Demonstrators turn out if force outside House

JAKARTA (JP): Braving heavy rain, thousands of protesters swarmed the streets around the House of Representatives (DPR) on Thursday to apply pressure on President Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid to resign over alleged involvement in two financial scandals.

Thousands of others converged on the same site with contradictory calls, only to spark verbal clashes.

Police estimated that as many as 10,000 protesters showed up, most of them calling for Abdurrahman Wahid to quit.

As most legislators strongly suspect that Gus Dur played a role in the Bulog and Brunei financial scandals, over 5,000 student protesters filled the road from the Jakarta Police headquarters on Jl. Sudirman to the DPR complex, shouting anti- Gus Dur slogans.

"Why Gus Dur? He is destroying our country. He is of no use," a student from the National University shouted through a megaphone prompting thousand of others to join him in crying out anti-Gus Dur slogans.

"If it is proven that he is involved in those scandals, Gus Dur must resign!"

Traffic police were forced to block Jl. Gatot Subroto, the Cawang-Grogol tollroad and streets in Pejompongan leading to the DPR complex, to obstruct buses carrying hundreds of protesters.

Over 4,000 riot police officers tried their best to block protesters from entering DPR, and tried to keep them apart.

Grouped under various organizations like City Forum (Forkot), Trisakti Students Unity Action (Kamtri) and Students Action for Democracy Forum (Famred), protesters failed to break through the cordons of police officers guarding the DPR complex, but managed to heighten tension, and traffic in the Semanggi-Slipi area.

Heavy showers caused anti-Gus Dur protesters from Central Java and West Java to disperse and to retreat on foot towards Jl. K.S. Tubun in Tanah Abang, but the rain didn't stop the arrival of Forkot, Famred and Kamtri, who voiced their support for the special inquiry committee.

Although praising the protesters for refraining themselves from violence, City Police chief Insp. Gen. Mulyono Sulaiman admitted a small brawl erupted between two groups outside the heavily guarded House building as legislators were debating over what action should be taken against the President.

"So far, Jakarta remains under control, and we hope that that can be maintained. The protesters have exercised their right in quite an orderly manner," Mulyoni said.

The House voted almost unanimously on Thursday to endorse the results of the investigation report presented by a special committee in a plenary session on Monday.

The investigation revolved around two multi-million dollar financial scandals -- one involving the diversion of Rp 35 billion funds from the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) foundation, and the other Abdurrahman's accounting over a US$2 million gift from the Sultan of Brunei.

Abdurrahman has repeatedly pleaded innocent and claims he knew nothing about the scandals. He also insisted he would not resign despite mounting pressure on him to do so.

Students played a pivotal role in the ousting of former president Soeharto in May 1998, in which Abdurrahman was among leaders at the vanguard of the reform movement.

Mulyono said some 15,000 police troops were deployed to maintain security and order in the capital and would remain in place for another few weeks under the operation code named Sadar Jaya.

National Police Chief Gen. Suroyo Bimantoro told reporters at the scene that the capital was in a "normal condition and secure."

"I traveled around Jakarta using our helicopter. Crowds are concentrated at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout, in Salemba (Central Jakarta) and around the DPR complex. Other then that, Jakarta is safe," Bimantoro told reporters, after inspecting his forces at the DPR complex.

"I also ask all protesters not to use violence when protesting. If they do, the police will take firm action. The DPR complex is actually not meant for people to take sides and protest."

Tension heightened as pro-Gus Dur protesters obstructed thousands of students grouped in the Student Executive Body (BEM) -- mostly arriving from Java -- from standing in front of the gates to the DPR complex.

The students were finally allowed to do so, but it ended with police having to close the Cawang-Grogol tollroad.

Some pro-Gus Dur supporters armed with long sticks, who were separated from the students by the toll road partition, ended up throwing softdrinks bottles and paper at the students.

At a separate event, students grouped under the National Students League for Democracy (LMND), Forkot and the Swadarma University demanded the disbandment of the Golkar Party.

As the rain stopped, protesters marched on to the heavily- guarded presidential palace to repeat their demands after hearing that the House had almost overwhelmingly accepted the result of the investigation into the scandals which implicated Gus Dur.

Outside the palace, armored cars and security troops were prepared for action.

After some time the students marched off to the nearby Supreme Court building, where another group of Gus Dur opponents had amassed.

Military troops and police watched over the rally, the largest to have been staged in front of the State Palace yet.