Dormitory girls living in fear

Dormitory girls living in fear

From Media Indonesia

As girls staying at the Asrama Putri Purbawisesa dormitory on
Jl. Senopati in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, we are being held
in terror not knowing where to turn for help. We have been
fearful for quite some time because of an ongoing fight for the
5000-square-meter plot of land on which our dormitory building
stands between the Yayasan Perlindungan Purbawisesa foundation
and a dormitory occupant who claims to hold the deed (sertifikat)
to the land.

The dispute is now being examined at the South Jakarta
district court.

We don't know how the said occupant came to have the deed
which apparently was issued by the National Land Board (BPN).

However, while the court has not meted out a judgment on the
case yet, the said occupant and certain other people (who we
believe are vandals and servicemen) have been intimidating and
terrorizing us. Prior to the legal fight we have lived in peace
at the dormitory for 15 years.

We believe these people intend to frighten us and leave the
dormitory vacant.

And for a year now these people have made their quarters on
the dormitory premises and this for sure has heightened our
anxiety.

They continue to harass us by acts such as breaking the roof,
making holes in the wall and cutting the power lines, not
forgetting to threaten us into not protesting or fighting.

One of the girls who dared protest the ransacking of her room
was mistreated until several of her teeth fell out, her face was
bruised and her hair pulled out. We obtained a physician's visum-
et-repertum and with the medical record in hand we reported her
plight to the police on April 8, 1994. We also brought our case
to the National Commission on Human Rights. But so far our
complaint has not brought any response.

We had asked the Yayasan Perlindungan Purbawisesa and the
proper authority at the Ministry of Social Services for help but
to no avail.

The LBH legal aid foundation nearest to us advised us to file
our complaint with the police which we did a number of times, but
these failed too to elicit a response.

The latest piece of news that came to us was that a
representative of a PT Dana Yasa business firm had approached the
occupant claiming to have the land deed to negotiate a sale of
the land to them.

We are writing for help and to express our bewilderment how
certain servicemen could back up acts that harm the public.

We appeal for protection from the authorities.

Name and address

known to editor