City to clear away political banners

JAKARTA (JP): Governor Sutiyoso reiterated an order to officials on Tuesday to take down all unlicensed political banners erected throughout the city over the past few weeks.

Besides detracting from the capital's beauty, the cloth banners -- hanging on pedestrian bridges, trees, buildings and lampposts -- had been put up in places in complete disregard of city regulations, he said.

"People cannot display banners wherever they like because they have to meet the existing regulations, such as paying levies," the governor said.

The banner cleanup campaign had reportedly started several days ago, according to the governor.

He said a number of banners, many of which blame the banned Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) for recent or upcoming unrest, were still in place in several spots of the capital.

Some read "PKI cadres: The mastermind of looting and rioting" and "Be careful of PKI's involvement in the reform movement". Few of the anti-PKI messages gave an indication as to who was responsible for the banner.

One slogan, seemingly erected by the Indonesian Council for Islamic Propagation (DDI), read "The state is under a threat: PKI's third rebellion ... September 1998".

PKI was banned in Indonesia following a failed coup attempt on Sept. 30, 1965.

A large number of banners could still be seen on some of the city's main thoroughfares, including Jl. Diponegoro, Jl. Veteran, Jl. Pos, Jl. Menteng Raya in Central Jakarta and Jl. Sultan Agung in South Jakarta and Jl. Suprapto and Jl. Matraman Raya, East Jakarta.

The governor claimed that the banners' removal had nothing to do with the city's efforts to prevent renewed unrest.

"I just see it as a way to beautify the city," Sutiyoso said.

"If we take no action, the city would become a war zone with banners competing for space to disseminate different political messages. Could you imagine that?" he asked reporters.

"We're not looking for the people behind the banners. We just want to keep the city clean," Sutiyoso insisted.

A similar campaign to remove banners occurred in June when banners calling for the investigation of former president Soeharto's wealth appeared on the city's streets following the former president's resignation on May 21. (ind)