protesters fled.

Syaiful, who suffered minor injuries, was handed over to the
police which arrived just as the clashes broke out. He was later
taken to the Pulogadung police precinct for questioning.

In compliance with the World Trade Organization ruling, the
government lifted a ban against imports of luxury cars in 1998.
The ban was reimposed in February, but it was lifted again in
June. The end of the ban has also led to luxury cars being
smuggled into Indonesia to avoid the high import duties.

The protesters asked to meet with Director-general for Customs
and Excise Permana Agung to demand follow up actions after the
seizure of the smuggled cars.

Besides calling for the cars to be destroyed, they also asked
that the smugglers be sentenced to death.

The protesters were mostly students from the Islamic Students
Association (HMI) and various other nongovernment organizations.
(04)