Bima and Ende calm as protest hits Jakarta

Bima and Ende calm as protest hits Jakarta

JAKARTA (JP): Riot-hit Bima and Ende in Nusa Tenggara were
calm yesterday as security authorities managed to bring the two
towns under control, local officials said.

In Jakarta, scores of people staged a peaceful protest at Bank
Indonesia and the State Logistics Agency over the soaring prices
of essential commodities.

West Nusa Tenggara deputy police chief Col. Budiman Sulaeman
told Antara that 15 men were arrested following Saturday's riot
in Bima when a mob burned down three stores and damaged 20
others.

Hundreds of police officers backed up by scores of soldiers
were still deployed in the streets to maintain order, Budiman
said.

In Ende in East Nusa Tenggara, residents of Chinese descent
however were still too afraid to reopen their stores, the news
agency reported.

More than 100 of the town's residents of Chinese descent,
whose stores and houses were targeted in Sunday's riot, have been
taking refuge in local police and military stations, it said.

Yesterday, the security officers in Ende fired several warning
shots to disperse a mob returning to the town center after East
Nusa Tenggara Governor Herman Musakabe -- accompanied by
provincial military chief Col. Bambang Sumardji, deputy police
chief Col. Salikin Munits, the local logistic agency's deputy
chief, Slamet Zubaidy -- visited the riot scene.

An indefinite night curfew has been imposed in Ende from 7
p.m. to 6 a.m. since Sunday night.

At least 21 stores, mostly belonging to residents of Chinese
descent, were set ablaze and 71 damaged in Sunday's riot in the
town. All were looted, the news agency said, quoting Musakabe.

A different account, however, was given by Ende's regent,
Frans Gedowolo, when contacted by The Jakarta Post from the East
Nusa Tenggara town of Maumere.

He said 16 stores, two cars, and two motorcycles were torched
in the unrest in downtown Ende, after a demonstration by around
200 people turned violent.

The mob was angry over soaring prices of the nine basic
commodities; rice, sugar, detergent, cooking oil, kerosene,
clothing, unbleached textiles, salt, and salted fish.

Musakabe said in East Nusa Tenggara's capital of Kupang that
Sunday's vandalism and looting in Ende were criminal acts.

No arrests was reported, but the police have questioned
several people allegedly involved in the riot, Antara said.

He conceded that the unrest was sparked by the soaring prices
of commodities.

"Those who have suffered losses are not only the shop owners,
but the whole community for whom it will now be difficult to find
places to buy basic needs," the governor said.

The local government has planned to sell basic commodities
directly to the people in markets.

As much as 5,312 tons of rice has been prepared for the market
operation in Ende, Musakabe said. Similar operations were also
being conducted in other areas in the province.

In Jakarta, hundreds of protesters marched through city
thoroughfares to demand the government restore the shattered
currency and ensure the country had enough basic commodities.

Under the watchful eyes of riot police and soldiers, including
members of the Army Strategic Reserves Command, the six-hour
protest passed without incident.

The approximately 200 demonstrators were mostly supporters of
the ousted leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party Megawati
Soekarnoputri. They marched to the central bank offices,
protesting the instability of the rupiah and demanding the bank's
governor resign.

The crowd then moved along the city's main thoroughfares,
marching around eight kilometers, to the State Logistics Agency.
Their numbers swelled as passersby joined in.

Calling themselves the Red and White Force, the protesters
demanded, among other things, that funds allocated for projects
not directly related to food supply should be withdrawn and top
priority be given to ensuring smooth distribution of basic
commodities.

In Bandung yesterday, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Wiranto called
on people to ignore rumors and leaflets that provoked them to
riot in the wake of the economic crisis. (44/yac/emf/aan)