Blast victim moved to Makassar

AMBON, Ambon: Haulussy Hospital director Jopie Manuputty said here on Tuesday that Lasamu, one of 53 people injured in a bomb blast in the town on July 27, would be transferred to a bigger hospital in the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar to treat his leg injuries.

Hospital officials said two others had undergone surgery after the explosion and 12 others had been discharged after receiving treatment.

Jopie said another 19 victims, who suffered minor injuries from shrapnel, were expected to recover soon.

Other victims of the explosion are being treated at several hospitals across Ambon, which had seen a fragile peace since the two warring parties involved in three years of conflict formally buried the hatchet in February. --Antara

Sampit refugees demand repatriation

SAMPANG, East Java: Five hundred Madurese who sought refuge in their ancestral hometown following ethnic riots in the Central Kalimantan regency of Sampit in 2001 rallied at the local legislature on Tuesday.

They demanded that the local government relocate them to Sampit, where they had made a living prior to the bloodshed there.

One of the displaced people, Ahmad Nora, complained to local councillors of the government's lack of attention to them.

"Central Kalimantan officials have visited and told us they would welcome us back to Sampit, but we cannot return to the town due to government disregard," Ahmad said.

He said the refugees could no longer stand living in their shelters and demanded that the government set a fixed date for their return to Central Kalimantan.

Speaker of the council Muhammad Hasan Asyari promised to forward the people's complaint to the central government. -- Antara

Residents quit smoking for school

GUNUNG KIDUL, Yogyakarta: Residents of Sawur hamlet in the Yogyakarta regency of Gunung Kidul have saved the money they would normally spend on cigarettes over a four-month period to help their children's school buy desks and chairs.

One of the state elementary school teachers, Kawes, told visiting House of Representatives legislator Mochtar Buchori on Tuesday that the children's parents raised nearly Rp 9.4 million from refraining from smoking.

Along with donations from American electronics company General Electric, the school collected Rp 18.75 million to purchase 75 chairs and 150 desks for school children from the first to sixth grades.

"Due to the poor furniture, three or four children had to share a desk," Kawes, who has been teaching for 21 years, recalled.

Buchori and GE-linked Mitra Pendidikan Global non-governmental organization representatives attended the handover of the schoolroom furniture. -- Antara

Student clash leaves 5 wounded

PADANG, West Sumatra: A group of PGRI 6 senior high school students attacked Adzkia school here on Tuesday, leaving five people slightly injured.

Police said the incident took place at the end of the school day. The PGRI students pelted the Adzkia school building with stones for unclear reasons as soon as they alighted from a public bus. A number of windows were broken, hurting Adzkia students Raury, Mizar Hasibuan, Doni, Rudi and Veri.

Patrolling police officers arrived minutes later to disperse the attackers. The police mistakenly arrested three students of other schools who were passing the site of incident.

Head of the operational and control center at the provincial police Adj. Sr. Comr. Prihartono E.L. said the police would mediate talks between students of the two schools. -- Antara

PDI-P supporters run amok

MEDAN, North Sumatra: A rally staged by dozens of Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) supporters at the party office here ended in violence on Tuesday.

The angry people ransacked the office, smashed a number of windows before occupying the building in protest of the issuance of a decision by the party's headquarters in Jakarta dated July 27 ordering the provincial chapter to hold a conference beginning on Wednesday to approve the new board of executives of the party's Medan branch.

The protesters, who came from various branch offices across the province, accused the provincial chapter of masterminding the issuance of the decision in a bid to win formal approval of their hand-picked men as executives in the branch office under the leadership of Donny Arsyal Gultom.

Donny's rise to the top post sparked protest among party supporters here. The previous conference recommended that the plenary meeting to select Donny's aides be held after the Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly, which will end on Aug. 10. -- Antara