City police not equipped to handle major rioting

City police not equipped to handle major rioting

JAKARTA (JP): Jakarta Police Chief Insp. Gen. Sofjan Yacob
said on Monday that the police would not be able to handle a
situation like the May 1998 riots and have therefore deployed
maximum security personnel in the capital to prevent such an
incident from reoccurring..

He noted that the Jakarta Police had deployed almost all of
its personnel in the capital ahead of the May 30 plenary session
of the House of Representatives, which could possibly lead to
civil unrest.

"We have really gone all out this time... we cannot afford a
situation like the 1998 May riots to reoccur," Sofjan told
reporters.

"We will not be able to handle a lawless and bloody situation
like that at the moment because we lack adequate police
equipment."

The riots in mid-May 1998, occurred in the capital over three
consecutive days and triggered lawlessness and violence in
several other parts of the country.

Security was literally taken over by the Armed Forces and
police officers were barely visible during the riots.

A report from the National Commission on Human Rights claimed
that at least 1,188 people were killed during the rioting.

Sofjan noted that both police precincts and subprecincts in
the capital were short of portable fire engines and motorcycles,
which would be required to contain massive rioting.

He noted that the Jakarta Police would need at least 300
motorcycles so that police officers would be able to respond
swiftly to crime scenes.

But the Jakarta Police claim that they have no funds to
purchase new equipment, adding that national funds that could
normally be allocated for the Jakarta Police in such
circumstances have already been used up to equip policemen in a
number of other violence-hit areas across the country, such as
Aceh, Central Kalimantan and Maluku. (ylt)