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.