Concerted action needed to fight robberies

Concerted action needed to fight robberies

By Mulyana W. Kusumah

JAKARTA (JP): The recent spate of robberies here, including
the one at the Ministry of Information across from Merdeka
Palace, has caused genuine concern.

The more so as the crime befalling mostly on bank clients is
replicated in a number of big cities.

On average, there were eight to nine robberies per month in
Jakarta this year except for October, which topped the list with
15.

On the first day of November, seven robbers armed with sickles
and pistols snatched the monthly wages of PT Wira Matra Guna
employees in Cempaka Putih, East Jakarta. On the same day,
pistol-wielding robbers made away with money and jewelry from the
home of an official of the Ministry of Agriculture and a house in
Bintaro, South Jakarta.

Not a single day passes by without reports of a robbery, often
accompanied by murder. The victim may be a bank customer, an ojek
driver or a taxi driver. Robberies of taxi drivers have grown
significantly, from five in 1994 to nine last year, and 26 up to
October this year.

A shocking aspect of robberies of taxi drivers is the callous
killings committed by young criminals, mostly teenage students.
One example is Dicky Permana, a taxi driver whose throat was
slashed.

On Nov. 14, robbers took the life of Sahid Hasan, 35, the
director of a haj travel agency. He was shot in the left side of
his chest and was robbed of Rp 30 million.

These robbers operate in gangs by using different modi
operandi, and fall into three categories.

First, the professional ones make a move only when their plan
is ripe. They are armed and move efficiently. Leaders of this
group are an experienced lot, who have gone through trials and
errors. Their victims are usually very affluent persons or they
are in possession of valuables which can be robbed at minimum
risk. They are capable of committing violence and taking
lightning-speed action.

In the second category are those who grab valuables either
through violence or by threatening the victim. They usually work
in groups of four to 15 people, and are often led by reputed
criminals. In their operation, they are equipped with sharp
weapons and have a loose network with relative conventional
working standards. As they usually have no in-depth perception of
risk factors, they often end up in the hands of the police.

In the third category are young criminals, mostly students,
who committed robberies because of financial problems. The
victims are usually taxi drivers or those who are easily
approached because of the nature of their job and have easy money
access. The plunder from their crimes is relatively small (Rp
30,000 to Rp 150,000) which appears to be incompatible with the
relatively great risks they take. Members of this group who
commit robberies under the influence of alcohol are often caught
in the act. Violence is used, especially against those putting up
resistance.

These three groups operate in Jakarta and its vicinity. Nearly
half of the robbery cases are still unsolved, and the presence of
these criminals is a menace to the residents' sense of security.

Various open and covert operations have been conducted by the
police with military support, including searching for illegal
firearms. However, the ever-increasing trend of robberies and
thefts is still a disturbing social reality.

Police operations, like Operation Lightning Speed, should have
been publicly backed up with concrete actions to crush crime
effectively in the capital.

The public's spontaneous efforts, implemented by way of a
neighborhood security system, should be reevaluated if the right
concept to prevent today's criminal tendencies is to be found.

A social approach is also necessary, judging from the behavior
of individual citizens, which often makes them susceptible to
crime. In addition, there is a lack of empathy toward crime
victims and the widely held perception that security is the sole
responsibility of the authorities.

The crime rate can be reduced if the public is quick to
respond to the incidence of a crime. A more conceptual law is
needed to spur participation and support from the public to fight
crime.

The writer is a lecturer in social sciences at the University
of Indonesia and secretary to the Legal Aid and Human Rights
Association.